By Glen Wunderlich Outdoor Columnist Member Professional Outdoor Media Association
Much has been made of Michigan’s unemployment rate during the current recession, which has put us at or near the top in the nation for some time now. And, because of it, people are leaving for greener pastures. While there’s plenty of blame to go around, it doesn’t change a thing. Similarly, Michigan ranks dead last in another important category, which on the surface may not seem as important as employment, but has far-reaching effects, nonetheless: Hunter Retention.
Michigan Senate Bill 1589, the “Hunter Heritage” bill aims to address this issue head on. The bill would enable the Michigan Natural Resources Commission to create a Mentored Youth Hunting Safety Program for individuals under the age of 17. Mentors must be 21 years of age, possess a valid hunting license and proof of previous hunting experience or completion of training in a hunter safety course. The bill does not eliminate Hunter’s Safety; it merely gives parents and mentors a chance to teach youngsters about hunting safety and ethics by establishing a program for minor youth to hunt with a mentor. Once a youth reaches age 17, he or she will still have to complete hunter safety to obtain a license.
The big change from the current requirement to be at least 10 years of age to hunt is that there would be no age requirement. Parents, not politicians, would decide when their own children are old enough to hunt.
But, what about safety? The Youth Hunting Report, which was peer reviewed for statistical validity by Trial Research, shows that youth hunters are the safest hunters in the woods when accompanied by adult mentors. Incident rates for hunting are 10% higher in the 19 states where a minimum age is set. States that allow parents to decide when their kids are ready to hunt have better safety records than states with restrictions.
Since this bill is modeled after Pennsylvania’s current law, I thought it would be a good idea to ask fellow outdoor writer extraordinaire, Harry Guyer of Pennsylvania what he thinks of his state’s youth hunter program and he states, “I’ve taken kids both small game and turkey hunting with our mentor program and I have no problem with it…”
The National Shooting Sports Foundation puts it this way: “Mandatory prerequisite coursework and certification processes add more barriers that discourage some youths from hunting. Over time, declining participation will devastate hunting. Current data show only 25 percent of youth from hunting households are active in the sport. Over the past quarter-century, the total number of hunters has dropped 23 percent. New hunters are not being recruited. Moreover, youth restrictions may compound participation problems, as parents who can’t legally go with their youngsters, give up on hunting, too.”
The Hunter Heritage bill will positively affect non-hunters also, because hunting is big business in Michigan. Each year, sportsmen spend $3.4 billion in Michigan, which has an additional $5.9 billion economic ripple effect on the state’s economy. This supports roughly 46,000 jobs, $1.7 billion in salaries, and $378 million in state and local tax revenue. Michigan hunters also pay for wildlife conservation through license fees, which go toward improving wildlife habitat, wildlife management, recreational access, and conservation officers. Michigan also receives about $24.5 million each year from federal excise taxes on hunting and fishing equipment, which go towards funding game and fish conservation in the state.
Real change has its roots in clear thinking, which is sometimes radically different than that of the status quo. We can’t argue with our last-place thinking and its related results when it comes to hunter retention. It’s time to lift the barriers to hunting and to lift ourselves up by our own bootstraps.
