Colorado: Oppose HB 25-1258 Contact your Rep

[bayoublaster7527]

Colorado House Bill 25-1258 was introduced yesterday and will soon hit the House Agriculture, Water, and Natural Resources Committee. It is deceptively titled "Scientific Wildlife Management" but will open the door for never-ending attacks from anti-hunting activists.

Scientific Wildlife Management | Colorado General Assembly

leg.colorado.gov

HB 25-1258: Scientific Wildlife Management. I strongly urge you to vote no on HB 25-1258 or amend any following version to implicitly protect the ability of Coloradans to hunt, fish, and trap. Any following version should also include guidance to the Commission to adopt rules that benefit outdoor recreation opportunities for Coloradans, including hunting, fishing, trapping, hiking, camping, etc. By stipulating that rules must benefit all Coloradans, it would be easy to challenge rules that provide outdoor opportunities to certain user groups, specifically hunters, anglers, ATV riders, skiers, hikers, etc. This is particularly dangerous for hunters as we have seen significant action from out-of-state funded, anti-hunting organizations attempting to ban hunting in Colorado, such as failed Proposition 127 and SB22-031.

Hunting has been a critical component of CPW wildlife management for decades. HB25-1258 removes the guidance that CPW “shall utilize hunting, fishing, and trapping as the primary means of effecting harvest” to CPW “may authorize hunting, fishing, and trapping in accordance with the best available science to benefit wildlife, whole ecosystem health, and all Coloradans”. This change leaves the door open for anti-hunting activists to challenge every single wild game hunting season and regulation on the grounds that it does not benefit whole ecosystem health and all Coloradans. It would be an insurmountable task for CPW to consistently evaluate whole ecosystem health prior to authorizing every single hunting and fishing rule or regulation.

HB 25-1258 is a Trojan Horse, opening the door to a slow, steady elimination of Coloradans’ ability to sustainably harvest wild game and enjoy diverse outdoor opportunities. It grants the extreme anti-hunting factions a wide berth to attack Colorado’s rich hunting and fishing legacy. HB 25-1258 provides no specific protections for Colorado hunters, trappers, and anglers. I ask you to vote no on HB 25-1258 or significantly amend the bill to support future generations of Colorado sportsmen and women.

Contact the House Agriculture, Water, and Natural Resources Committee below and voice your opposition:

Karen McCormick
[email protected]
303-866-2780

Mandy Lindsay
[email protected]
303-866-3911

Matthew Martinez
[email protected]
303-866-2916

Tammy Story
[email protected]
303-866-2582

Ty Winter
[email protected]
303-866-2747

Matt Soper
[email protected]
303-866-2583

Meghan Lukens
[email protected]
303-866-2923

Elizabeth Velasco
[email protected]
303-866-2949

Larry Don Suckla
[email protected]
303-866-2955

Katie Stewart
[email protected]
303-866-2914

Lesley Smith
[email protected]
303-866-2578

Dusty Johnson
[email protected]
303-866-2398

Tisha Mauro
[email protected]
303-866-2968

 

[rideold]

I know it never ends but some days I just get so frustrated. Emails sent and thanks for bringing this to the forefront. I'd missed this one while emailing the legislator about the semi-auto ban and the 21 and over ammunition purchase bill. Sheesh.