In a major win for conservation, the U.S. House of Representatives today passed the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026, simply known as the Farm Bill. Farm Bill passage is never easy, but it is vital. The Farm Bill positively impacts countless wildlife species, hunting access, and American families, and the Sportsmen’s Alliance applauds its passage in the House.

The Farm Bill is one of the most important pieces of legislation considered by the U.S. Congress. It contains funding and sets policy on items ranging from conservation programs valued by American sportsmen to SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits that help feed low-income families. The Conservation Title of the bill outlines and funds numerous programs that benefit sportsmen and wildlife, including the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and the Voluntary Public Access and Habitat Improvement Program (VIP-HIP), which create valuable wildlife habitat and provide public hunting access.

“We’re incredibly grateful for House Agriculture Committee Chairman G.T. Thompson’s leadership on the Farm Bill, generally, and more specifically, his concerns for hunters and conservationists, and his efforts to remove the anti-hunting language from the Farm Bill,” said Torin Miller, Associate Litigation Counsel at the Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation. “We’ll now focus our efforts on getting a Farm Bill clean of anti-hunting and anti-sporting-dog language passed in the Senate, and eventually, Congress as a whole.”

As a result of tireless advocacy by the Sportsmen’s Alliance, its members and affiliates, and strong Congressional leadership, the anti-hunting language that was amended into the Farm Bill was previously removed. That language, which was put forth by animal-rights groups, would have banned certain types of hounds and sporting dogs in hunting, as well as the use of “live lures” for training or field trials. Read more

Jerry Peak and son with two elk

Application period: May 1 – June 1
Drawing results available June 22.

You could get two tags in a single year with Pure Michigan Hunt!

Elk and bear license applications are on sale now through June 1. You can increase your odds, or even get two tags in a single year, by picking up Pure Michigan Hunt applications while you’re applying for bear and elk.

Previous Pure Michigan Hunt recipient Jerry Peak of Crystal did exactly that! He managed to grab two elk tags, which were used to harvest two beautiful, 6-by-6 bull elk. The secret of Jerry’s success? He applied for his elk tag as usual, but he also applied for – and was one of the people drawn for – the Pure Michigan Hunt.

The Pure Michigan Hunt offers a chance at licenses to hunt elk, bear, spring and fall turkey, and antlerless deer, and first pick at a managed waterfowl area. Plus, a hunting prize package worth thousands goes home with the three lucky hunters. All licenses are transferable – winners can keep licenses for themselves or transfer licenses to a friend or loved one. Peak transferred his Pure Michigan Hunt elk tag to his son so they could hunt together.

Pure Michigan Hunt applications are only $5 each. Remember, you can only buy one elk chance and one bear preference point, and the deadline is June 1. That’s not the case with the Pure Michigan Hunt, as there is no limit to the number of applications you can buy through Dec. 31. Read more

With the application period for Michigan’s elk season opening Friday, May 1, hunters should be aware of several key changes to the popular hunt.

On April 8, the Michigan Natural Resources Commission voted to establish elk hunting regulations for the 2026 and 2027 seasons. Those actions include:

• Setting the first elk hunt period in 2026 from Sept. 23 through Oct. 4, a 12-day, contiguous period. Previously, the first hunt period was broken up into three, four-day sessions that began in late August.
• Setting the second hunt period from Dec. 1 through Dec. 15, a 15-day period. Previously, the second hunt period was Dec. 13-21, a nine-day period that was closer to the Christmas and New Year’s holidays.
• Giving successful elk hunters 72 hours to present the elk head or entire animal for registration as directed by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Previously, hunters were required to register the entire elk within 24 hours of harvest.

Brent Rudolph, the DNR’s deer, elk and moose management specialist, said the changes are geared toward hunter convenience and increasing opportunities to harvest an iconic elk.

“For the first hunt period in particular, having a contiguous session that starts later in the season should make it easier for hunters to plan their hunt. The move also provides more favorable conditions and avoids the warm temperatures we’ve experienced during the earlier hunt in recent years,” Rudolph said. Read more

On Saturday, March 21st, the Pope and Young Club (P&Y) convened a Special Panel of Judges at a location in Lakeside, AZ, for a potential P&Y World Record Velvet Typical Sitka Blacktail Deer. Bob Ameen’s velvet blacktail scored an amazing 115 0/8 and is now the largest bow-harvested VELVET Typical Blacktail in North America. This amazing blacktail deer was shot in Southeast Alaska.

Judges (official measurers) present at the Special Panel were (L to R) Roy Grace, Bryan Yorksmith, David May, and Dallin Durfee, all of Arizona. With a final score of 115 0/8, Ameen’s velvet typical blacktail deer was confirmed as the new P&Y World Record. This deer surpasses the previous largest velvet typical blacktail deer in the records program by 5 1/8″. The Pope and Young Club allows all velvet antlered species to be eligible for World Record status within their own velvet categories.

“I have been hunting for a deer of this size for about 35 years. Hard work and determination definitely has paid off”, says Ameen.

“Animals of this size don’t come along like this very often, it shows conservation plays a major roll in hunting “, says Ricky Krueger, P&Y Records Chairman.

You can see this incredible animal on display at the Pope and Young’s Biennial Awards Convention in Little Rock, AR, April 8-10, 2027. Read more