Why It Matters: As efforts to undermine the ability of sportsmen and women continue across the country, Iowa is working to constitutionally enshrine the rights of Iowans to hunt, fish, and trap. Constitutional amendments to protect the right to hunt, fish, and trap represent one of the strongest safeguards for our time-honored outdoor traditions.
Highlights:
- Efforts to protect the right to hunt, fish, and harvest wildlife via a constitutional amendment are currently making their way through the Iowa legislature.
- The proposed amendment recently passed by the House Natural Resources Committee and now heads to the floor for further consideration.
- The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF), and several conservation organizations, are continuing efforts from 2023 and 2024 to grow support among the sporting community.
The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation, and several conservation organizations, have been active in supporting Iowa House Joint Resolution 7 (HJR 7), continuing efforts that started in 2023 when the proposed amendment was originally introduced.
On February 11, the House Natural Resources Committee voted to pass House Joint Resolution 7 out of committee and send it to the House floor where it will be scheduled for further action by the full chamber. CSF submitted testimony in support of HJR 7, highlighting the importance and protections the constitutional right to hunt, fish, and harvest wildlife will offer sportsmen and women in the Hawkeye State. With efforts to undermine participation in our outdoor traditions continuing to pop-up around the country, constitutionally protecting these rights represents an important step towards safeguarding the future of Iowa’s outdoor heritage. If passed, HJR 7 would provide Iowa’s citizens with the opportunity to weigh in on the conversation and vote to protect their time-honored traditions. Though, there are still several hurdles the proposed amendment will need to cross before being voted on by Iowa’s citizens.
Efforts to enact the proposed constitutional amendment have been ongoing for several sessions, most recently in 2023 where the proposed amendments failed to make it out of their respective committees. Those efforts were carried over to the 2024 legislative session, where they again did not move out of committee. While these efforts did not succeed in past sessions, the previous efforts to gain support for the constitutional amendment have helped HJR 7 make it further in the legislative process than past efforts.
CSF will continue our efforts with in-state partners, conservation organizations, and the Iowa Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus to further gain support for the constitutional right to hunt, fish, and harvest wildlife in Iowa.
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