[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 23 (Wednesday, March 6, 2002)]
[House]
[Pages H708-H710]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SENSE OF CONGRESS ON HUNTING SEASONS FOR MIGRATORY MOURNING DOVES
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Ballenger). Pursuant to House Resolution
353 and rule XVIII, the Chair declares the House in the Committee of
the Whole House on the State of the Union for the consideration of the
concurrent resolution, H. Con. Res. 275.
{time} 1319
In the Committee of the Whole
Accordingly, the House resolved itself into the Committee of the
Whole House on the State of the Union for the consideration of the
concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 275) expressing the sense of the
Congress that hunting seasons for migratory mourning doves should be
modified so that individuals have a fair and equitable opportunity to
hunt such birds, with Mr. Shimkus in the chair.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The CHAIRMAN. Pursuant to the rule, the concurrent resolution is
considered as having been read the first time.
Under the rule, the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Hansen) and the
gentleman from Guam (Mr. Underwood) each will control 30 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Hansen).
Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
As the author of H.Con.Res. 275, I am pleased to present this
legislation to provide badly needed relief to millions of dove hunters
throughout the United States.
Mourning doves are the most widely distributed and harvested game
bird in North America. Dove hunting is a cherished and honored
tradition in this country. Dove hunters pay millions of dollars in
excise taxes each year that are deposited in the Federal Aid to
Wildlife Restoration Fund. These monies are used to acquire and manage
thousands of acres of critical wetlands that provide essential habitat
for many species of migratory birds.
Under current law, the hunting season for doves and all migratory
bird games is September 1 to March 10 of each year. I am not aware of
the rationale for these arbitrary dates and there is little, if any,
discussion as to why that period was selected. While these dates may be
fine for dove hunters in Southern California, they have a long-term
negative impact on sportsmen in dozens of northern States. In fact,
because of rapidly changing weather conditions, it is not unusual to
have a dove hunting that lasts less than a week or even just a day in
States like Colorado, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, et cetera.
Furthermore, this is not simply a western States problem. I have been
told that even States like Maryland have a very short dove hunting
season.
The goal of this legislation is to allow all hunters a fair and equal
opportunity to pursue doves. Under the terms of this resolution, the
Bush administration would be asked to begin discussions with the other
signatories of the Migratory Bird Treaty with the goal of moving the
season up from September 1 to the last week of August. Thirty-four
northern States would be eligible for this earlier opening in the dove
season.
I have been advised by wildlife biologists that the last week of
August is the traditional week that doves are not sitting on their
nests, and that by advancing the hunting season it would not have an
adverse effect on migratory dove populations. In addition, game
managers will be free to update any regulations necessary to allow for
a lengthened season and this legislation would not affect those States
that do not have a dove hunting season.
This measure is supported by a number of conservation organizations,
including the Grand National Waterfowl Association, Quail Unlimited,
Safari Club International, and the U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance.
In summary, all hunters should have an equitable chance to harvest
this tasty but apparently thin-skinned little bird. This is a common-
sense solution to a problem that has frustrated northern hunters for
years.
I urge an ``aye'' vote so that all hunters can have an equal shot.
Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
(Mr. UNDERWOOD asked and was given permission to revise and extend
his remarks.)
Mr. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Chairman, neither myself nor the ranking
Democratic member of the Committee on Resources, the gentleman from
West Virginia (Mr. Rahall), have objected to H. Con. Res. 275. The
nonbinding resolution of the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Hansen), chairman
of the committee, seeks to expand the hunting season for mourning doves
in the United States.
As I have stated during consideration of the resolution in the
Committee on Resources and again at yesterday's meeting of the
Committee on Rules, the nonbinding context of the resolution does not
make this a contentious matter at all.
Nevertheless, if a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, I think
it is worth repeating that even if this legislation were to pass,
several important issues would have to be addressed nationally and
internationally before the intent of the resolution becomes reality.
Amending the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the underlying Convention
for the Protection of Migratory Birds would not be routine. In fact, no
one should underestimate the potential difficulties.
The Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 and the underlying Convention
agreed to by the United States and Great Britain in 1916 are two of our
Nation's earliest and most enduring conservation agreements; and, as I
have
[[Page H709]]
noted in previous discussion, the Convention and MBTA has been amended
only once since 1916, and that change was to allow for the subsistence
taking of birds and eggs in Alaska and northern Canada. Additionally,
that amendment was agreed to only after 20 years of negotiation.
Opening the Migratory Bird Convention on the MBTA amendment for
amendment for a single species would require the administration, the
States, and our international partners to investigate the status of the
entire continental mourning doves population. No one disputes that the
population of mourning doves remains abundant across its range, and for
many people, including hunters, that is indeed good news, because the
bird is a species favored by sportsmen and women.
If time had been available, I would have preferred for the Committee
on Resources to look into this issue a little bit more. However, this
is just the type of critical biological question I am sure the Flyway
Councils will want to investigate before recommending any action which
could conceivably impact the population in a negative way.
There are other administrative and social considerations, but,
frankly, there is little need to belabor the point.
In closing, I want to reiterate that I am supportive of H. Con. Res.
275, and I urge other Members to keep in mind the nonbinding nature of
this resolution.
Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. PUTNAM. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of Housing Concurrent
Resolutions 275.
For thousands of years before the first Europeans set foot on the
continent of North America on the East Coast of Florida in 1513, Native
Americans were already the great hunters and stewards of the New World
that was to become America. They hunted, gathered and farmed as a way
of life, which allowed them to live and prosper long before the great
societies of Europe began to flourish. The native tribes of Florida
fished in the great bays and estuaries, such as Tampa Bay, and hunted
in the vast swamps and prairies up and down the Manatee River where
Hernando De Soto landed to embark on the exploration of the new
continent of America. The Native Floridian way of life depended on the
game they hunted, the fish they caught and the crops they could grow.
They only harvested what they needed and never took from the wild more
than they could use. This was the birth of the American hunting
tradition of being a steward of game and wildlife while engaging in the
sport of hunting.
When Florida was acquired by the United States in 1821, Florida
pioneering families, affectionately called ``Crackers'' for the sound
their whips made when driving cattle, came to settle on the vast
Florida peninsula to stake out a claim for a new life. They depended on
the abundance of wildlife to support themselves and their growing
families. What the Native Floridians taught the Florida pioneers was
the same lesson that was taught to the Pilgrims at Plymouth hundreds of
years earlier; the reward of being good stewards of the land.
These basic truths, passed down through so many generations of
Americans, Native and immigrant alike, are the values of stewardship
and sportsmanship involved in hunting. The stewardship of the game
populations that provide a bounty of food and sport is crucial in the
survival of many game animal species. The gains achieved in the
scientific management of game species can be linked to the efforts of
hunters to maintain the populations and quality of the game they hunt.
Populations of game animals have more than flourished through proper
game management by concerned and devoted hunters. The populations of
deer and turkey alone are far greater now at the beginning of this
century than they ever were at the beginning of the last.
It is in a hunter's best interest to maintain game populations so
that they may continue to practice the tradition they love. Licensed
game hunters are deeply involved in game management on many levels.
They pay taxes on their arms and ammunition, stamps and permits; funds
that all go to help protect and maintain the sport that they hold so
dear to their hearts. The rules and code that today's sportsmen follow,
serve to protect and improve the quality of game species for
generations to come.
In honor of the men, women and youth who continue to practice the
time honored American tradition of hunting I urge the support of this
legislation.
Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Chairman, this Member wishes to state for the
Record that had there been a recorded vote on H. Con. Res. 275, he
would have voted ``nay'' based on the concerns expressed by the
Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.
According to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, dove populations
have been declining and biologists are concerned that lengthening the
hunting season could be detrimental. Also, many fledgling doves are
still in nets around the time of the opening of the current annual
hunting season. Extension of the hunting season could have an adverse
effect on fledgling survival rates. It appears that further study is
needed before a change such as this is made.
Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore (Mr. LaHood). All time for general debate
has expired.
Pursuant to the rule, the concurrent resolution is considered read
for amendment under the 5-minute rule.
The text of House Concurrent Resolution 275 is as follows:
H. Con. Res. 275
Whereas the vast majority of mourning doves that hatch,
fledge, and nest in States north of 37 degrees north latitude
migrate south beyond the boundaries of those States before
the national hunting season opening date of September 1, thus
denying hunters in those States an equitable opportunity to
harvest this species;
Whereas mourning doves are the most widely distributed and
harvested game birds in North America;
Whereas current regulated hunting for mourning doves has
been conclusively found to cause no significant effects on
recruitment of fledglings in mourning dove populations;
Whereas sportsmen have a strong commitment to the health,
conservation, and enjoyment of wildlife, as demonstrated by
the millions of dollars they have voluntarily paid over the
past 70 years into the Federal Aid to Wildlife Restoration
Fund established by the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife
Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669 et seq.);
Whereas mourning dove hunting has been a cherished and
honored tradition in the United States for generations;
Whereas migratory bird hunters provide millions of dollars
to wildlife conservation and local economies; and
Whereas millions of hunters in States north of 37 degrees
north latitude are currently unable to experience hunting
conditions similar to conditions in other regions of the
country with respect to game availability because of the
current unfair hunting season restrictions: Now, therefore,
be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that, to
provide a fair and equitable opportunity for individuals to
hunt for mourning doves--
(1) the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 should be
modified to allow for mourning dove hunting during the last
week of August in areas north of 37 degrees north latitude,
as approved by the parties to the appropriate international
agreement;
(2) such an extended hunting season will--
(A) improve hunting opportunities in the United States
without causing negative impacts on mourning dove
populations;
(B) through the sale of hunting permits, generate
additional revenue that may be used for the better management
and conservation of mourning doves and other wildlife
species; and
(C) continue to provide for the conservation and
enhancement of mourning dove populations;
(3) the United States should take immediate steps to begin
discussions with the appropriate parties to ensure that all
Americans have an opportunity to harvest migratory mourning
doves in an equitable manner; and
(4) hunters in all States located north of 37 degrees north
latitude and the wildlife management agencies of those States
should support an earlier opening date for the mourning dove
hunting season.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. During consideration of the concurrent
resolution for amendment, the Chair may accord priority in recognition
to a Member offering an amendment that he has printed in the designated
place in the Congressional Record. Those amendments will be considered
read.
Are there any amendments to the text of the concurrent resolution?
Are there any amendments to the preamble of the concurrent
resolution?
If not, under the rule, the Committee rises.
Accordingly, the Committee rose; and the Speaker pro tempore (Mr.
Ballenger) having assumed the chair, Mr. LaHood, Chairman pro tempore
of the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, reported
that that Committee, having had under consideration the concurrent
resolution (H. Con. Res. 275) expressing the sense of the Congress that
hunting seasons for migratory mourning doves should be modified so that
individuals have a fair and equitable opportunity to hunt
[[Page H710]]
such birds, pursuant to House Resolution 353, he reported the
concurrent resolution back to the House.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the concurrent
resolution.
The concurrent resolution was agreed to.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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