The Oregon State Senate has passed a bill to tighten oversight of the Wolf Depredation Program and provide more compensation to farmers who lose livestock to wolf attacks.
"This is a way that you can reach back to those individual ranchers, to that community with a positive vote here today and say, 'We recognize your loss,'" said Sen. Todd Nash, a chief sponsor of this bill.
The program, established in 2011, allows farmers and agricultural workers to apply for compensation when wolves attack, injure, or kill livestock or working animals. The bill received bipartisan support on the Senate floor, with only one lawmaker voting "no" on the measure. The newly passed bill seeks to revise the program by restricting compensation claims to only those animals confirmed to have been injured or killed by wolves and eliminating claims for missing animals. This change aims to prevent unverifiable claims and focus on confirmed damages.
"When we're talking about compensation, there's only one entity here that actually loses, and that's the livestock owner," said Nash.
The bill introduces a multiplier system to increase compensation based on the type of animal affected. Under the new system, the fair market value of calves, sheep, and goats would be multiplied by five, while cattle, excluding calves, would see their value tripled. Horses, other livestock, and working dogs would not receive a multiplier. Farmers can claim up to $25,000 per animal.
“Goats and sheep are lower-value animals. And so to make it worthwhile to actually go through the investigations, we felt it was necessary to put a higher multiplier on them," said Nash.
Currently, there is no formalized multiplier system, and counties can recommend additional compensation without a clear formula.
The bill also emphasizes preventing wolf depredation by mandating that at least 50% of funds awarded to counties be allocated to nonlethal deterrents, such as fences, guard dogs, and alarms. Counties would be responsible for establishing local programs to manage compensation and deterrent funding, forming wolf depredation advisory committees to review claims and determine payouts.
These committees would consist of a county commissioner, two livestock owners or managers, two wolf conservation supporters, and two local business representatives. They would also set local guidelines and ensure the fair distribution of funds between compensation and deterrents.
"These changes increase fairness, accountability, local control, ensure that funds are allocated effectively and tailored to the unique need of each county," said Senate Minority Leader Daniel Bonham.
Some oppose this bill. Amaroq Weiss, a wolf advocate with the Center for Biological Diversity, said the focus needs to be on where these encounters are most common, not just a general compensation increase.
"Why not focus on the ranching operations that the agency already knows have been having repeated conflicts, work harder there to make sure that the right proactive measures are being used," said Weiss.
Weiss added that, with increased payouts, the fund may not be able to reimburse those who want to take proactive measures.
"From what I have learned, about 80% of the requests that have been coming in over the years have been for reimbursement for using non-lethal measures as opposed to outright compensation," said Weiss. "If they're now allowed to pay out five times the amount, they'll do that first. They will bankrupt the fund."
Nash is sponsoring another bill asking for $2 million from the general fund to support this program long-term. Here's how Nash responded when KATU asked about the potential for the fund to be bankrupted.
"The environmental community, the only time that they show up under fiscally conservative in the Capitol is when money is going to ranchers," said Nash. "So no, I don't think it's going to bankrupt the program. We're asking for $2 million for the biennium in Senate Bill 985, and we do need to find a way to fund this permanently. We didn't want to try to take on more than we could in this one session."
To receive compensation, farmers must prove that a wolf injured or killed their livestock, with verification from the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife (ODFW) or a designated official. They must also demonstrate adherence to best management practices, particularly in areas with known wolf activity.
For grants related to nonlethal deterrents, applicants must submit cost estimates and plans aligned with state-approved wolf deterrence strategies.
The Oregon Department of Agriculture (DOA) will oversee the program, setting guidelines for county fund distribution and monitoring participation. The DOA is also required to submit biennial reports to the Oregon Legislature on the program's progress.
Source - https://katu.com
