OLYMPIA – Bills prompted by the exponential growth of wolf populations in Northeastern Washington and the related increase in predation have been signed into law by Gov. Bob Ferguson.

The bills, sponsored by Sen. Shelly Short, continue funding for a wildlife specialist in Northeastern Washington and earmark a share of funding for deer-and-elk-related crop damage for farmers in the state’s least-populous counties. Short said the bills address issues associated with the return of wolves to the state.

“As predator populations increase in Northeastern Washington, so are conflicts between humans and wildlife,” Short said. “We need to manage these interactions to reduce harm to farmers, ranchers and others who live nearby.”

Senate Bill 5343 continues funding for a wildlife specialist in Ferry, Pend Oreille and Stevens Counties to aid the Department of Fish and Wildlife in wolf management. Grants are provided through the Northeast Washington Wolf-Livestock Management Account, which pays for non-lethal countermeasures to wolf predation. The wildlife specialist monitors conditions on the range and provides a point of contact for area residents affected by predation. Funding will be maintained through 2031.

Senate Bill 5165, signed into law by Ferguson on April 30, addresses an indirect result of growing predator populations in the backwoods. As deer and elk are driven into the lowlands, crop damage is on the rise. The state currently compensates farmers for crop losses in excess of $1,000 due to deer and elk. The bill requires that at least 20 percent of state compensation funding is earmarked for sparsely populated counties with 21 people or fewer per square mile. Twelve of the state’s 39 counties would qualify.

Nearly a century after wolves were eradicated in this state, they returned to Washington in 2008, migrating across the border from North Idaho. The latest wildlife survey indicates that a minimum of 230 wolves are living in Washington state in 43 packs, most of them in Northeastern Washington. Last year 40 wolf attacks were reported to the state, resulting in the death of at least 17 cattle and one domestic dog. Wolves also are suspected in two additional cattle deaths, while other attacks have gone unreported to the state.