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While most state wildlife agencies would welcome financial support 

 from the general public, state legislators have been reluctant to supple- 

 ment fishing and hunting license revenues with general fund appropria- 

 tions. In 1937, a federal law, the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act, 

 was passed by Congress. It allocated to the state fish and wildlife 

 agencies receipts from an existing ,11 percent excise tax on sporting 

 firearms and ammunition for the purpose of conducting approved proj- 

 ects of wildlife research, land acquisition and development, and restock- 

 ing of unoccupied habitats. To qualify for this assistance the states had 

 to pledge all hunting and fishing license funds to conservation purposes. 

 Before that time it was common practice for state legislatures to divert 

 income from hunting and fishing licenses for schools, highways, and 

 other public works, while the state wildlife agency obtained only a part 

 of the funds for actual use for fish and wildlife conservation. 



Until state legislatures show more willingness to support wildlife 

 programs with revenues from other sources, sportsmen will continue as 

 the principal source of financial support for wildlife conservation. The 

 reluctance of the general public and state legislatures to support neces- 

 sary conservation programs overlooks the great social and economic 

 benefits of sound wildlife management. 



Individuals and groups interested in wildlife should bear in mind the 

 animal's basic need for habitat. Secondly, they should seek to 

 strengthen the state-federal system to assure the well-being of all wild- 

 life. Distortion of the true facts with respect to America's wildlife only 

 misleads the public. Further, it confuses lawmakers, who, in their efforts 



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