(Des Moines) The “Right to Hunt and Fish” amendment passed through the Iowa Legislatures’ first Funnel Week on Thursday. Voters would be asked to decide on a “Right to Hunt and Fish” amendment to the Iowa Constitution under a bill.
Iowa District 11 Senator Tom Shipley from Nodaway the amendment declares that Iowa citizens can hunt, fish, and harvest wildlife using traditional methods, subject to reasonable state laws and rules to promote wildlife conservation and management.
The bill also states; natural resources held in trust by the state should be maintained for public use and preserve the future of hunting, fishing, and harvesting wildlife. Besides, hunting and fishing and harvesting wildlife are declared the “preferred means” of controlling wildlife. The proposed amendment is not construed as modifying any laws on eminent domain, trespass, or property rights.
As of November 2020, a total of 23 states had passed constitutional amendments proclaiming a right to hunt and fish, starting with the 1996 vote in Alabama. Voters in one state, Arizona, rejected a constitutional amendment in 2010.
If the bill passes through the Iowa legislature, it will go in front of the people of Iowa for a vote.
