‘Powerful Opposition’ Kills Public Access Reform In Louisiana, Conservation Leaders Note

The Louisiana Delta was home to four Bassmaster Classics, including the 2011 championship won by Kevin VanDam. A bill to restore angler access to public waters in the delta was recently defeated in the Louisiana House of Representatives. Photo by: B.A.S.S.

 

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A bill that would have restored anglers’ rights to access public waters in Louisiana was voted down in the state legislature this week by a vote of 37-59.

Proponents of House Bill 391, including B.A.S.S., the Louisiana B.A.S.S. Nation and the Louisiana Sportsmen’s Coalition (LaSC), were disappointed but not surprised at the loss, said Gene Gilliland, national conservation director for B.A.S.S.

“Everyone knew going in that this was likely to be a contentious issue and that it might take several years to find a good fix,” he explained. “When the vote came to the full House of Representatives, wealthy landowners and energy companies with deep pockets and armies of lobbyists persuaded legislators from many parts of Louisiana that are not even affected by this issue to vote against the bill.” Read more

Fishing

Michigan: Wintry Conditions Postpones UP Sharp-Tailed Grouse Release

Release of birds to western part of the region postponed until spring

A sharp-tailed grouse decoy is shown.

Prolonged wintry conditions in the Upper Peninsula have forced the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to postpone a release of sharp-tailed grouse in the western part of the region – a place where they have not been seen reliably since the mid-1990s.

DNR wildlife biologists had planned to capture about 20 birds from the eastern U.P. and re-introduce them to Ontonagon County this spring. However, late winter snowfall and a persistent groundcover of snow, as deep as 3 feet in some places, have delayed the effort until next spring. Read more

Wildlife

Tactacam 4.0 Weapon Mounted Camera

Tactacam is unlike any other camera on the market. It is designed by hunters for hunters with one goal, sharing the excitement and enjoyment of your hunt. From the launch of our very first Tactacam 2.0 we have listened to the feedback and went back to the drawing board with high expectations and we feel we have exceeded them.  The all new Tactacam 4.0 is packed full of features like Wi-Fi compatible viewing and control via your smartphone, battery indicator and the ability to film in 3 different resolution settings. The ultra-sharp lens and low light recording brings your target 5X closer than other POV cameras on the market making the Tactacam 4.0 the ultimate weapon mounted camera.   MSRP $329.99 Read more

Optics

Kent Cartridge Elite Pro Target Line

Kent’s new Elite Pro Target™ loads use clean burning custom blended ball powders for consistent velocity and reduced felt recoil.  Kent’s proprietary Diamond Shot® technology uses a new revolutionary polishing process for consistent, uniform patterns and superior target breaking performance on the trap range. The shells feature a 10mm nickel plated head for smooth and reliable ejection. Read more

Ammunition

Agencies Make the Switch to GLOCK Pistols

SMYRNA, Ga. –   GLOCK, Inc. continues to grow a presence as the primary service weapon of choice for US law enforcement agencies.  While GLOCK is currently the preferred pistol for 65% of law enforcement agencies, those numbers continue to grow.  During the first quarter of 2018, GLOCK was pleased to welcome over a dozen new agencies making the switch from competitor pistols.

Among the agencies to choose GLOCK over several competitors are the South Carolina Highway Patrol and the West Virginia State Police.  Lt. Robert Perry from the West Virginia State Police said, “The GLOCK out performed any other manufacturer tested” which has led to the selection and ordering of 850 GLOCK 17 Gen5 pistols.  “The WV State Police has always prided itself in providing the best available equipment to its members and that is why we have chosen GLOCK,” said Perry. Read more

Firearms

New Bushnell AR Optics

OVERLAND PARK, Kansas –– Bushnell, an industry leader in high-performance optics, has added to its top-selling line of AR Optics with several new options designed specifically for the Modern Sporting Rifle platform.

The growing AR Optics line now has a scope specifically tailored for almost every prevalent caliber of today’s most popular rifle—including 22 LR, .223/5.56, .308 Win., .300 BLK, and even the red-hot 6.5 Creedmoor and .224 Valkyrie.

“Each scope has a throw-down power-change lever that can be set to two different heights,” said Bushnell Tactical product manager Bryan Parrish. “It makes these scopes as customizable as the rifles they share a name with.” Read more

Optics

Michigan: Iron Belle Trail Bolstered by $10.5 Million in Private Funding

Contact: Jordan Kennedy (Governor’s Office), 517-335-6397 or Ed Golder (DNR), 517-284-5815

Campaign forms to raise additional $155 million to complete the iconic trail

ANN ARBOR, MI – Gov. Rick Snyder today announced private donations totaling $10.5 million to help build the Iron Belle Trail, a major development for Michigan’s 2,000-mile hiking and bicycling “showcase” trail that traverses the state.

“Our natural resources and outdoor recreation opportunities in Michigan are second to none, and an important and defining part of who we are as a state,” Snyder said. “These generous contributions toward completion of the Iron Belle Trail help solidify Michigan’s reputation as ‘The Trails State’. I sincerely thank all of the sponsors for their vision and support of the Iron Belle Trail.”

The governor was joined by David Egner of the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation and Ann Arbor-area entrepreneur Michael Levine at Gallup Park in Ann Arbor for the announcement. The Wilson Foundation has committed more than $5.5 million to date, including a recent $3.25 million grant for trail development in Washtenaw County and more than $2.3 million to support trail design and planning in Detroit. Levine previously pledged $5 million. The funding will be used for engineering, development, signage and other needs on the Iron Belle Trail and to leverage other donations in the ongoing campaign. Read more

Wildlife

Teachers’ Union Calls for “Investor Action” on Guns

GW:  If anyone continues to wonder why there is a divide between ideologues and law-abiding American citizens, one needs to look no further than the taxpayer-funded teachers and their unions.
WASHINGTON—To help confront the United States’ gun violence epidemic, the AFT today released a special edition of its “Ranking Asset Managers” report, which creates a watch list of investment managers that invest millions of dollars in companies that make assault weapons. Since the shootings at Columbine High School in Colorado, 200 students have been killed in school and 187,000 students have been affected by school shootings. The report offers information for pension fund trustees, and it calls on asset managers to evaluate risks associated with investing in gun manufacturers and to engage in meaningful action, such as adopting policies that mitigate the safety risks assault weapons pose.

“We have a gun violence epidemic in our country, and our children and their teachers are caught in the crosshairs of this public health emergency,” said AFT President Randi Weingarten. “Educators, parents and students need safe and welcoming schools, and educators have a right to assume their deferred wages are not being invested in the companies that make the military-style assault weapons used to injure and kill them and their students in countless school shootings.”

Weingarten added, “When companies produce a dangerous product that creates a national public health and safety crisis, that company becomes a high-risk investment and people have the right to know. This report is about exposing that risk and providing pension trustees and investment managers with the tools they need to demand meaningful action.” Read more

Gun Control

SAF Sues Illinois Agency Over Day Care Operators’ Gun Rights

BELLEVUE, WA – The Second Amendment Foundation has filed a lawsuit against the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services on behalf of two Prairie State residents, alleging deprivation of civil rights under color of law.

Joining in the lawsuit on behalf of individual plaintiffs Jennifer J. and Darin E. Miller are the Illinois State Rifle Association (ISRA) and Illinois Carry (IC). They are represented by Glen Ellyn attorney David Sigale. Named as a defendants in the case are Beverly J. Walker, in her official capacity as director of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (IDCFS), and state Attorney General Lisa Madigan.
The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois, contends that Mr. and Mrs. Miller have been denied their rights because IDCFS policy “substantially prohibits day care home licensees, and those who would be day care home licensees, from the possession of firearms for the purpose of self-defense, which violates Plaintiffs’ constitutional rights under the Second Amendment.”

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Gun Control, Self Defense
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