California: Anti-Hunting Bill to be Reconsidered Today

Contact members of the Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee Today!

While the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and other radical anti-hunting groups suffered defeat when Senate Bill 1221 failed to pass in the Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee on June 24, this bill was unfortunately authorized for reconsideration and will be voted on again by this same committee today.

Members of the Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee need to hear from every sportsman and gun owner in California urging them to OPPOSE SB 1221 again.

Let committee members know that California cannot afford to let the political agenda of animal rights extremists decide hunting regulations in the state.  Hunting in ALL forms is an important tool needed to generate revenue for state conservation projects and to manage wildlife.  It is also a long-standing American heritage that must be preserved.  Contact information for committee members can be found here.

SB 1221, introduced by state Senator Ted Lieu (D-28), would ban hunting bears and bobcats with dogs.  Hunting with dogs is a tradition that continues to be practiced across the country.  Many dog breeds with select characteristics for hunting can be traced back for thousands of years.  Seventeen states allow bear hunting with dogs.  The use of hounds for hunting has never been shown to have an adverse impact on wildlife numbers.   Biologists and other wildlife experts determine regulations and bag limits, just as they do with other hunting seasons.

SB 1221 is sponsored by HSUS – a group that supports banning all hunting with or without dogs.  Its President, Wayne Pacelle, has been quoted as saying: “We are going to use the ballot box and the democratic process to stop all hunting in the United States ... We will take it species by species until all hunting is stopped in California. Then we will take it state by state.”  In 2003, HSUS unsuccessfully championed California Assembly Bill 342 that would have banned all hunting with hounds.  It now seems to be taking a deceptive and incremental approach to accomplish their same goal with SB 1221.  We cannot let an organization whose sole purpose is to destroy America's hunting heritage succeed.

Please forward this alert to your family, friends and fellow sportsmen across California asking them to also CALL and E-MAIL members of the Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee and urge them to OPPOSE SB 1221.  HSUS is attempting to ban this particular form of hunting today but, it will be back for many other forms of hunting in the future.