Last week, the Hunting and Shooting Sports Conservation Council (HSSCC) hosted its sixth meeting since its inception, and was joined by Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt, Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, and Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Aurelia Skipwith, to discuss some of the most pressing issues facing America’s sportsmen and women.
The HSSCC consists of 18 full-time members and 8 alternate members representing diverse elements of the sporting community, and serves as a unique venue to develop and provide recommendations to the Secretaries of Agriculture and the Interior to promote and advance hunting and the shooting sports. During the inaugural meeting, Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) President Jeff Crane was elected by his fellow HSSCC members to serve as Chairman, a position he has held for roughly two-and-a-half years.
Through his strategic vision, Crane has led the HSSCC to the development and advancement of 33 specific recommendations that seek to promote the outdoor heritage for the benefit of America’s sportsmen and women. This robust list of recommendations to both the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture includes topics such as public access to both public and private lands and waters; wildlife conservation; recreational target shooting; and the recruitment, retention, and reactivation of hunters and recreational shooters.
“As Chairman of the Hunting and Shooting Sports Conservation Council, I would like to extend our appreciation to Secretaries Bernhardt and Perdue for their clear commitment to America’s sportsmen and women by prioritizing the HSSCC, as demonstrated by their participation in every meeting since the inception of the Council,” said CSF President Jeff Crane. “Our robust agenda as a Council is the result of the leadership of Secretaries Bernhardt and Perdue, as well as the leadership of each member of the Council.”
The HSSCC website will be updated accordingly as recommendations and actions related to the Council are taken.
Studies conducted at both the state and federal level have found that the number of hunters and trappers have been on a generally declining trend over the past several decades. To increase recruitment, retention, and reactivation (R3) of hunters and trappers, which initiative do you think would have the greatest impact?
