Why It Matters: Legislative victories are often the result of collaborative action and several years of advocacy. Arguably, no recent victory for sportsmen and women in the Midwest embodies this truth better than the recent passage of Oklahoma Senate Bill 941. This legislation, widely supported by the sporting-conservation community, will significantly simplify the Sooner State’s hunting and fishing license framework while providing the first license fee increases seen in the state in over two decades, and generating much needed funding for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation.
Highlights
- After several years of advocacy and many iterations, Oklahoma will finally see its hunting and fishing license system overhauled and simplified following the passage of Senate Bill 941.
- Widely supported by the sporting-conservation community, SB 941 also provides for the state’s first license fee increase in more than twenty years, increasing critical conservation funding for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation.
- Following its successful concurrence vote in the Senate on March 19, SB 941 now goes to Governors Sportsmen’s Caucus Member Governor Kevin Stitt for his signature.
On March 19, with the Senate Gallery lined with members of the sporting-conservation community, the Oklahoma Senate concurred with House Amendments to Senate Bill 941 (SB 941) by a vote of 38-7, officially passing this important piece of legislation. As previously reported, SB 941 passed out of the House by a strong majority during the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation’s and Ducks Unlimited’s Sportsmen’s Day at the Capitol. SB 941 would significantly overhaul and simplify Oklahoma’s hunting and fishing license framework, a system that currently features more than 150 different license and permit combinations that sportsmen and women must navigate to ensure that they are properly licensed.
SB 941’s passage represents the culmination of nearly half a decade of advocacy by members of Oklahoma’s sporting-conservation community. Over the last several legislative sessions, a variety of efforts to address the Sooner State’s convoluted license structure have been introduced with support from the community. Finally, a suitable compromise has been found in SB 941 that, once signed into law, will represent one of the most comprehensive sporting and conservation victories in Oklahoma in recent memory.
In addition to the simplicity that SB 941 will provide to Oklahoma’s license structure, the bill also provides for the state’s first hunting and fishing license fee increases in more than two decades, providing a necessary boost in funding for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, which is solely supported through the American System of Conservation Funding.
SB 941’s victory can be attributed to many key partners, including members of the Oklahoma Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus, Ducks Unlimited who led the sporting-conservation community’s sign-on letter in support of the bill, and the ongoing educational efforts of ODWC. This victory is a testament to the accomplishments that sportsmen and women can achieve when working as a united force for our time-honored outdoor traditions.
