Hunting and Fishing on Federal Lands a Priority in New Legislation
TRCP supports Hunting and Fishing Heritage and Opportunities Act; sportsmen urge House to introduce companion bill patterned after Senate measure
The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership today announced its support of the Hunting and Fishing Heritage and Opportunities Act, recently introduced Senate legislation that promotes science-based management of fish, wildlife and their habitats and establishes public-lands hunting and fishing as priority activities that must be recognized and facilitated by the federal public lands planning process. The national sportsmen’s group urged the House of Representatives to pattern companion legislation after the Senate bill.
Reintroduced in the 113th Congress by Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Joe Manchin of West Virginia, the Hunting and Fishing Heritage and Opportunities Act (S.170) follows a similar measure considered by lawmakers in 2012. Neither the House nor the Senate versions of the 2012 bill ultimately was able to gain traction in the 112th Congress due in part to controversial provisions related to the Wilderness Act and the National Environmental Policy Act. S. 170 has been revised to address those concerns and improve its chances of passage into law.
“The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership is pleased to support the Hunting and Fishing Heritage and Opportunities Act, and we thank Senators Murkowski and Manchin for introducing it,” said TRCP President and CEO Whit Fosburgh. “If public access and sporting opportunities are to be maintained on our public lands, hunting and fishing must be emphasized in the federal lands planning process. S. 170 would accomplish this.
“Senators Murkowski and Manchin have gone to great lengths to make this legislation palatable to a broad spectrum of interests without compromising its underlying intent,” continued Fosburgh. “S. 170 leaves no doubt about the importance of hunting and angling on our nation’s public lands. We urge the House of Representatives to introduce a companion bill that stays true to this course – and to promote its subsequent speedy passage into law.”
In 1912 Theodore Roosevelt said, “There can be no greater issue than that of conservation in this country.” While in the political arena, he succeeded in making conservation a top tier national issue.
T.R. had the foresight to address these issues still so significant to sportsmen today, understanding that if we want to ensure critical habitat, special hunting grounds and secret fishing holes will be around for future generations, we must plan carefully today.
The TRCP is working to guarantee all Americans a quality place to hunt and fish.
