Why It Matters: With election day right around the corner (November 5), anticipation is building for Americans to get out and exercise their right to vote. This year’s election is especially important for sportsmen and women, as voters will be presented with the opportunity to protect our time-honored traditions at the ballot box. Aside from all the folks running for political office, there are also measures on the ballot that pertain to amendments to state constitutions, such as Amendment Two in Florida that would establish the right to hunt, fish, and harvest wildlife (RTHF). If Floridians vote favorably on Amendment Two, Florida will become the 24th state to establish an RTHF, which begs the question: why is it important to constitutionally protect the right to hunt and fish?
Highlights:
- RTHF constitutional amendments protect the rights of sportsmen and women in perpetuity, which preempts local legislation or regulation that frustrates comprehensive, statewide wildlife management.
- RTHF further codifies that wildlife are held in the public trust which is a key component of the North American Model of Wildlife Management – the most successful wildlife management model in the world.
- RTHF recognizes that hunting and fishing, utilizing the best available science to determine harvestable surpluses, are the preferred means of managing wildlife, rather than unproven, and emotion-driven means of governance that anti-hunting groups push.
- RTHF further highlights the importance of hunting and fishing as it pertains to generating funding for conservation through the “user pays – public benefits” structure of the American System of Conservation Funding.
Of the 23 states that currently have a constitutional RTHF, many of those are states where someone would never believe that hunting and fishing could not be threatened as they make up the cultural fabric of communities across the state. However, the sporting community often sees attempts to unnecessarily limit hunting and fishing opportunities – take Colorado for example (which does not have a constitutional RTHF) where Proposition 127 is on the ballot this year and could prohibit the hunting of mountain lions and bobcats despite science that backs the harvest of these animals through regulated hunting. Many states, such as Florida, offer statutory protections for hunting and fishing, but as we all know, statute can easily be changed after one legislative session. That is where having constitutional protection comes into play as it is much harder to change the constitution than it is to change statute as it oftentimes requires a vote amongst the general populace rather than only navigating the legislature.
As much as the anti-hunting, environmentalist movement would have you believe, RTHF constitutional amendments do not provide people with the opportunity to go on a free-for-all and disregard seasons, bag limits, and private property rights. Rules and regulations that are already on the books are not affected, and the state’s respective fish and wildlife agency maintains the authority to operate as normal – utilizing science-based data to make informed management decisions to the betterment of fish and wildlife populations.
The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) is looking ahead at getting Florida RTHF across the final hurdle and will continue to stand at the forefront of RTHF efforts, alongside our partners, to ensure that our time-honored traditions are protected for generations to come.
