The budget bill passed the Senate with a bipartisan vote of 81-19 on April 14, 2011, and now awaits President Obama’s signature. Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., who sponsored the measure alongside Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, said at a press conference on Thursday afternoon, “”¦I can tell you that even though there are some people out there who don’t think you have to manage wildlife species, you do.” In reality, the only species on earth that is in need of management is our own. The passing of this bill could mean a wolf hunt as early as this fall-because management of wolves could return to Montana and Idaho in as little as thirty days, according to FWP Attorney Bob Lane. Wolves were once common in the West, thriving nearly everywhere; today it’s estimated that there are only about 1700 left in the West.