A bill that would have tapped hunter license dollars to pay for elk damage to crops in areas well over population objectives and limited permits passed an initial vote in the House on Tuesday before being voted down in the appropriations committee. House Bill 697 from Rep. Joshua Kassmier, R-Fort Benton, would allow compensation only in hunting districts where elk populations are 200% over objective or more, and where the state limits elk hunting permits. Kassmier brought an amendment to the ...

April 6, 2021 Speaker Wylie GaltMontana State House of RepresentativesState Capitol1301 E. Sixth Ave.Helena, MT 59601 RE: Montana Sporting Coalition opposition to HB 697 Dear Speaker Galt and House members, The Montana Sporting Coalition is made up of traditional hunting and fishing organizations that collectively have thousands of members throughout the state and nation. We include general wildlife and sporting groups, species-specific organizations and fishing organizations. We are deeply ...

News for Immediate ReleaseMarch 31, 2021Contact: Katie McKalip, 406-240-9262, mckalip@backcountryhunters.org President Biden unveils multi-trillion-dollar roadmap for investing in natural resources and creating jobs WASHINGTON – A massive, multi-trillion-dollar infrastructure plan released today by the Biden administration would make targeted investments in systems and economic sectors important to the conservation of U.S. public lands and waters and citizens’ opportunities to access and ...

If you, by chance, have already read Part I of this two-part screed, you generally know what to expect.[1] Hence, I won’t try to dissuade you from wasting another five or ten more minutes of your time on Part II. My hope, however, is that some of my turkey hunting experiences can enhance yours and hopefully shorten the learning curve for new turkey hunters. First, some turkey hunting statistics. Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s “2020 Spring Turkey Harvest Report” estimates that nearly 24,000 ...

Volunteers from the California Chapter of BHA recently showed up to support the Society for the Conservation of Bighorn Sheep on a guzzler repair project in Southern California. They believe a big ram punched a hole in one of the old brittle guzzlers and the volunteer team showed up to replace both old tanks and more. The project was located in the Orocopia mountains, a remote desert portion of Riverside County managed by the Bureau of Land Management, and it involved heavy lifting, steep ...