Nevada lawmakers are considering a bill that would strip Bureau of Land Management (BLM) wild horses and burros of their wildlife status in that state and could threaten the animals’ access to water resources.

The bill, AB 329, amends a current law pertaining to the appropriation, use, and regulation of water resources in Nevada to specifically exclude wild horses and burros from the state’s definition of wildlife. Currently, state law mandates the provision of water resources to recognized wildlife. The bill would define wildlife "to mean all wild mammals, wild birds, fish, reptiles, amphibians, mollusks, or other crustaceans other than wild horses and burros."

Sponsor Assemblyman Pete Goicoechea was unavailable to comment on the bill. BLM Spokesperson Heather Emmons-Jasinski said the agency also cannot comment on the pending legislation.

However, Emmons-Jasinski said the BLM Nevada does not typically apply for water rights for wild horses and burros because under Nevada’s current definition of wildlife, the animals are covered under state law pertaining to the adjudication of vested water rights and the allocation of public waters. That law requires all permit holders for springs or seeps to allow access to wildlife that customarily use it