DNR leader blasts agency over CWD test delay

State Department of Natural Resources Secretary Cathy Stepp is blasting her own agency for failing to promptly conduct tests on a northwestern Wisconsin doe infected with chronic wasting disease.

DNR Bureau of Wildlife Management Director Tom Hauge told the Natural Resources Board on Wednesday the agency took possession of the deer on Nov. 19. The deer’s head arrived at the DNR’s Madison headquarters on Dec. 8. Testing work didn’t begin until March 6. Hauge explained the gap as a communication problem.

Stepp chastised Hauge in front of the board, calling the delay a hole big enough to drive a truck through. She said the gap sends a message to sportsmen that the DNR no longer cares about CWD and doesn’t help the agency build trust with the public.