Why It Matters: The use of ballot initiatives to ban hunting and dictate wildlife management practices, circumventing the regulatory process that provides the opportunity for input by professionals, for revisions, and considerations of broader impacts within the Colorado’s overall science-based management plan. These initiatives can allow wildlife management decisions to be made based on emotion rather than scientific principles, tying the hands of professional wildlife managers by restricting adaptive tools and methods necessary to achieve balanced and thriving ecosystems. Defeating this ballot initiative, called Initiative 91, keeps the authority to manage Colorado’s wildlife in the hands of the state’s professionals where it belongs.
Highlights:
- This is an ongoing situation which was previously detailed in the November 20, 2023 issue of The Sportsmen’s Voice, which can be read here.
- After receiving an unfavorable ruling at the Colorado Title Board, which resulted in the removal of the words “trophy hunting” from the opposition’s proposed title for Initiative 91, as well as elements of the measure being contested in the Colorado Supreme Court, the opposition responded by authoring a new and more cleverly written ballot initiative, Initiative 101.
- The goal of Initiative 101 is the same as Initiative 91, which is to ban the hunting of mountain lions, bobcats, and lynx. However, Initiative 101 purposefully avoids some of the pitfalls of the initial attempt, many of which resulted in the first effort being challenged. It is clear that the forces behind Initiative 101 are very serious about seeing this through to the ballot and winning their cause.
The opposition’s filing of the new initiative comes as no surprise given their initial setbacks with Initiative 91. It is unclear at this point whether they will continue to press Initiative 91 in conjunction with Initiative 101, or if they will drop Initiative 91 and focus completely on Initiative 101. The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) and our partners in Colorado are preparing for both possibilities.
If favorably voted for by a majority of Colorado voters during the general election next November, Initiative 101 would accomplish the following:
- Mountain lion, bobcat, and lynx hunting would be prohibited between January 1 and December 17;
- The use of traps, dogs, bait, or electronic devices to follow mountain lions, bobcats, and lynx would be banned;
- The removal of ANY animal’s head, hide, fur, claws, teeth, antlers, horns, internal organs, or feathers from its carcass would be outlawed;
- Any person who kills a mountain lion, bobcat, or lynx would have to turn over all of the animal’s body parts that qualify as a trophy to an authorized official in the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Regional Office within 36 hours of the kill, and;
- Any person who violates this measure would be charged with a Class 6 felony, and would be subject to the suspension of their hunting license
Needless to say, Initiative 101, if passed, would prove detrimental to professional wildlife management efforts in Colorado, not to mention devastating to the interests and heritage of Colorado sportsmen and women. Unfortunately, Colorado law makes it exceptionally easy for anyone to propose constitutional amendments, no matter how absurd, forcing us to confront these outrageous efforts. So, just as with Initiative 91, CSF and our partner groups in Colorado are doing everything possible to oppose these initiatives and the anti-hunting activist groups behind them. Please stay tuned for additional updates on these efforts and how to be involved.
