SALEM - In a move that could have implications for the return of the gray wolf, the Oregon House passed a bill Tuesday to simplify the process for removing animals from the state's Endangered Species Act.

Under the proposal, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife could delist a species if the commission decides the species is "not of cultural, scientific or commercial significance" for Oregonians, or if it finds the species "secure" outside the state.

While conservation groups said the changes would erode animal protections, proponents said the state needs the ability to delist animals that don't need protection.

"It's not a wild-eyed, redneck in eastern Oregon promoting the bill," said Rep. Bob Jenson, R-Pendleton, a sponsor of the measure. "It's the governor and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife."

Stephen Kafoury, a lobbyist who represents wildlife biologists, said the bill attempts to sidestep the scientific process for delisting a species.

"It's like saying water boils at 212 degrees unless it's culturally decided that it should boil at 208 degrees," Kafoury said. "They are trying to suspend the laws of biology."

After passing 38-22, House Bill 2458 now goes to the Senate, where it will likely face stiff opposition. A similar bill was stopped earlier this session in a Senate committee.

Of the 36 fish, reptiles, birds and mammals on the state's list as either threatened or endangered, eight of the species are not listed under federal law.

Jim Myron, Gov. Ted Kulongoski's adviser on fish and wildlife issues, said the governor and the wildlife agency supported the bill because the state often can't delist animals that the federal government already delisted.

Myron cited the Aleutian Canada Goose, which the federal government has delisted. The way the Oregon law is written, the animal can't be removed from the state list until it can reproduce in Oregon, he said.

There is, however, a catch: the goose visits Oregon in the winter but doesn't reproduce here.

"There is no way to get them off the state act because the only habitat they have in the state is transitory," Myron said.

Opponents acknowledged the state act needs some tweaking, but said the bill goes too far.

"This is a great example of overkill," said Rep. Diane Rosenbaum, D-Portland.

Rosenbaum said provisions in the measure, which loosen regulations on shooting animals on state-owned land, would lead to indiscriminate and unsupervised animal killings.

That could include the gray wolf. In recent months, three wolves from an Idaho population have strayed into the state and more are expected. Two of the three were killed, the other returned to Idaho.

Many Oregon ranchers, hunters and rural residents fear the wolf will soon cross the border and find a home here.

The wolf has been extinct in Oregon for 50 years, but it's protected by the Oregon and federal endangered species acts.

Glen Stonebrink, executive director of the Oregon Cattlemen's Association, said if the bill passes, his organization will push to have the wolf delisted.

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On the Net:

HB2458

www.leg.state.or.us.