ELEVENTH WEEK OF THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Subcommittee and committee work picked up as the second funnel deadline is next Friday, April 4th. Bills must pass out of one chamber, and a committee in the other chamber to remain alive.
Appropriations and Ways & Means bills are exempt from the deadline.
However, the legislature also has another trick up its sleeve. They can move bills to the “Unfinished Business Calendar” to keep bills alive that they want to work on but didn’t get through second funnel.
Most of these bills have companion bills in each chamber but have not yet gotten off the floor. This bodes well for a couple ISC supported bills.
LEGISLATIVE ISSUES
The major issue this week was an amendment to allow nonresidents to party hunt on a bill that banned nonresidents from party hunting, or tag share.
The amendment was filed late Tuesday, and the bill was scheduled to be debated on Wednesday. Thanks to your swift advocacy, the amendment was defeated in caucus, and the bill was pulled from consideration. This action won’t make the headlines of the newspaper, but this is what happens when hunters flex their advocacy muscle.
Other bills such as elimination of the celebrity deer tag or landowner tenant tags need to see action this week. However, they could also be put on the Unfinished Business Calendar and acted on by the legislature later this session.
BILL TRACKER
Bills Still Alive
**New information highlighted in yellow**
MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD
We urge all our members to take an active role in the legislative process by attending town forums or reaching out to your legislators through email, phone, or text. It’s crucial that they hear directly from you about the importance of pushing our favorable bills forward. The following bills need your support to advance through the process. We are a week away from the second funnel and these bills need to pass a chamber and a committee in the opposite chamber to remain alive:
• Securing a constitutional right to hunt and fish (House and Senate – SJR 7/HJR 7)
• Eliminating the celebrity deer tag (Senate – SF 424)
• Increasing acre size for landowner tenant tags (which has been amended to grandfather in current LOT tag recipients and require land sold after the January 2027 antlerless season to be at least 20 acres to qualify for tags – House and Senate – SF 555/HF 892)
Your voice truly makes a difference, as evidenced by this past week. Many legislators came up to me and said their inboxes were inundated with emails from sportsmen and hunters about the proposed amendment. Be sure to ask your legislators to talk to leadership about getting these important bills passed and sent to the other chamber for further consideration. If you do hear back from your legislators on these issues, please let me know. Thank you for your continued advocacy and for helping to ensure that our priorities move forward at the Statehouse!
Check out this link to see where/when your legislators are hosting town hall meetings.
House Natural Resources Committee
Senate Natural Resources Committee
PLEASE DON’T HESITATE TO CONTACT ME!
Phil Jeneary
Proud Chapter of
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