The Humane Society of the United States has conjured up a novel approach to undermine the authority of the states to manage resident wildlife, and at the same time take a swipe at one form of hunting. The "Don`t Feed the Bears Act" would prohibit the use of bait to hunt bear on federal lands, using the premise that if federal agencies prohibit tourists from feeding the bears, then the same prohibition ought to apply to hunters. H.R. 1472 has traction in Congress with 130 cosponsors, many of whom have no doubt been lulled into believing this is a noncontroversial issue and with no knowledge that anti-hunters are backing this bill. A hearing in a House Resources subcommittee was held earlier this month. Please contact your Representative and express your opposition to the bill because it sets a dangerous precedent by giving the federal government preemptive authority over state wildlife management. Only in extraordinary cases, as in migratory birds and threatened and endangered species, has the Congress given jurisdiction to the federal government. If your Representative is a cosponsor of H.R. 1472, please ask that he withdraw support from the bill.
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