Why It Matters: Natural Resources Commissions provide sportsmen and women with a public forum in which they can voice their opinions and concerns and thereby help shape fish and wildlife regulations. Eliminating the Indiana Natural Resource Commission (NRC), as Indiana HB 1003 would have done as originally passed by the House, would have weakened the state’s ability to promulgate well-informed, science-based fish and wildlife rules and regulations.
Highlights:
- The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) recently reported on a bill in Indiana that would have eliminated the Indiana Natural Resources Commission.
- Indiana HB 1003, which had already passed through the Indiana House of Representatives, would have eliminated or consolidated more than sixty state boards and commissions.
- Alongside in-state and national partners, CSF worked to oppose the bill as written and advocated against including the NRC in the bill.
- Last week, the Indiana Senate Committee on Rules & Legislative Procedure adopted an amendment, removing the NRC from the bill and retaining its existence and rulemaking authority.
As reported earlier this month in The Sportsmen’s Voice, Indiana House Bill 1003 had already passed one legislative chamber and stood to remove the Indiana Natural Resources Commission, the Hoosier State’s fish and wildlife rulemaking authority. The bill aimed to eliminate or consolidate more than sixty boards and commissions in Indiana in an effort to streamline bodies that do duplicative work “or are no longer active at all.”
In-state and national conservation partners rallied together and were successful in conveying to lawmakers that the Indiana NRC squarely does not fall within that category. Regularly scheduled NRC meetings around the state provide Hoosier sportsmen and women, the primary funders of Indiana’s fish and wildlife conservation efforts, a dedicated forum to discuss and provide input on management decisions that directly impact fish and wildlife species, their habitats, and the well-regulated pursuit of those species. By listening to the sporting community and striking the NRC from the list of impacted commissions, Indiana senators recognized the powerful voice that hunters, anglers, and trappers share on the issues that they care about, which is precisely what makes the NRC and its public, open-debate format so effective.
The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation will continue to monitor IN HB 1003 as it progresses to the Senate floor and is likely sent back to the House, and will continue to safeguard the voices of hunters, anglers, and trappers and their ability to participate in the political process of crafting the policies and regulations that matter most to their sporting pursuits.
