Why It Matters: Bills piling up on legislative calendars across the country means that hunters, anglers, recreational shooters, and trappers could see changes to their favorite pastimes. The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation is committed to protecting our time-honored outdoor traditions through active engagement in the legislative process. Highlights: With legislative sessions across the country in full …
Why It Matters: Mississippi HB 998 and HB 1206 would have codified three key tenets of the most successful wildlife management model in the world, the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation: (1)Wildlife resources are held in the public trust, or in other words, wildlife resources are owned by the public and managed by the government for …
Why It Matters: Delisting the grizzly bear in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) and Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem (NCDE) regions will return the management of the bear to the respective state fish and wildlife agencies. State fish and wildlife agencies have long been recognized as the primary and most effective managers of fish and wildlife …
FWS Announces Consideration to Delist Certain Grizzly Bear Populations Read More »
Why It Matters: Washington’s hunters, anglers, and trappers have long played a vital role in funding conservation and wildlife management efforts throughout the state. Under the American System of Conservation Funding (ASCF), a unique “user pays – public benefits” structure, Washington’s sportsmen and women generate tens of millions of dollars each year for the Washington Department of …
Why It Matters: With the creation of the Mississippi Outdoor Stewardship Trust Fund and the subsequent $10 million appropriation from the State General Fund, Mississippi received additional dollars to further qualify for federal conservation programs to benefit fish and wildlife resources along with hunters and anglers. HB 999 would establish a consistent source of revenue for …
Significant Dedicated Conservation Funding Bill on the Move in Mississippi Read More »
Why It Matters: In the Pine Tree State, priorities relative to sportsmen’s issues are brought before the Joint Standing Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. On the Committee are several members and Co-Chairs of the Maine Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus – a bipartisan and bicameral collective comprised of and representing sportsmen and women across the state. …
Why It Matters: Airbows continue to gain popularity among deer hunters across the nation. With this popularity has come growing calls for the legalization of airbows as a method of take in states in which their use is not currently allowed. CSF and others support the use of airbows so long as such use is …
Airbows Continue to be a Hot Topic Across the Lower Midwest Read More »
Why It Matters: The use of lead ammunition and lead tackle in hunting and angling is a contentious issue, with the primary concern being the potential effects on wildlife. However, to this date, there has been limited documented evidence that sportsmen’s use of lead has had significant deleterious impacts on wildlife at the population level …
Rep. Wittman, CSC Member, Introduces Effort to Maintain Access for Sportsmen and Women Read More »
Why It Matters: Chronic Wasting Disease is a progressive, degenerative, and always fatal neurological disease occurring in both farmed and free-ranging deer, elk, and moose (cervids) populations. Roughly 80% of hunters in the United States participate in some form of deer, elk, or moose hunting, and as such, it is critical that we stop the spread …
Why It Matters: Predator hunting tournament bans are often the tip of spear for anti-hunting interests to try to gain a foothold in their efforts to curb legal, regulated hunting. To date, eight states have banned hunting tournaments, and it is important for the hunting conservation community to work together to fight back against legislation touted by …
Virginia Predator Contest Bill Defeated in Committee Read More »
Why It Matters: Sportsmen and women, including recreational shooters, have a crucial role as the primary funders of state-level conservation efforts in Vermont (and across the nation) and are thus an important constituency that provides benefits for all residents of the state. Anti-firearms legislation, such as S. 4, poses a significant threat to the state’s …
Proposed Firearms Restrictions in VT: A Closer Look Read More »
Why It Matters: Efforts to grant license discounts or waivers for certain demographics are becoming increasingly common across the country. While such discounts carry obvious consequences for state agency license revenue, what is less understood by most is the additive impact on the agency’s ability to claim federal dollars available through the self-imposed excise taxes …
CSF Recommends Amendments to Disabled Veterans License Exemption Bill in Kansas Read More »
Why It Matters: Suppressors are federally regulated under the National Firearms Act (NFA) of 1934, which is the same law governing machine guns and short barreled rifles. Currently, the process to purchase a suppressor is an overly arduous task, despite wide-spread evidence of the value of suppressors to protect against hearing damage. The Centers for …
Hearing Protection Act Reintroduced by Former CSC Leader Rep. Jeff Duncan Read More »
Why It Matters: State fish and wildlife management agencies are the entities best equipped to make important science-based conservation decisions. Legislation that strips away that ability is harmful to sportsmen and women because it takes important authority away from conservation experts and eliminates the ability of those agency experts to quickly respond to changing circumstances. …
CSF Opposes Bill That Would Prohibit North Dakota Game & Fish from Promulgating Rules Read More »
Why It Matters: Federal Duck Stamps are required to pursue many birds, including waterfowl and woodcock, which are popular in New Hampshire. There exists a great deal of variation across the states regarding the method by which these stamps are purchased. Although an electronic receipt or confirmation of purchase is valid under federal law, lack …
New Hampshire Bill Seeks to Clarify State Laws Surrounding “E-Stamps” Read More »
Why It Matters: In 2004, the bipartisan and bicameral Idaho Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus was formed as an entity through the National Assembly of Sportsmen’s Caucuses – a national network of organized state legislative sportsmen’s caucuses with a current collective membership of approximately 2,000 legislators. Since its inception, the Idaho Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus has continued to …
Idaho Sportsmen’s Caucus Kicks of 2023 with New Leadership Read More »
Why It Matters: Every year across the country, many bills are introduced that aim to provide certain segments of the population with free or discounted hunting and fishing licenses. While many of these bills are well intended, the passage of these bills can negatively impact conservation funding for state fish and wildlife agencies. Highlights: On …
New Bill Aims to Safeguard State Agency Funding in Mississippi Read More »
Monday, January 23, 2023 – Last week, the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) hosted its annual reception during SHOT Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. With the highest recorded attendance ever, special guests included members of the Governors Sportsmen’s Caucus, National Assembly of Sportsmen’s Caucuses and leaders of the sportsmen’s community. The focus for the evening was the critical …
Why It Matters: Federal marine fisheries management is often a balancing act for those species that are both recreationally and commercially important. Where specific allocations between the two sectors exist, they were generally set long ago based on the catch histories of each. An improved survey or recreational harvest information by the National Marine Fisheries …
Court Does the Math on Recreational Fisheries Allocations Read More »
Why It Matters: With the new year kicked off, legislatures across the nation are gearing up for busy sessions in the months ahead. Your contacts at the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation are hard at work tracking policies relevant to hunting, fishing, recreational shooting, and trapping, and will continue to operate alongside the pertinent sportsmen’s caucuses within …
It May Be Winter But Legislatures Are Heating Up Across the Northeast Read More »
