The Wyoming attorney general’s office filed a petition in a Cheyenne federal court on Thursday, seeking a review of the Yellowstone National Park winter-use plan.

The plan’s final record of decision was published in the Federal Register on Thursday, allowing for continued snowmobile use in the park.

The U.S. District Court in Cheyenne is asked by the Wyoming petition to set aside requirements for commercial snowmobile guides, avalanche management for Sylvan Pass and the number of daily snowmobile entries into the park.

Led by Attorney General Bruce Salzburg, state attorneys chided Yellowstone planners for failure to take a “hard look” at the environmental consequences of their decisions. Yet the state doesn’t believe the winter-use plan is too lax -- in fact, it's too stringent, the petition argues.

Attorneys for the state complained in their petition that:

* The requirement of a commercial guide for every snowmobile entering the park constitutes “a de facto levy of a tax or an unauthorized fee.” Gov. Dave Freudenthal’s press office noted that the state would prefer that the service also allow non-commercial guides to reduce the cost burden on those who want to enjoy the park in winter by snowmobile.

Park officials say the presence of commercial guides has dramatically lowered the number of speeding offenses, accidents and cases of wildlife harassment by snowmobilers.

* Park planners failed “to provide a reasoned analysis” of their change in Sylvan Pass management, which initially opted to close the pass during the winter -- a policy which has since been nullified by Interior Department officials.

* Yellowstone officials did not allow Wyoming to “meaningfully participate in the development of the revised preferred alternative” when they opted to reduce daily snowmobile entries from 720 to 540.

The average number of snowmobiles in the park for the past three winters has been about 250, far short of the 720 that had been allowed under a temporary winter-use plan. Freudenthal press secretary Cara Eastwood noted that “the state has consistently advocated for 950 sleds per day, because we think the science supports that number. However, the (Park) Service switched from 720 sleds per day in the proposed rule to 540 sleds per day in the final rule, and they have not justified this last-minute change.”

The state attorneys allege that Yellowstone violated a slew of laws, including the National Environmental Policy Act, the National Park Organic Act and the U.S. Constitution in making their decision.

The petition further requests the court to set aside the above decisions and order the Park Service to revisit those issues and develop a revised plan by Sept. 1, 2008.

Nothing would change for the upcoming 2007-08 winter season, which opens next week.

Doug Honnold, lead attorney for the Bozeman, Mont., office of EarthJustice, slammed the state's filing.

"Wyoming has asked a court to triple Yellowstone snowmobile levels from those seen in recent years,” he said in a statement. “The Park Service's own analysis demonstrated that snowmobiling should be radically reduced to prevent air pollution, human health risks, harassment of wildlife, and destruction of the parks' natural soundscapes. The Park Service needs to do more to usher in a future where snowcoaches provide winter access that is consistent with the purposes of the national parks, not turn back the clock as Wyoming suggests."

Efforts to contact the International Snowmobile Manufacturers’ Association or the BlueRibbon Coalition of motorized sports enthusiasts were not fruitful Friday afternoon.

Yellowstone spokesman Al Nash said the Wyoming petition is the third court challenge to the park's winter-use plan. All petitions would be reviewed by the U.S. Department of Justice, which would file any response with the court.

"We’ve received comments favoring a wide range of management approaches during this and past planning processes. We recognize some individuals and groups will be dissatisfied with the record of decision and the final rule,” Nash said.