Bill to Increase Duck Stamp Price Passes House Natural Resources Committee

Ducks Unlimited officials praised the House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee’s passage by voice vote Wednesday of the Federal Duck Stamp Act of 2014. The measure is now headed to the House floor for consideration.

The Federal Duck Stamp Act of 2014, a bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate would raise the price of the Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp (duck stamp) to $25 from its current level of $15 and dedicate the amount of the increase to conservation easements with private landowners.

“Ducks Unlimited appreciates the support of House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA) and Ranking Democrat Peter DeFazio (Oregon) in moving quickly to report HR 5069 to the House floor, said Ducks Unlimited CEO Dale Hall. “We also appreciate the leadership of Subcommittee Chairman John Fleming (R-Louisiana) and the bipartisan co-sponsors in bringing the bill to the Committee for consideration. The price of the duck stamp was last adjusted 23 years ago. Since then, the price of land has tripled and conservation buying power has diminished greatly. Once again, sportsmen and women are willing to lead in funding conservation that benefits all of our citizens.”

Since its enactment in 1934, the federal duck stamp program has protected nearly 6 million acres of habitat through expenditures of more than $900 million. The price of the duck stamp has been raised only seven times. The last price increase raised the price of the stamp to $15 — the single longest period without a price increase in the program’s history. The Congressional Budget Office found that because the federal duck stamp is a user fee, such a price increase would have no net impact on federal spending.

Sponsored by Chairman Fleming, HR 5069 is originally co-sponsored in the House by Congressmen Ron Kind (D-Wisconsin), Jason Smith (R-Missouri) and Rob Wittman (R-Virginia).

Ducks Unlimited

Ducks Unlimited is the world's leader in wetlands and waterfowl conservation. DU got its start in 1937 during the Dust Bowl when North America’s drought-plagued waterfowl populations had plunged to unprecedented lows. Determined not to sit idly by as the continent’s waterfowl dwindled beyond recovery, a small group of sportsmen joined together to form an organization that became known as Ducks Unlimited. Its mission: habitat conservation. Thanks to decades of abiding by that single mission, Ducks Unlimited is now the world’s largest and most effective private waterfowl and wetlands conservation organization. DU is able to multilaterally deliver its work through a series of partnerships with private individuals, landowners, agencies, scientific communities and other entities.