CO SJR020

Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge (established 1952, 14,804 acres) and Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge (established 1962, 12,026 acres) have been administratively combined since 1979, while Baca National Wildlife Refuge (established 2003) contains 92,500 acres.

Invasive noxious weeds have overrun these three Colorado national wildlife refuges because federal law under the Federal Noxious Weed Act (P.L. 93-629) is not being enforced and refuges lack adequate tools, personnel, and funding for weed management.

Local farmers adjacent to the refuges are experiencing property damage from invasive weeds spreading from refuge lands and must pay for their own weed control or incur charges from local weed control districts.

General Assembly requests federal agencies allow request-for-proposal contracts with licensed commercial applicators for weed control and requests appropriate funding for both current and future noxious weed control efforts.

Resolution directs copies to be sent to Colorado's congressional delegation, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior Secretary, and managers of the three affected national wildlife refuges.