Grizzly Bears Back in California? SB 1305 Is a Recipe for Tragedy, Not Triumph

OPINION

California lawmakers are on the verge of reviving one of the state’s most dangerous predators — and the rest of us will pay the price with our safety, our livestock, and potentially our lives.

Senate Bill 1305, the so-called “California Grizzly Restoration Act,” was quietly introduced in February by Sen. Laura Richardson (D-Inglewood). Richardson, a legislator from the heart of Los Angeles, has no business proposing policies that will adversely impact Northern California citizens. It doesn’t dump grizzly bears into the wild tomorrow, but it does something almost as reckless: it declares it official state policy to bring back the California grizzly (Ursus arctos californicus), extinct here since the last one was shot in 1924. The bill orders the Department of Fish and Wildlife to draft a detailed “roadmap” for reintroduction by June 30, 2028, including scientific studies, tribal consultations, and cost estimates. Potential target zones already floated include the Klamath Mountains in Trinity and Siskiyou counties — rural areas where families hike, ranch, and simply try to live without sharing the woods with 800-pound killing machines.

This isn’t conservation. It’s ideology dressed up as science. Grizzly bears — the same species as the iconic animal on our state flag — were driven out of California for a reason: they were too big, too aggressive, and too deadly to coexist with growing human populations. Today, with nearly 40 million residents, sprawling suburbs pushing into wildlands, and recreationists flooding every trail and campground, the risks are exponentially higher.

Let’s be brutally honest about what grizzlies actually do. Unlike our relatively timid black bears, grizzlies are larger, stronger, and far more likely to stand their ground — or charge. A sow with cubs can kill an adult human in seconds. Surprise encounters, food-conditioned bears, or simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time have led to maulings and fatalities across the West. In Yellowstone National Park alone, grizzlies have caused multiple deaths and dozens of injuries in recent decades, despite vast wilderness and strict rules. The per-capita risk may sound low in a national park, but drop that same animal into California’s fragmented habitats, hiking trails packed on weekends, and backyards bordering national forests, and the math changes fast.

Ranchers in Trinity, Siskiyou, Humboldt, and other proposed reintroduction zones already battle wolves and mountain lions. Grizzlies would add a new level of devastation to livestock operations. One depredation incident can wipe out thousands of dollars in a single night — and the state’s track record of actually compensating or controlling problem predators is dismal.

Assemblymember Heather Hadwick (R) has it exactly right: California can’t even manage the wildlife we already have. Mountain lions, black bears, and now wolves are creating headaches for rural communities, yet Sacramento wants to import more apex predators? “We should focus on managing existing wildlife before considering the return of another large predator,” Hadwick said. Siskiyou County supervisors just sent a formal letter of opposition to Sen. Richardson. They get it. Rural Californians know what city-dwelling legislators apparently don’t: bears don’t read environmental impact reports.

The bill’s supporters talk about “ecological balance” and “cultural heritage.” Fine. The grizzly is part of our history, which is why it’s on the flag and why we hunted it to extinction when it started killing people and cattle. Nostalgia is not a wildlife management plan. California’s wildland-urban interface is already a powder keg. Adding grizzlies is playing with matches.

How to Stop This Reckless Idea Before It’s Too Late

The Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee holds its next hearing on SB 1305 on April 7, 2026. This is the moment to act.

1. Submit a formal letter of opposition immediately through the Legislature’s public comment portal: Go to leginfo.legislature.ca.gov, search “SB 1305,” and click “Submit Position Letter.” Be polite but firm — demand the bill be killed.

2. Contact the bill’s author directly: Sen. Laura Richardson (916) 651-4035 sd35.senate.ca.gov

3. Reach your own legislators: Find your state senator and assemblymember at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov and urge them to oppose SB 1305 and any future reintroduction efforts. Tell them public safety and rural economies matter more than symbolic gestures.

4. Contact committee members (especially if you live in their districts): The committee chair is Sen. Josh Becker; vice chair is Sen. Kelly Seyarto. Flood their offices with calls: (916) 651-4116

5. Amplify locally: Write letters to the editor of your local paper, attend county supervisor meetings, and support groups already fighting this (ranching organizations, hunting and fishing advocates, and rural county coalitions).

   
   

California doesn’t need more government-funded experiments that treat human lives as collateral damage. We need a common-sense wildlife policy that puts residents first. Kill SB 1305 now — before the first grizzly mauling makes headlines and Sacramento pretends it never saw this coming.