FWS Has $1.35M for Wolf Depredation Compensation and Prevention, Due January 15, 2027. The Scoring Turns on Depredations Per 100 Wolves, and There Is a New Pledge to Ranchers.
October 26, 2026 · 7 min read
Granted Research Team · Editorial policy
On October 21, 2026, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service posted F26AS00088, the FY2026 round of the Wolf Livestock Loss Demonstration Project Grant Program (Assistance Listing 15.666). The program is small:
- $1,350,000 in total
- About 13 awards
- Awards from $10,000 to $675,000
- A required 50% non-federal cost share
- Applications due January 15, 2027, at 11:59 PM Eastern
Only state governments and federally recognized tribes may apply. Ranchers cannot apply to FWS directly. They apply to their state or tribal wildlife or animal-damage agency, which sets its own claims procedures.
The program is small, but it touches a contentious area of wildlife policy, and this year's notice differs from earlier ones. The funding has grown, and the notice is tied to a new executive order. It also adds an eligibility pledge that every applicant must make in writing.
The numbers, and what they imply
FWS reports that in FY2025 it recommended $900,000 to seven states and one tribe across ten awards, an average of $90,000. The FY2026 pool of $1.35 million is 50% larger.
The award ceiling is set by statute. Subtitle C of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 directs FWS to award the money competitively and to split it equally between depredation prevention and depredation compensation. Half of $1.35 million is $675,000, which is the ceiling. In practice, no single award can exceed what is available on either side of the program.
The notice lists FWS contacts for 13 states:
| FWS region | States |
|---|---|
| Region 1 | Idaho, Oregon, Washington |
| Region 2 | Arizona, New Mexico |
| Region 3 | Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin |
| Region 6 | Colorado, Montana, Wyoming |
| Region 8 | California, Nevada |
FWS expects about 13 awards. That count matches the number of states listed, but tribes are also eligible, and in FY2025 seven states and one tribe received the ten awards. Expect most of the dollars to go to a handful of states with established compensation programs, and modest awards for everyone else.
The 50% cost share applies to total project cost. A $200,000 request needs $200,000 of non-federal match, for a $400,000 project. Match can be cash, third-party in-kind contributions (volunteer range riders, donated fencing, a nonprofit's guard-dog program), or the applicant's unrecovered indirect costs. If an application includes both compensation and prevention, match is calculated at the award level, so a large state-funded compensation program can carry the match for a smaller prevention component.
The timeline is long. The anticipated start date is August 30, 2027, and the period of performance runs to July 31, 2029, the program's two-year maximum.
What is new: EO 14425 and the producer pledge
The FY2026 notice ties the program to Executive Order 14425, "Supporting America's Ranchers," and the change shows up in three places.
1. A new eligibility affirmation. To be eligible, every applicant must affirm in its project narrative "their commitment to maintaining constructive working relationships with livestock producers and to administering their programs in a manner that is responsive to producer needs and supports continued livestock grazing and production." An application can be disqualified if the narrative lacks this affirmation. It is a pass/fail threshold, not a scored item.
2. A program-purpose screen. During initial review, FWS will check whether each application shows a "clear connection to the program's purpose of assisting ranchers and livestock producers affected by wolf depredation." Applications that do not make that link "may be determined nonresponsive." A prevention proposal framed mainly as wolf conservation, rather than as reducing producers' losses, risks failing this screen.
3. Rewritten scoring language. The claims-evaluation criterion now asks reviewers to consider whether the program "provides accessible claims processes, communicates effectively with livestock producers, and minimizes unnecessary administrative burdens."
There is also a spending condition: applicants must have expended all funds from FY2022 and earlier awards under this program to be eligible. A state with an unspent 2022 balance should spend it down or close it out before January.
The notice also includes the department-wide certifications on DEI-related executive orders and the Interior Secretary's order on American history. These are standard compliance items, but they are part of the initial responsiveness review.
How the two rubrics score
FWS scores compensation and prevention components separately, each out of 100 points.
Depredation compensation (100 points)
| Criterion | Points |
|---|---|
| Rate of wolf depredation (per 100 wolves) | 25 |
| Livestock losses in animal-value equivalents | 25 |
| Claim evaluation and record keeping | 10 |
| Integration of prevention activities | 10 |
| Coordination, transparency, and accessibility | 10 |
| Project costs | 20 |
Depredation prevention (100 points)
| Criterion | Points |
|---|---|
| Rate of wolf depredation (per 100 wolves) | 25 |
| Effectiveness of preventative techniques | 25 |
| Outreach and coordination | 25 |
| Project costs | 25 |
The depredation-rate criterion appears in both rubrics and uses a fixed formula: confirmed and probable depredations divided by the estimated wolf population in the project area, times 100, averaged over 2023 through 2025. The bands are:
| Average depredations per 100 wolves | Points |
|---|---|
| Fewer than 10 | 10 |
| 10–15 | 15 |
| 16–30 | 20 |
| More than 30 | 25 |
Four details decide this score:
- Count animals, not events. One dead animal equals one depredation.
- No multiplier for missing livestock. Some states pay compensation multipliers for unfound calves. Those multipliers cannot be used here.
- Only investigated events count. Each depredation must have been confirmed or classed as probable by USDA APHIS Wildlife Services or another authorized investigator.
- The denominator is the wolf population within the project range only. Show the calculation.
The formula favors states with small wolf populations in heavy livestock country, where a few depredations against a small denominator produce a high per-100 rate. States with large, established populations spread across wild country have a larger denominator. If your state's wolf range includes both, define the project area around the counties where depredation actually occurs, and use the wolf estimate for that area. The notice allows it: applicants "must only provide information on depredations and wolf population estimates within the range of the proposed project."
The animal-value-equivalent criterion converts the most recent year's confirmed and probable cattle and sheep losses into a standard unit:
| Animal | Value equivalent |
|---|---|
| Calf | 0.68 |
| Cow | 1.0 |
| Bull | 1.5 |
| Lamb | 0.15 |
| Ewe | 0.18 |
| Ram | 0.25 |
FWS then sorts all applications into quartiles, worth 10, 15, 20, or 25 points. The criterion is relative: your score depends on the other applicants' losses as well as your own.
Two easy points apply to compensation programs. Reviewers award 5 points if a conflict-prevention program operates in the project area. They award another 5 points if compensation requires producers to adopt prevention measures after their first compensated loss, and the applicant must document that rule. If your state's rules already require it, cite the rule. If they don't, this is a reason to change them.
Strategy for state agencies and tribes
Apply for both components when you can. The money is split equally by law, and match is calculated at the award level. A paired application lets an established compensation program supply match for a newer prevention program.
Base the budget on spending history. Project costs are worth 20 to 25 points, and the top score goes to a budget "backed by prior spending record or recent trends" that "will almost certainly be spent within the project period." FWS states that unspent funds return to the next cycle. A state that requested $300,000 last year and spent $120,000 should request close to $120,000.
Make the producer benefit explicit in the prevention narrative. Range riders, fladry, guard dogs, and fencing are eligible, and the effectiveness criterion now asks how prevention "support[s] the continued viability of ranching and livestock production." Report prevention results as avoided losses for producers, measured in head of cattle and dollars, not only as fewer wolves removed.
Tribes should apply. Tribes are eligible on the same terms as states, and FWS may fund out of rank order to balance funding geographically. A tribe with a documented depredation problem on trust or allotted land, an investigator relationship with Wildlife Services, and a modest request is a strong candidate.
Contact your FWS regional coordinator before January. The notice lists them by region. They can confirm whether your FY2022 balance is cleared and whether your depredation-data format will be accepted.
The short version
F26AS00088 offers $1.35 million to states and federally recognized tribes for wolf depredation compensation and prevention, in about 13 awards of $10,000 to $675,000. It requires a 50% non-federal cost share and closes January 15, 2027, with awards expected to start August 30, 2027. Every applicant must affirm in writing a commitment to working constructively with livestock producers, and every application must show a direct benefit to ranchers. Both rubrics give 25 points for depredations per 100 wolves, so define your project area tightly and show the calculation. Budget to what you have actually spent, and spend down any FY2022-or-earlier balance first.
Sources: the Grants.gov listing for F26AS00088 and its attached notice of funding opportunity, and FWS's Wolf Livestock Loss Demonstration Project Grant Program page.
If your agency is building a compensation or prevention application, Granted can help you organize the depredation data, structure the narrative against both rubrics, and document match before January 15.