Hunters Step Up To The Plate

On December 12, the worst ice storm in the history of Arkansas knocked out power to 250,000 homes. The power was out for two weeks, and many people lost everything in their freezers. What does this have to do with hunters? To help those in need, Arkansas Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry donated 20,000 meals of venison to the citizens of Arkansas. Brenda Blankenship, Director of Bradley County Helping Hands, said, "some people simply broke down and cried when they got their food." Hats off to the hunters, meat processors, and volunteers who made this possible. FHFH are the good guys helping to feed needy people everywhere.

WV Governor Supports Bowhunting

West Virginia ranks in the top five states relative to total number of bowhunters, and first in percentage of gun hunters who bowhunt. Governor Bob Wise has been a long-time gun hunter for turkeys and deer, and he has worked hard to increase the tourism dollars received from hunting and fishing in West Virginia. Now he has gone one step further by getting into archery. He enjoys shooting, and he recently taped a public service announcement on treestand safety. The bowhunters of America have a new friend, Governor Bob Wise of West Virginia.

CWD Marches On

Five more mule deer from New Mexico have tested positive for CWD. Three were from the White Sands Missile Range and two others were found just 3 miles outside the missile range boundary. The White Sands herd numbers about 150 deer, and the mystery is how CWD got there. Apparently there are no game ranches in the vicinity, and no deer have been stocked in the area. Studies are continuing.

Meanwhile new cases of CWD have been found in Saskatchewan, on a game farm (elk) in Minnesota, in South Dakota, and most recently near Vernal, Utah (one mule deer).

The impact of CWD on hunter participation in Wisconsin appears significant. In 2001, Wisconsin had 688,261 licensed gun hunters, but in 2002 the number dropped to 620,059. Deer harvest also dropped from 444,384 to 367,116 - at a time when more deer need to be harvested. However, optimism among deer hunters and managers in Wisconsin has increased as the fear that humans can contract CWD has decreased (no one has ever contracted CWD). Thus, things could return to normal this fall.

Wisconsin is still trying to lower deer numbers to 25 deer per square mile in the CWD hot zone, and the DNR has requested a continuation of the "tools" they feel are needed to do so. These include allowing the DNR to shoot at night and from vehicles; issuing landowner shooting permits; allowing landowners to shoot from farm machinery; and allowing DNR and landowners to shoot over bait. Outside the eradication zone, the DNR wants to continue the Earn-A-Buck requirements and a ban on baiting of deer.

NRA Endows Professorship

Animal rights-related professors or centers have been established at three universities (though the one at Rutgers was shut down last year). Now comes word that we have similar activity from the hunter-oriented side. And this proposal makes a lot of sense. The NRA Foundation has given George Mason University School of Law $1 million to endow the Patrick Henry Professorship of Constitutional Law and the Second Amendment. George Mason President Alan Merten stated, "This professorship will be dedicated to exploring the ideas and impact of the Second Amendment." With all the anti-Second Amendment rhetoric in the press, it's refreshing to know that law students will have the chance to spend time studying our Constitution.

Courts Rule on Wildlife

Guides from New Mexico went to court in an attempt to get more nonresident elk tags in Arizona. In Arizona there is a 10 percent cap on such permits, and the guides argued that this violated the Commerce Clause of the Constitution. This clause gives states the power to regulate commerce among states; however, the district court ruled that hunting was recreation and not commerce, and thus the Commerce Clause was not in effect in this situation. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed that decision, stating that hunting promotes interstate travel of hunters and the sale of nonedible portions of elk and deer (e.g., hides and antlers). However, the Court of Appeals did not rule on the 10 percent cap issue, but remanded that back to the District Court, where the state must demonstrate that the cap is the best way for them to manage the wildlife resource. Watch this one with interest, because if the cap is deemed illegal, the whole structure for allocating nonresident tags could change in the West.

In 1998, California voters passed Proposition 4, making it illegal to trap fur-bearing and nongame animals for recreation or commerce with a "body-gripping trap." This meant that the government could no longer use traps to protect endangered or threatened species or migratory birds. Bird conservation organizations went to court and the court ruled that Proposition 4 (a state law) conflicted with federal authority to conserve protected species, which allows the use of leg hold traps by federal employees. In other words the Endangered Species Act preempts state law, and trapping will occur.

In 2000, the voters of Montana passed Initiative I-143, which prohibited creation of new game farms and shooting of game farm animals for a fee. At question were the ethics of such hunting and the poor image it portrayed to the public. The initiative led to Montana Fish, Wildlife, & Park's setting of new policies. But some game farms sued to restrain enforcement of a policy that mandated that game farms could no longer sell elk hunts. A district court agreed with the game farmers and stopped FWP from enforcing this policy. Now the Montana Supreme Court has ruled against the game farmers and has allowed FWP to enforce the new policies. End result? Montana does not allow game farm hunting.

IBO Supports Hunting

The International Bowhunting Organization continued its major support of hunting with a $10,000 donation to the U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance. This donation will help the Alliance introduce two model bills to all states. One bill proposes language to limit birth control projects for wildlife, and the other is designed to protect people and companies targeted by animal rights terrorists.