Last week, the Kentucky General Assembly officially adjourned sine die, marking the end of the 2026 legislative session.
Here is the status of some measures tracked this year.
- HB 78 (PLCAA Protections): This critical legislation provides essential protections for the firearm industry against frivolous lawsuits. Although it faced a gubernatorial veto, the legislature overrode it, officially enshrining these protections in Kentucky law.
- SR 194 (Trapping Recognition): We are pleased to report the passage of SR 194. This resolution is a significant win for science-based management, as it formally acknowledges trapping as a vital tool for wildlife conservation and management across the Commonwealth.
Defeated Anti-Sportsmen Legislation:
- HB 126 (Universal Background Checks): This overreaching mandate to require background checks for private firearms sales and transfers failed to gain traction and failed to complete the legislative process.
- HB 316 (Repeal of Preemption): This was an attempt to repeal the state’s firearm preemption laws, which ensure that a confusing patchwork of local regulations does not threaten law-abiding owners. The bill failed to get out of committee and failed to complete the legislative process.
Defeated Pro-Sportsmen Legislation:
- HB 850 (Working Animals): We also closely monitored HB 850 regarding working animals to ensure the interests of those who hunt with dogs and utilize animals in sporting traditions remain protected. This bill did pass the House, but unfortunately, it did not receive a hearing in the Senate committee and failed to complete the legislative process.
Review a complete list of monitored bills via the Interactive Legislative Map.
While the session is over, our work is not. Animal extremists and anti-hunting groups are already looking for ways to bypass the legislature through administrative rule changes or future ballot initiatives. We’ve seen it in neighboring states: the moment we look away, they strike.
Stay engaged, keep your boots on the ground, and be ready to mobilize. Please share this message with fellow sportsmen to help defend our hunting, fishing, and trapping heritage in the Bluegrass State.
The Sportsmen’s Alliance guarantees hunting, fishing and trapping for the American sportsman now and forever. We’re there when sportsmen need us most. We are the only organization specifically created to protect the individual hunter, angler, and trapper – no matter the threat. We will never compromise when it comes to defending our way of life in the courts, in the legislatures, in the public square and at the ballot box. We make this promise to the American sportsman: we will never give up and never give in while proudly securing our future against those seeking to destroy our values, beliefs, and traditions. Stay connected to Sportsmen’s Alliance: Online, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
