Red snapper are a popular sportfish in the South Atlantic, but despite having the healthiest population of red snapper in recorded history, recreational anglers have been met with severely restrictive season lengths. This punitive result to having more fish in the water can be attributed to a federal management system that relies on often variable…
Airbow and airgun legality for hunting use varies by state. Where some limit airgun use based on minimum calibers, velocities and ammunition grain weights based on the game species, other states do not mention airguns at all, leaving ambiguity in the minds of prospective users. As advances in technology continue, legislators are generally encouraged to…
Opportunities to expand angling access throughout the country have become increasingly limited in recent years due to increases in private ownership along waterways and attendant riparian rights limiting new access construction. State authorities often have the opportunity to expand fresh water angling access through the establishment of access points when state highway transportation departments are…
Over the last decade, many states have expanded opportunities for archery hunters wishing to use crossbows. Incorporating crossbow hunting opportunities into game management may increase hunter recruitment and retention, and crossbows can be valuable tool for controlling game populations, particularly in suburban and urban areas. Over the past decade, many states have eliminated restrictions on…
Defined as the distance from an occupied dwelling, public road, or city limits that is required to legally discharge a bow or firearm, legal discharge distances vary tremendously from state to state. Often enacted due to unfounded safety concerns, arbitrary and unnecessarily large discharge distances pose negatively impact hunter access in suburban and exurban areas….
Many sportsmen and women depend on federal lands managed by agencies such as the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for access to activities like hunting, fishing and recreational shooting. As these agencies develop strategies to manage federal lands, it is critical for those who support these activities…
In many areas of the country, state court rulings, as well as actions taken by local and state governments, have limited freshwater angling access. To prevent unnecessary closures that negatively affect freshwater angling, it is important that closures be based on scientific evidence. Recent developments regarding freshwater angling access have led to a growing concern…
One of the tools that the White House and Congress use to conserve our country’s rich history, cultural, and natural resources is the designation of national monuments, as sanctioned by the 1906 Antiquities Act. The Antiquities Act was originally intended to give the President and Congress the tools to quickly and effectively protect our country’s…
“No-Net-Loss” of public lands has become increasingly important to ensure access to public lands and waterways for current and future generations of sportsmen and women. Sometimes referred to as “Hunting Heritage Protection Acts,” these policies limit the loss of access to hunting and fishing opportunity by establishing a minimum acreage of publicly- owned areas open…
In recent years, Off Highway Vehicle (OHV) use has increased rapidly across the country.The unmitigated consequences of such growth not only threatens the environmental health of the lands used in OHV recreation but also threatens to eliminate future OHV opportunities. Some states have taken steps to provide adequate funding for sustainable OHV management and to…
Lack of access is one of the biggest issues facing sportsmen and women today and is reported as the number one reason (over which state agencies have control) that lapsed hunters and anglers cite when asked why they no longer hunt or fish. In an attempt to address this issue, land access programs have been…
Sunday hunting bans are one of the last remaining examples of the puritanical blue laws that were initially designed to encourage church attendance. At the time when these restrictions were first put in place, other activities that were illegal on a Sunday included opening a store for business, drinking alcoholic beverages, and tilling your fields….