On September 23, the sporting community celebrated National Hunting and Fishing Day (NHFD) across the country. Thanks to the efforts of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation’s (CFS) regional and federal staff, 38 Governors and the President of the United States, issued proclamations commemorating the day. In New England alone, Governor’s Sportsmen’s Caucus (GSC) Co-Chair, Governor Chris Sununu (NH), and GSC Members Governor Janet Mills (ME), Governor Phil Scott (VT), and Governor Maura Healey (MA) all signed proclamations recognizing the contributions of the sporting community and how many of our wild spaces remain because of America’s sportsmen and women.
Held on the fourth Saturday of every September since 1972, NHFD recognizes the contributions of America’s sportsmen and women to conservation and the economic impacts of the sporting community. It was President Nixon who signed the first proclamation of NHFD in 1972 writing, “I urge all citizens to join with outdoor sportsmen in the wise use of our natural resources and in insuring their proper management for the benefit of future generations.” NHFD, a federally recognized holiday, celebrates our traditions of hunting, angling, and the shooting sports at the local, state, and national level. Whether you are new to the sporting community or you have been a life-long sportsman or woman, all are encouraged to participate in increasing public awareness of the connection between hunting, angling, the shooting sports, and conservation. Through self-imposed fees and excise taxes, sportsmen and women have raised more than $57 billion. It is the unique American System of Conservation Funding – a “user pays – public benefits” approach that is widely recognized as the most successful model for funding fish and wildlife management in the world.
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey issued a NHFD proclamation recognizing the conservation and financial contributions of the Bay State’s sportsmen and women. In 2022 alone, more than $23 million was generated to support the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game. Additionally, more than 540,000 hunters and anglers supported the state’s economy through their spending more than $600 million on outdoor activities. This spending supports over 9,000 jobs and generates $70 million in state and local taxes.
That’s wonderful news, but let’s see how much the governor appreciates hunters when a proposed House bill (HB) 4139- An Act Modernizing Firearm Laws, or the Senate’s version of it, reaches her desk. It’s a massive bill with hundreds of pages. One disturbing part is that it prohibits the purchase of semi-automatic firearms of any kind for citizens 21 years of age or younger, shotgun and modern sporting rifles, limits young adult sportsmen and women to primitive muzzleloading type firearms and manual pump and bolt action, single shot rifles, or archery equipment for their hunting and recreational shooting pursuits.
According to a National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) estimate, “80 percent of Pittman-Robertson excise tax contributions are generated by sales attributed to recreational shooting.” Those recreational shooters are not shooting manual pump shotguns and muzzleloaders alone, which are some of the only firearms that would not be further restricted under this bill.
Should these semi-automatic shotguns be prohibited with the passage of HB 4139, individuals would be forced to incur additional costs to continue participating in hunting and the shooting sports if other suitable, if non-prohibited firearms, are not already in their possession.
Limiting the options in the marketplace will likely have negative effects on our nation’s conservation funding via the unique “user pays – public benefits” structure known as the American System of Conservation Funding (ASCF). The funds collected through this program are the lifeblood of state fish and wildlife agencies, including the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife) – the primary manager of Massachusetts’ fish and wildlife resources. It is widely recognized that recreational target shooters, who per-capita, spend even more money on firearms and ammunition than hunters, are the financial keystone for the ASCF.
Restrictions on firearm sales and use will likely decrease the manufacturer-level excise taxes collected on firearms and ammunition, which then decreases the overall pool of money available to state fish and wildlife agencies (including MassWildlife) through the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program.
Passage of HB 4139 would not only undermine the Second Amendment of our Constitution, and cause great harm to the traditions and conservation efforts of the sporting community in the Bay State.
I share the concerns of approximately 50,000 fellow hunters in Massachusetts who are concerned that passage of the bill could make us all lawbreakers. I also am concerned about the future of hunting in Massachusetts which is indirectly affected by this bill.
Proposed fur ban
The MA Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources is hearing on a proposed Fur Ban bill Wednesday, November 8, starting at 1:00 PM. Bill H. 849 is an act prohibiting the sale of fur products. It is being sponsored by Rep. Jack Patrick Lewis of Framingham and Rep. Josh S. Cutler of Pembroke.
If this bill passes, throughout the entire state people would not be able to sell or purchase certain fur products. This does not bode well for Massachusetts trappers.
Personally, I don’t plan to buy a mink coat or a coon skin cap in the near future, but I am a fly fisherman and tie many flies with furs/hairs using muskrat, deer, woodchuck, mink, fox, squirrel, etc. In fact, recently I wrote about a trout fly I used in the Catskills called “The Usual” which is made up of fur from the snowshoe hare’s feet. It would become illegal to purchase this fur from a fly shop. (Thankfully, I still have a few of the feet from when I used to hunt snowshoe hares years ago.)
If you, like me, do not think this ban on fur products is right, politely let your local house representative and senator know.
Incidentally, Senate Bill S.590 is basically the same as H.849 and that is being sponsored by Sen. John C. Velis, representing Hampden and Hampshire Counties.
To view the entire bill, type in: The Joint Committee on Environment and Natural resources, click Hearings then scroll down, click Animals and Miscellaneous then look under the bill titleBottom of Form
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Forest Conservation and Management Strategies for Climate Mitigation
On November 9, at 6:00 PM you are invited to join the Berkshire Environmental Action Team (BEAT) at the Big Elm Brewery in Sheffield or online for the November Berkshire Green Drinks event with Tom Ryan, a forester with the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR). Tom will touch on several areas within forestry, including an overview of the current state of our forested landscape, a summary of state forestry programs and the existing land use designations for DCR state properties, conservation options for private landowners, forest-climate adaptation and carbon management concepts, landscape-scale habitat restoration efforts, biochar, and supporting local forest products and how this can help mitigate climate change.
This is a hybrid event, taking place in person and online via Zoom. If you plan to join them in person, RSVP: tinyurl.com/Nov2023-INPERSON-Green-Drinks.
Tom Ryan has been a forester with the Massachusetts DCR since 2003. In 2022, he shifted from the service forestry program – working with private landowners and municipalities – to the management forestry program, helping to manage and steward some 314,000 acres of state forest, park, and reservation lands. For questions, email team@thebeatnews.org or call 413-464-9402.
Basic Hunter Education course
Basic hunter education is mandatory for all first-time adult hunters. MassWildlife offers Basic Hunter Education in two formats. Each format covers the same material and students take the same final exam. You can choose the one that is right for you:
- Blended: Students complete the online MA hunter study guide before attending one in-person Field Day.
- In-person (traditional): Students attend an entirely in-person, instructor led course that is offered over multiple days.
Upon successful completion, graduates are mailed a certificate of completion recognized in all U.S. states, Canada, and Mexico. All courses are free of charge and open to the public.
A blended course is being offered at the Stationery Factory, 63 Flansburg Ave., Dalton on Sunday, November 19 from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm. Students must complete the online-study guide before registering. Click onto: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/basic-hunter-education-course for all the details.