100 



have been frown or manipulated "for wildlife management purposes " This would 

 require the hunter to know for what purpose the crop was grown or manipulated. This 

 requirement inserts confusion into the regulation, places an unreasonable burden on 

 the hunter, and serves no useful purpose. This problem can be resolved by deleting 

 the words "for wildlife management purposes" from 50 CFR Section 20 21 {l)(2). 



In summary, the situation could have handled more effectively According to the 

 Fish and Wildlife Service, they do not have the legal authority or Congressional 

 direction to declare a field off limits when bait is found or take other measures to more 

 clearly and fairly enforce the baiting regulations. The intent of the bailing regulations is 

 to provide hunting opportunities while protecting migratory bird populations from over 

 harvest. The intent is not to make it so difficult for a hunter to know if he is hunting 

 legally that he quits his sport The regulations as currently written, however, are being 

 interpreted in such way that this is the result The regulations, and enforcement 

 policies that derive from those regulations, need to be changed such that this is the 

 result. The regulations, and enforcement policies that derive from those regulations, 

 need to be changed such that they clearly prohibit only those practices that would 

 result in negative impact on migratory bird populations They should also clearly let 

 hunter know what is allowed and what is not The regulations and published policies 

 should allow the hunter to pursue his sport with the reasonable assurance that, if he 

 makes every attempt to comply with the law, he will not be arrested for something that 

 was outside of his control and he had no way of knowing about This could be 

 accomplished by changing the regulations to: 1) require that hunters have "knowingly 

 and intentionally" taken migratory birds by the aid of bait to be in violation; 2) define 

 "normal agricultural planting and harvesting" to include planting and harvesting 

 practices employed by agricultural operators for agricultural purposes in the area; 3) 

 specifically allow hunting waterfowl over native, manipulated "for wildlife management 

 purposes" for hunting migratory birds other than waterfowl Specific wording that 

 should be added to 50 CFR 20.21 (I) to accomplish these objectives is indicated on 

 Attachment 1 . 



The purpose of my event was to raise money for a good cause and bring 

 together a large contingency of friends, acquaintances, and political supporters to 

 socialize and enjoy the outdoors; not to break any laws. This was not a paid hunt It 

 was sponsored, financially, by several individuals and businesses Those in 

 attendance were not there to slaughter doves, but to support a good cause and enjoy 

 fellowship with one another. Many characters and reputations have been tarnished by 

 this ordeal. It is unfair that hunters who were not intentionally breaking the law were 

 not allowed the protection they deserve. If one of the main purposes of the Federal 

 Wildlife Service is to protect migratory birds, they should have halted the hunt before 

 the first shot was fired. Instead, the group felt as if their only goal was to collect as 

 much in fines as they could I hope this Committee will take in consideration the 

 recommendations that have been made to correct this injustice. 



