When it comes to listing a species as endangered, Senator Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., wants to make sure states are not being left in the dark. Testifying today before his colleagues at a Senate Environment & Public Works Committee hearing, Enzi said states have noted numerous cases where the science the federal government relies on to make Endangered Species Act (ESA) listings is not shared with the states.

Enzi said this issue could be solved with legislation he introduced in March that would require the federal government to disclose the data it uses for ESA listings before decisions are made.

Using Wyoming as an example, Enzi showed how collaboration of scientific data with the federal government was able to  save the black-footed ferret, which was once thought to be extinct.

“Wyoming has some of the richest wildlife habitat in North America which supports a number of industries including tourism, guiding, recreation, and agriculture just to name a few,” said Enzi. “These successes in Wyoming have come from state management based on science collected from state, local, tribal, and federal wildlife officials…However, these types of partnerships are not the norm.”

Enzi said his legislation is designed to ensure the federal government adheres to its legal responsibilities to cooperate with states under the Endangered Species Act and that the best available scientific data is used in ESA listing decisions.

Click here to read the text of Enzi’s legislation.