Why It Matters: As the Kansas State Legislature adjourned for an extended break prior to returning for the state’s Veto Session, legislators in the House of Representatives and the Senate passed two bills of interest that will be moving to the Governor’s desk for consideration. Pertaining to no-cost licenses for disabled veterans and firearm safety…
Why It Matters: As state legislatures continue to consider a variety of legislation across the nation, CSF remains engaged to protect and advance our outdoor sporting traditions. Recently, such engagement ranges from supporting efforts to promote the safe and responsible handling of firearms and participation in hunter education courses, to protecting the management authority and…
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…
Why It Matters: To ensure the longevity of the American System of Conservation Funding and defeat efforts designed to undermine our ability to participate in our time-honored outdoor traditions, we must take steps to recruit the next generation of sportsmen and sportswomen. Youth deer hunting seasons provide an opportunity to advance these objectives while spending…
Contact: Kent Keene, Assistant Manager, Lower Midwestern States and Agriculture Policy Why it Matters: As reported earlier this year, the concept of a lifetime license available for youth represents an opportunity to begin investing in future generations of sportsmen and women. However, all efforts to remove recruitment barriers must also ensure that the future viability…
Contact: Kent Keene, Assistant Manager, Lower Midwestern States and Agriculture Policy Why It Matters: The opportunity to facilitate open communication and collaboration is one of the primary purposes for the National Assembly of Sportsmen’s Caucuses (NASC) network. The conversations around Kansas House Bill 2456 have highlighted the value of such collaboration. Introduced as a very…
Contact: Kent Keene, Senior Coordinator, Lower Midwestern States and Agriculture Policy Highlights Why It Matters: Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, participation in traditional outdoor activities, like hunting and angling, were steadily declining. However, one of the impacts of the pandemic was a resurgence in interest for activities such as hunting and angling that provided an…
Contact: Kent Keene, Senior Coordinator, Lower Midwestern States and Agriculture Policy Highlights Why it matters: While CSF maintains that state fish and wildlife agencies are the entities best equipped to make decisions regarding the management of our public trust fish and wildlife resources, fish and game commissions – the governing body for these agencies –…
Contact: Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator During their August meeting, members of the Kansas Wildlife, Parks, & Tourism Commission (Commission) voted 5-2 to approve regulation changes to allow the use of night vision, thermal, and infrared optics to hunt coyotes on private lands. Hunters will be able to use these methods to hunt coyotes…
Contact: Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator On June 25, members of the Kansas Wildlife, Parks, & Tourism (KDWPT) Commission (Commission) discussed newly proposed changes to Kansas’ coyote hunting regulations during their monthly meeting. These proposed changes include legalizing the use of night vision, thermal, and infrared optics during a special private lands season scheduled…
Contact: Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator On April 30, the Kansas Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus hosted a Sporting Clays Challenge outside of Topeka. The event brought together members of the Kansas Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus; representatives from the state’s conservation community; staff from the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks, and Tourism; and Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation Midwestern States…
By Chris Horton, Senior Director, Midwestern States and Fisheries Program On November 13, members of the Kansas Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus and the sportsmen’s community gathered at Ravenwood Lodge outside of Topeka, Kansas, for their annual sportsmen’s reception, followed by a day of pheasant hunting on November 14. “The Caucus looks forward to this event every…