In September, the House Natural R e s o u r c e s Committee adopted Rep. Mike Johnson’s (LA-04) amendment to H.R. 3668, the SHARE Act, to allow deer hunters to hunt with their dogs in the Kisatchie National Forest located in Louisiana’s Fourth District. This amendment prohibits the National Forest Service from discriminating against different kinds of hunting and returns authority back to the state wildlife agencies.
Rep. Johnson released the following statement:
“Hunting is not only a sport enjoyed by men and women all across Louisiana, it is a way of life. We are, after all, the Sportsman’s Paradise. Hunting with dogs, specifically, is an American tradition that dates all the way back to colonial times. The use of dogs to hunt animals other than deer is already allowed in the Kisatchie National Forest, and there is no reason the federal government should be denying this ability to one segment of hunters. Our state wildlife agencies can manage these issues better than Washington.”
The Sportsmen’s Heritage and Recreational E n h a n c e m e n t (SHARE) Act, was introduced Sept. 1 by Congressman Jeff Duncan (R-SC). Following the subcommittee hearing, the full Committee on Natural Resources passed the SHARE Act by a vote of 22-13.
This year’s version of the SHARE Act is the most expansive and far-reaching yet. Besides previously introduced provisions aimed at enhancing opportunities for hunting, fishing and shooting and broadening access to federal lands for these purposes, this year’s SHARE Act contains reforms that would widely benefit sportsmen and the gun-owning public at large. It would allow gun owners to transport registered firearms across state lines, carry guns in national parks and eliminate the $200 transfer tax on silencers.
Congress has been unable, or unwilling, to approve gun control legislation after recent mass shootings — including one targeting lawmakers playing baseball — and it is unlikely to consider new bills after the attack in Las Vegas.
The SHARE Act now heads to the House Floor.
