Water Access 

            The state has embarked on a process to revise the Strategic Plan for Providing Boating and Fishing Access to the Waters of the State, commonly called the Boating Strategic Plan.   SAM will participate in the process, represented by Harry Vanderweide.

            The current plan was created in 1995 and many new issues have arisen since that time, from invasive plants to access for the disabled.

            State officials also hope to focus more of the plan on obtaining access to rivers and streams and coastal waters.  The old plan is entirely devoted to lake and pond access.

            Many groups are represented on the planning group, including Maine BASS, Trout Unlimited, Ducks Unlimited, and the Maine Professional Guides Association.

            Environmental groups including the Natural Resources Council of Maine, land trusts including Maine Coast Heritage Trust, the Congress of Lakes Association, and even the Maine Marine Trades Association, will also be working to create this important plan.  DOC hopes to complete the drafting of the plan by mid-summer and to hold public meetings around the state followed by a final document no later than September 30, 2007.

MEFISH

             SAM’s MEFISH bill to award tax credits for private investments in fisheries projects found a lot of interest from the legislature’s Taxation Committee when it was heard in mid-February.  Rep. Thom Watson, sponsor of SAM’s bill, sits on the Taxation Committee and is a strong advocate for the legislation.

            The bill would create a program at the Finance Authority of Maine to provide tax credits to any entity that paid for fisheries projects designated by the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

            The committee is now working on an amendment that would establish a prototype program naming two or three projects and establishing the tax credits that would be available to those who pay for those projects.  SAM is working with DIF&W and the committee to select the projects to be named in the amended version of the bill.

Bear Legislation and Lawsuit

             Legislative bills on bears, proposed by Maine’s animal rights activists, have not yet been printed, but they are expected soon.  One will ban bear hunting with dogs.  Another will ban bear trapping.  And there is also a separate bill to ban all trapping.

            That fits with the lawsuit filed by the Animal Protection Institute of California in federal court in Bangor, demanding that the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife stop all trapping because of the possibility that a wolf, lynx, or bald eagle could be caught.

            A similar suit in Minnesota, by the Humane Society of the United States, was dismissed in February with a settlement that requires that state’s Natural Resources Department to obtain a federal incidental take permit covering trappers who might catch a lynx.  In the meantime, trapping continues.

            In Maine, the API – which has a similar suit in Minnesota that is going forward – has contested the application for intervener status filed by the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance, SAM, the Maine Trappers Association, and other groups and individuals.

            Meanwhile, Maine’s Fish and Wildlife Advisory Council may take final action soon on a rule proposed by DIF&W to ban foothold traps for bear trappers and limit those trappers to one trap.  Currently each trapper is allowed to set two bear traps.

            The rule proposal has been controversial in the trapping and sporting communities, with SAM issuing the strongest opinion against the proposal, and the MTA expressing reservations with reluctant support. 

            While it may be reasonable to reduce the number of traps to one per trapper – given that the bag limit is one bear – SAM strongly opposed the ban on the foothold trap.

            Here is SAM’s January 22, 2007 statement, addressed to the Fish and Wildlife Advisory Council:

             SAM’s Board of Directors, on behalf of our 14,000 members, opposes proposed rule changes governing bear trapping.

            It appears that the proposal is based on political considerations rather than science.  The proposal certainly has not discouraged the animal rights groups from pursuing their agenda at the legislature where they have submitted several bills to ban bear trapping and hunting.

            Bears are in very good shape in Maine with good management from DIF&W.  This decision is certainly not driven by a concern over the bear population.

            We also feel a responsibility to all those who sacrificed time and money to defeat the bear referendum just 14 months ago.  Now is not the time to give away what they fought so hard to defend.

Deer Task Force

 Retired DIF&W deer biologist Gerry Lavigne continues to lead SAM’s effort to implement the recommendations of SAM’s Deer Task Force and address issues ranging from deer yard protection to coyote predation.  The entire set of recommendations can be seen on SAM’s website (www.samcef.org).

Lavigne and SAM’s Executive Director George Smith held a productive meeting with DIF&W’s leaders and wildlife staff in late January about the Task Force’s recommendations.  That meeting led to a decision to reconvene the Deer Task Force this spring to gather more input on a variety of issues.

Although DIF&W staff expressed reservations about some of the DTF’s recommendations, they appeared very willing to work with us to move forward on all of the issues of concern – especially an evaluation and possible changes in the any-deer permit system – a key recommendation of the Task Force.

SAM has introduced six bills at the legislature aimed at implementing the Task Force’s recommendations, and some of those bills are expected to be heard and worked on this month.

Two DTF bills, both sponsored by Representative Steve Hanley, have been printed so far.

LD 421, An Act to Improve Deer Management and Hunting, would change the any-deer permits to doe-only permits, and allow the winners of those permits to shoot both a doe and a buck in any season.  LD 655, An Act to Change the Firearms Season on Deer,  would set the regular firearms season on Deer in Wildlife Management Districts 1 to 11 one week prior to the first Saturday in November (same as the current season), while moving the season forward a week in all other WMDs.

 For specific information on public hearings and work sessions, check SAM’s website.  Copies of all legislation and other information about the session can be found on the legislature’s website (janus.state.me.us/legis/).

Apprentice Hunters

             Representative Wes Richardson has introduced LD 486, An Act to Establish an Apprentice Hunter License Program.  This bill is included in SAM’s 2007 Legislative Agenda and we are strongly supporting it.

            The proposal is a national initiative called Families Afield, led by the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance and the National Shooting Sports Foundation.  A number of states have enacted Families Afield legislation, including Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Tennesee.  Families Afield now reaches 11 states with 5 million potential hunting mentors.

            Some of these states are already seeing results as hunter recruitment moves up after years of decline.  The national initiative, begun last year, works with hunters and elected officials to call for the removal of unnecessary legal barriers to hunting participation.

            SAM has taken the lead in bringing this important project to Maine.

            Richardson’s bill would create an apprentice hunter license, patterned after the junior hunting license, to allow a person to try the hunting experience for one year under the direct supervision of a fully license hunter. 

            If the apprentice enjoyed the experience and wished to continue hunting, he or she would have to take the hunter safety course.