Harney County Court adopts resolution asking Congress to remove gray wolf from Oregon ESA listing

Harney County Court on July 2 adopted Resolution No. 2025-12 requesting that the United States Congress legislatively remove the gray wolf from the federal Endangered Species Act listing within the state of Oregon.

The resolution, introduced and read for the record during the court’s regular session, says Harney County requests congressional action to delist the gray wolf for Oregon and describes recent state wolf counts and management distinctions between eastern and western Oregon. The resolution also notes that the county "recognizes that human interactions with wolves within proximities that pose a risk to safety are increasingly occurring" and states the county’s duty "to protect the interests of its citizens."

The court discussed adding language asking the state to allocate sufficient resources to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) and wildlife services to administer wolf management if federal delisting occurs. Commissioner Frank said the Natural Resources Advisory Committee (NRAC), which includes a member from ODFW, reviewed the draft and suggested including a request for state resource allocation. "It wouldn't be a bad idea to put something like that in there," Frank said during the meeting.

Lee Foster, identified in the meeting as an ODFW-affiliated speaker, was referenced for explaining that eastern Oregon is managed differently than the west and that portions of eastern Oregon are already in later management phases. The court discussed that local wildlife services are instrumental to implementing the state wolf management plan and that staffing and funding constraints have made response and management burdensome in some counties.

A motion to adopt Resolution No. 2025-12 was made and seconded; commissioners present responded "aye" and the meeting record states the motion carried. The court discussed circulating the resolution to federal and state elected officials and to the National Association of Counties (NACo) Natural Resources steering committee as a statement of county support.

The resolution as adopted includes findings about state wolf counts, references the Oregon wolf conservation and management plan, and requests Congress to act for the portion of Oregon the resolution covers. Officials noted the document is intended as a formal position of the county and that further, more detailed requests to state officials could follow if delisting occurs.

Ending The court approved Resolution No. 2025-12 and instructed staff to format signature blocks and to make the document available for use in correspondence with legislators and county associations. The court also discussed returning later to consider additional language that explicitly asks state officials to provide resources for wolf management if federal delisting proceeds.