State: MO

Contact: Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator Last week, Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation’s (CSF) Lower Midwestern States Coordinator Kent Keene submitted a formal comment letter to the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) in support of their proposed plan for the state’s first resident black bear hunt. Historically present throughout Missouri, black bears were extirpated from the…

Contacts: Nick Buggia, Upper Midwestern States Manager; Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator Since many Midwestern states have either wrapped up their 2020 legislative sessions or remain suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, members of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation’s States Program Team will be providing brief regional legislative updates over the next few weeks. Below…

Contact: Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator Sportsmen and women looking for a new big game opportunity in the Ozarks recently had their dreams fulfilled by the Missouri Conservation Commission. During their meeting on April 8, the Commission announced plans to move forward with Missouri’s first elk season, marking the next milestone in the successful restoration…

Contact: Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator Though Missouri’s 2020 legislative session has been suspended due to the COVID-19 outbreak, there are still many important pieces of legislation that sportsmen and women should be aware of in the Show-Me state. Once the legislative session resumes, the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) will continue to track and…

Contact: Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator On January 21, the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) welcomed Missouri Governor Michael Parson as the newest member of the Governors Sportsmen’s Caucus (GSC). Gov. Parson is the 26th member of the GSC, a bipartisan group of governors from across the country dedicated to protecting and advancing hunting, angling,…

Contact: Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator On December 7, the United States Forest Service (USFS) announced a decision to close feral swine hunting on the Mark Twain National Forest. Originally proposed as a complete closure, the USFS allowed the public an opportunity to weigh in on the proposed closure during a 60-day comment period….

Contact: Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator After receiving initial approval from the Missouri Conservation Commission, the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) is currently accepting public comments regarding proposed regulation changes designed to help landowners control nuisance wildlife and invasive species. Specifically, the proposed regulation changes would allow both landowners and their representatives, after receiving…

Contact: Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator On August 23, the Missouri Conservation Commission provided the final approval for new regulations regarding the transportation of deer carcasses into and within the state. Following initial approval from the Commission in May and a subsequent public comment period, the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) finalized these regulatory…

Contact: Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator On July 11, Missouri Governor Mike Parson signed House Bill 260, nicknamed the “Poaching Bill,” into law. Sponsored by Missouri Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus member Representative Jered Taylor, HB 260 is a significant step forward for protecting Missouri’s natural resources by combatting poaching activities. The bill significantly increases the…

Contact: Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator On June 2, the Missouri Conservation Commission held a public meeting in Jefferson City. During the meeting, the Commission approved the Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) initial plan for an elk hunting season. If the Missouri elk population continues to grow at its projected rate, an elk-hunting season…

Contact: Kent Keene, Lower Midwestern States Coordinator On May 24, the United States Forest Service (USFS) began a 60-day public comment period allowing stakeholders to weigh in on the proposed closure of Mark Twain National Forest (MTNF) to feral hog hunting. Mark Twain National Forest covers 1.5 million acres across 29 counties throughout the Missouri…

By Joel Hodgdon, Central Midwestern States Coordinator Due to the efforts of state fish and wildlife agencies working in partnership with the sportsmen and women who fund these agencies’ conservation efforts through the American System of Conservation Funding, the populations of three high-profile wildlife species across the Midwest region are rebounding and expanding their range…