The Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation recently submitted comments in support of a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service direct rule removing redundant regulations for National Wildlife Refuges in certain states. The rule would reduce inefficiencies in refuge management and burdens on hunters. Redundant regulations are particularly burdensome to sportsmen, who must follow multiple levels of law while on federal lands like wildlife refuges.
The Role of Sportsmen in Funding Refuges
Sportsmen’s dollars, through the federal Duck Stamp program, are the primary source of revenue for acquiring lands in the refuge system. Sportsmen should not be unduly burdened by unnecessary regulations when their dollars funded the system in the first place.
Updates to Hunting Dog and Field Trial Regulations
Specifically, the rule removes regulatory language pertaining to dogs on refuges. SAF supports the service’s decision to remove the complete ban on field trials on refuges. This not only removes redundancy, but it also allows for more flexibility in the management.
However, SAF has asked the service to retain a general statement of support for using dogs for hunting in regulatory language. SAF supports the use of sporting dogs on refuges and elsewhere. That’s why we sued the service regarding hunting dog regulations on a refuge in Vermont and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for its ban on importing and traveling abroad with puppies.
Advocating for Meaningful Gains in Efficiency
“Everyone wins when inefficiencies are reduced, and we applaud the service’s efforts to remove inefficiencies,” said Michael Jean, Litigation Counsel at the Sportsmen’s Alliance. “While seemingly minor, the rule issued by the service will result in meaningful gains in efficiency and reduction in burdens for sportsmen on wildlife refuges, we’re hopeful our comments will encourage the service to maintain its supportive language of the use of hunting dogs on refuges.”
Protecting Our Outdoor Heritage
The legacy of hunting, fishing, and trapping depends on our actions today. Please stand with us or donate to the Sportsmen’s Legal Defense Fund in the fight against those who are working to bully and erode our heritage and traditions.
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.
