Wolf Delisting: Wyoming Senator Says Feds Double-Crossed in Wolf Decision

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator John Barrasso says the federal government double-crossed the state of Wyoming in deciding to reverse its decision to remove gray wolves from the endangered species list.

Lawyers representing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Monday told a federal judge in Montana that the agency intends to withdraw a decision it released this spring concluding that wolves no longer needed federal protection.

The reversal followed the judge's order this summer blocking the federal government from transferring wolf management authority to Wyoming, Montana and Idaho in response to a lawsuit from environmental groups.

Barrasso, a Republican from Casper, calls the Fish and Wildlife decision a "significant breach of trust." He says the federal wildlife agency reneged on its commitment to the people of Wyoming.