|
Any article listed below does not
necessarily reflect the opinion or endorsement of The PA Federation of
Sportsmen’s Clubs, Inc. (PFSC)
NOTICE: In compliance with Title 17 U.S.C.
section 107, this material is distributed free without profit or payment for
non-profit research and educational purposes only.
Be
sure to check out our Legislative
Alerts pages to follow legislation PFSC is tracking.
May 2008
U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance
801 Kingsmill Parkway, Columbus, OH 43229
Ph.
614/888-4868 • Fax 614/888-0326
Website:
www.ussportsmen.org • E-mail: info@ussportsmen.org
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
Contact: Sharon Hayden (614) 888-4868 ext. 226
May 23, 2008
Letter Exposes Animal Rights Agenda of HSUS
to Feds
(Columbus, OH) - The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (USSA)
has demanded that a USDA website correctly identify the world’s largest
anti-hunting organization as an animal rights lobbying organization.
The USSA sent a letter to the USDA explaining that the Humane Society of the
United States’ “primary purpose is to advocate for sensible public policies”
and not provide direct services to shelter, rescue or provide any direct
services for animals in need. The USDA website inaccurately portrays it
as a “shelter, rescue and welfare organization”.
HSUS supports an active lobbying campaign and actively lobbies against
hunting. According to the Senate Office of Public Records, HSUS has
spent up to $80,000 in a 6-month period on lobbying activities.
Despite its name, it is not in business to operate animal shelters or rescue
facilities.
The USDA listings under “Shelters, Rescue and Welfare Organizations” are
designed to be a resource for pet owners.
According to the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance, any reference to the Humane Society
of the United States (HSUS) as an animal welfare group, as opposed to
correctly designating it an animal rights lobbying organization, gives
undeserved credibility to the organization.
“We sent this letter to the department because it is well past the time for
the public to be made aware of what the HSUS is all about and that isn’t
going to happen if it keeps getting credit it doesn’t deserve,” said Rick
Story, senior vice president of the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (USSA).
“The letter succinctly points out that the HSUS falls under the heading of
animal rights lobbying group and why it should be referred to as such.
The HSUS has a full animal rights agenda and wants to end all ownership and
use of animals, no matter how responsible.”
This letter is a first step in the campaign announced last week by the USSA
that will educate the media, elected officials, the public, sportsmen and the
many others targeted by the animal rights group on the hidden, non-mainstream
agendas of the HSUS.
As part of this campaign, the USSA has initiated the Sportsmen Against HSUS
fund, which will be used in the continuing battle against the HSUS and its
animal rights campaign. In addition to educating people on the group’s
hidden agendas, it will fund campaigns combating the public policy threats
initiated and supported by the HSUS.
Sportsmen immediately began showing their support for this campaign to expose
the HSUS upon hearing of the fund’s launch.
Some recent legislative attacks on sportsmen’s rights by the HSUS include:
·
the
launching of a campaign to address “puppy mills,” abusive, large-scale,
commercial dog breeding operations. However, the deceptive language of the
HSUS-backed measures also devastates small hobby breeders, dog show kennels
and sporting dog enthusiasts.
·
a
mandatory spay and neuter bill in California.
The measure requires all dogs to be spayed or neutered by the age of six
months, making it nearly impossible for sportsmen with mixed-breed sporting
dogs to remain in the field.
·
opposition to
bills from across the country that are intended to lessen barriers for youth
and newcomers to take part in hunting.
“It is more
important than ever that all sportsmen unite to combat the principal enemy of
American conservation and the outdoor sports that make conservation
possible,” Story said.
To read the letter, Click
Here.
To donate to the Sportsmen Against HSUS Fund online, Click
Here. For more information, please contact the USSA at 801 Kingsmill
Parkway, Columbus, Ohio, 43229, call (614) 888-4868, or email info@ussportsmen.org.
The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance is a national association of sportsmen and sportsmen’s organizations
that protects the rights of hunters, anglers and trappers in the courts,
legislatures, at the ballot, in Congress and through public education
programs. For more information about the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance and its work, call (614) 888-4868 or
visit its website, www.ussportsmen.org.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
FISH & BOAT COMMISSION
URGES BOATERS TO WEAR LIFE JACKETS
Harrisburg, PA -- The PA Fish and
Boat Commission (PFBC) needs your help to remind boaters that May is a
dangerous month for boating in Pennsylvania because warmer days
give people the illusion that the water is warm as well.
“Cold water
shock was the cause of 10 of last year’s 11 boating fatalities,” PFBC Bureau
Director of Boating and Access Dan Martin said. “Wearing your life jacket
will keep you on the surface, giving you a better chance of rescue and
survival.”
Boating is a
fun, safe sport, but things can go wrong, including fatal accidents.
CLICK HERE to read the full release
5-23-08
Fish & Boat Commission
to Repair Launches at Harvey's Lake and Fort Hunter
Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania
Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) will begin replacing the launch ramps at two
popular recreational areas in Luzerne and Dauphin counties following the
Memorial Day holiday.
Renovations at
Harvey’s Lake, Luzerne County, and Fort Hunter, Dauphin County, are scheduled to
begin on or about May 27. PFBC employees will remove the existing
deteriorated concrete launch ramps and replace them with new ones. The
parking areas at the facilities will also be paved. All work is expected to
be completed by mid-July.
CLICK HERE to read the full release
Harrisburg, PA - The Pennsylvania
Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) has announced that it has stopped walleye fry
stockings in the Susquehanna, Lehigh and Allegheny rivers on an experimental
basis. Fry are young fish in their early stage of life, from one to three
weeks old.
“We have been
stocking walleye fry in portions of these rivers where spawning habitat was
believed to be poor,” said Dave Miko, PFBC Chief -
Division of Fisheries Management. “In some of these waters, dams restricted
the ability of walleye to move freely throughout the river. However, the
recent removal of dams or the improvement of fish passage over these dams has
provided walleye with increased access to spawning areas."
CLICK HERE to read the full release
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
NRA/ILA News
1-800-392-8683
www.nraila.org
Please
forward this information to your family, friends, and fellow gun owners!
Army Marksmen Target Beijing
-
http://online.wsj.com
We're winning in Baghdad, but can we win in Beijing? That's a question being
asked at Fort Benning, home to the Army
Marksmanship Unit and site of this year's Olympic small-bore rifle and pistol
shooting trials, which began on Monday and run through May 22. The Army unit
was founded in 1956 by order of President Eisenhower because "he was
tired of seeing us get beat by the Eastern Bloc in international shooting
competitions," said Sgt. Michael Moore, the senior noncommissioned
officer of the unit's International Rifle Team.
Read
More | Read Other News
Georgia: Guns legal in more
places
- www.ajc.com
Georgians with carry licenses can tote their concealed guns on public
transportation, in restaurants that serve alcohol and in state parks under
legislation signed by Gov. Sonny Perdue Wednesday. "By signing this
legislation, Gov. Perdue has expanded the rights of law-abiding Georgians who
lawfully arm themselves to protect themselves and their loved ones,"
said Ed Stone, president of GeorgiaCarry.org.
Read
More | Read Other News
Idaho: Hundreds testify on
proposed wolf rules
-
www.spokesmanreview.com
Larry Book, president of the 200-member Bonner County Sportsman Association,
said he's confident of the state's hunting plan. "The North American
model for wildlife management has been very successful," said Book,
naming once-rare species that are now common, including Canada geese and
pronghorn antelope. Sportsmen paid for the recovery efforts by purchasing
hunting licenses, he said.
Read More
| Read
Other News
Gun control is based on false
premises
- Roanoke Times
Even with their flawed assumptions exposed, what is especially insidious is
that gun control does not work. The results of their policies are abject
failures. Whether in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, New York or Chicago, gun
control does not work.
Read More
| Read
Other News
McCain courts
blue-collar Democrats
- Christian Science
Monitor
With the other party still waist-deep in its presidential nomination fight,
John McCain, the presumptive GOP nominee, has been quietly courting the white
working-class Democrats who have proved elusive for Barack
Obama, his most likely rival in the fall.
Read More
| Read
Other News
McCain Speech to Shed Light On
Judicial Philosophy
- Wall Street Journal
John McCain steps out of his comfort zone Tuesday to address his judicial
philosophy, a hot-button matter for social conservatives that encompasses
abortion, guns and gay rights -- all topics on which Sen. McCain has rankled
the right.
Read
More | Read Other News
Not Content With Crushing Second
Amendment, Bloomberg Disregards The First
A story in todays New York Sun,
(http://www2.nysun.com/new-york/gag-on-2nd-amendment-is-citys-aim-in-guns-suit/)
demonstrates that gun-hating Mayor Michael Bloombergs
disdain for the Constitution isnt just limited to
his abhorrence of the Second Amendment.
Read More
Gun Owners For Hillary?
- Townhall.com
If you doubt the transformational power of Barack Obama, consider the change that hes
affected on Hillary Clinton. The New York Senator came into the 2008 race
with a nearly perfect anti-gun rights voting record, following her White
House tenure on behalf of the most aggressively anti-Second Amendment
administration in American history.
Read
More | Read Other News
Nutter, Rendell try to exploit
police officer`s death s in call for gun ban
- Philadelphia Daily
News
In a sad effort to exploit the death of a police officer to advance their
anti-gun agenda, Mayor Nutter and Gov. Rendell called upon Congress to enact
a new bun ban. But the most important thing for residents in Philadelphia and
Pennsylvania is to ask their governor and their mayor why career criminals
are on the streets.
Read
More | Read Other News
D.C. to arm police with assault
rifles
- Washington Times
The Metropolitan Police Department has joined other major U.S. cities in
arming patrol officers with assault rifles to protect them against criminals
with high-powered weapons, weeks after being released from a federal program
that monitors the use of excessive force.
Read
More | Read Other News
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
5-8-08
GAME COMMISSION REMOVES PROTECTION ON FERAL SWINE
First step in effort
toward eradication of invasive species, Issues Executive Order
Read More.....
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Farm Bill Updates:
5-15-08
Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation Lauds Farm Bill
Conservation Programs Win with Passage of Farm Bill
Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus Preserves Funding
Washington, DC – Thanks to sportsmen-legislators, hunters in rural America
can look forward to their local farmers continuing to set aside acres of
habitat for wildlife. Increased funding measures for America’s vital
conservation programs for the next five years are contained in the
oft-extended Farm Bill Reauthorization overwhelmingly passed by the House and
Senate, now awaiting the President’s signature. The release of a Conference
Report last week signaled that an agreement was reached by conferees who
worked out the differences between the House and Senate versions. The House
and Senate both voted overwhelmingly to approve the measure and will send the
bill to the President to sign into law. The question is, will he?
Of the Farm Bill Conference Committee, twenty of the
twenty-six conferees that hammered out the final compromise are members of
the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus (CSC). CSC members who held their ground
for the conservation title in the Farm Bill included the House Agriculture
Committee Chairman Collin Peterson (D-MN) and Ranking Member Bob Goodlatte (R-VA); the Senate Agriculture Committee
Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Ranking Member Saxby Chambliss (R-GA).
Although CSF is still combing through the details, the good
news for sportsmen is, in the end, conservation programs that enjoyed
increased funding in both the House and Senate versions were left nearly
intact, coming in at $4-billion dollars above the Administration’s baseline,
highlighting the importance of the conservation programs to the committee
members. The compromise process was often complicated by the differences in
the House and Senate versions, the complexity of the issues and how to find
enough money to pay for the subsidies. Members of the Congressional
Sportsmen’s Caucus strove to preserve the increased conservation funding in
the final version.
“The Farm Bill is a tremendous victory for sportsmen and
conservationists across the country,” said U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss, Ranking
Republican Member of the Senate Agriculture Committee. “This farm bill
continues to help producers be good stewards of the land by providing $4
billion in new resources for conservation programs. I look forward to
completing the farm bill in order to see the investments we make today
through our conservation partnership with this nation’s farmers, ranchers and
forest landowners deliver benefits for our country for generations to come.”
The 2007 Farm Bill is the most important funding bill for
private land conservation programs in America. The Congressional Sportsmen’s
Caucus worked diligently to increase funding for conservation programs
in the final version. Funding priorities included
such programs as Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), the Wetlands
Reserve Program (WRP), the Grassland Reserve Program (GRP) and Open Fields.
“The conference report makes significant investments in our
conservation priorities,” U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln said. “I am proud of
the investment of $1.3 billion in the Wetlands Reserve Program, which will
help expand habitat for North American waterfowl. This investment is
particularly important in Arkansas as one of the largest wetland conservation
areas in the nation. I urge the President to sign this conference
report, which will help us to continue to enjoy the land that we love and
help us leave our children with the environment they deserve.”
“The Food, Conservation and Energy Act” is a great victory
for outdoorsmen and wildlife advocates. It improves and expands popular
conservation programs, including Environmental Quality Incentive Program,
Farm Protection Program, and the Wetlands Reserve Program, and it creates a
new Open Fields Program to encourage public access to private land for
hunters and anglers,” said House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin
Peterson (D-MN). “I am proud of these accomplishments and appreciate the hard
work of conservation and wildlife advocates whose tireless efforts played an
integral role in this successful Farm Bill.”
The ‘Open Fields’ $50M funding source is crucial for
enhancing public access to private lands. Originally introduced in the Senate
by CSC member Senator Kent Conrad (D-ND) and Senator Pat Roberts (R-KS), Open
Fields will boost state programs that are designed to expand sportsmen's
access and the use of best management practices for fish and wildlife habitat
improvement.
Language that provides tax incentives for landowners who
allow access to their lands has been a priority of the Congressional
Sportsmen’s Foundation, working with the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus
since the beginning of the reauthorization process. The Farm Bill includes
language for a 2-year extension of tax incentives for conservation easements
that were approved by Congress in 2006. This provision provides tax
deductions to landowners who enter into irrevocable conservation easements on
their properties. A provision for tax credits for eligible landowners
entering into a conservation easement for habitat protection and/or
restoration for endangered species was also included in the bill.
About the
Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF)
The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation is the most
respected and trusted proponent for hunters and fishermen in the political
arena. With support from every major hunting and fishing organization, CSF is
the leader in promoting sportsmen's issues with elected officials. CSF
works directly with the bi-partisan, bi-cameral Congressional Sportsmen's
Caucus in the U.S. Congress, as well as affiliated state sportsmen's caucuses
in state legislatures around the country. For additional information, visit www.sportsmenslink.org or call 202-543-6850.
Allan Ellis
Director of
Communications
Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation
110 North Carolina Ave., SE
Washington, DC 20003
202-543-6850
Extension 19
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
5-14-08
NWF Opposes Farm Bill
Note:
PFSC has not taken a position on this final outcome.
This update is provided by NWF:
After months
of difficult negotiations, a Farm Bill conference committee announced a deal
for a final Farm Bill late last week. The final bill will likely come before
the full House of Representatives on Wednesday, May 14, and the Senate
Wednesday or Thursday.
After considerable discussion, and after consulting with
key NWF affiliates who have been involved in Farm Bill issues, National
Wildlife Federation has decided that they must oppose the final version
of the bill.
This is not a decision we make lightly. Many NWF
affiliates worked with us hand in hand to achieve a Farm Bill that would be
good for fish, wildlife, and people.
However, the final bill has several fatal flaws:
No SodSaver: Current farm law
provides incentives for farmers to destroy rare native prairie to plant
crops. Both the House and Senate had approved provisions to reduce those
incentives, but those provisions were largely left out of the bill agreed to
by the conference committee. Instead, they compounded the problem by
approving a massive new permanent disaster assistance program that tells
farmers that taxpayers will help cover their losses when they try but fail to
grow crops in arid parts of the West and Great Plains.
Shift Away from Conservation Lands: The new bill would
shift billions of dollars, and millions of acres, away from programs that now
provide wildlife habitat on private lands. The Conservation Reserve Program
would be cut to 32 million acres (from 39.2 million), and the Wetlands
Reserve Program would be cut by about 25% from the 2002 Farm Bill levels. The
funds would be shifted to working lands programs that provide much smaller
benefits for fish and wildlife.
Accelerate Global Warming: With no SodSaver
provision, the rush to convert native prairie to cropland will accelerate.
With the cut to the Conservation Reserve Program, millions of acres of restored
grassland could be plowed up or put back into crops. This massive conversion
of grassland to cropland in the Great Plains
and elsewhere will release hundreds of billions of pounds of carbon now
stored underground in roots, putting it into the atmosphere. Our work to
address global warming will be made more difficult.
We could not stand by silently and watch Congress pass
legislation that would threaten to accelerate the destruction of native
prairie, accelerate our global warming problem, and reduce America’s
commitment to fish and wildlife habitat on private land.
We are calling on Congress to reject the conference
agreement. The odds are stacked against us: most farm, livestock, and other
groups want a new Farm Bill. Some of our allies in the conservation community
are willing to accept this bill, despite its shortcomings. We respect their
position, but believe we need to speak out against a bill that falls far
short of what is needed for fish, wildlife and people.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Farm Bill Negotiators Finalize Conservation, Energy Titles:
5-5-08
Senate and House Farm Bill conferees met again Thursday
evening, after more than a week of private meetings designed to hammer out a
final agreement on the Farm Bill. The conferees cleared nearly all of the
major Titles of the Farm Bill.
Despite the official word that the Conservation Title
received $4 billion in 'new funding', the results were very disappointing
from a wildlife perspective.
The Farm Bill programs that do the most to provide fish
and wildlife habitat -- the Conservation Reserve Program, Wetlands Reserve
Program, and Grassland Reserve Program -- will continue but with significant
cuts from the levels of the 2002 Farm bill. The Conservation Reserve Program continues,
but at 32 million acres (now 39.2 million), a cut of $2.5 billion over 10
years. Wetlands Reserve Program
continues, but at about 185,000 acres per year (now 250,000 acres), and a
change in payment structure in the Wetlands Reserve Program, insisted upon by
House Chairman Collin Peterson, would make it much harder to attract
landowners to participate in larger restoration projects. Grassland Reserve
Program continues, with 0.9 million acres over five years (1 million acres
were enrolled as a result of the 2002 Farm Bill).
The Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program, which provides
cost-share to landowners who take actions that benefit wildlife, will
continue at the current level ($85 million per year). A new "open fields" program will
provide grants to states and tribes to provide incentives for landowners to
open their conservation lands to public hunting, fishing, and recreation.
The USDA conservation programs that do the least for
wildlife will see significant increases in their budget. -- the Environmental
Quality Incentives Program ($2.4 billion increase over five years) and Farm
and Ranch Protection Program ($562 million increase over five years).
The Conservation Security Program, which pays farmers to
address multiple resource concerns on farms and ranches, gets a $1.1 billion
increase, allowing the enrollment to expand to 80 million acres from the
current 16 million acres.
The conferees adopted a very weak SodSaver
provision, which would only operate in a few states in the Prairie Potholes region,
and then only with approval from the state's governor, despite the inclusion
of a national, mandatory sodsaver program in both
the House and Senate versions of the farm bill.
It appears the bill will include some version of a new
program championed by NWF that would help farmers make the transition to
growing cellulosic energy sources, but we don't yet
know the details or level of funding for that or other renewable energy
initiatives.
Provide about $372 million over five years for a new
cost-share program to fund conservation in the Chesapeake
Bay watershed;
Create a new 'Open Fields' program to provide grants to
states and tribes to reward farmers willing to open their conservation lands to
public access;
The tax and revenue Title of the Farm Bill has yet to be
finalized, but we believe that the incentives for landowners who take
conservation measures to benefit rare and endangered species will be included
in the final package at a reduced funding level. The tax package would
extend, but reduce the blenders credit for corn-based ethanol to 45 cents per
gallon (from 51), and add a $1.01 per gallon credit for cellulosic
ethanol.
Conferees are working to finalize the provisions in the
coming days, and the final bill should be ready within the next two weeks.
The President has threatened to veto earlier versions of the Farm Bill, and
it is not yet clear whether he will sign this final version.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GAME COMMISSION SEEKS
PUBLIC COMMENT ON FISHER PLAN
5-5-08
HARRISBURG - The Pennsylvania Game Commission is seeking public input on a
draft fisher management plan, which can be reviewed on the agency's website (www.pgc.state.pa.us) by clicking on
"Draft Fisher Management Plan" in the center of the homepage.
Read
full release....
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
National Park Concealed
Carry Update
5-2-08
Activity on the national park
regulation has increased. The Interior Department's version of proposed
regulation to permit lawful concealed carry within national parks and
wildlife refuges is posted at
http://federalregister.gov/OFRUpload/OFRData/2008-09606_PI.pdf
While we are happy to finally see action on lifting the ban, the DOI
regulation differs significantly from the much simpler Virginia Citizens
Defense League proposed regulation. Specifically, the DOI
proposal includes wording that links the proposed regulation to how concealed
carry is regulated at the state park level instead of just the state level,
thus still preventing citizens of some states from exercising their Second
Amendment rights within national parks in their state.
Senator Mike Crapo and Senator Specter are both examining the regulation
and Sen. Crapo's aide commented that
the NRA shared some of our concerns and will be posting their own
comment at the Federal Register regarding the regulation.
Now's the time to submit comments to the Federal Register!
Attached is a slightly lengthy,
but effective, example that Dave Yates of the Virginia Citizens Defense
League has composed and that addresses our concerns with the proposed
regulation.
Responders can simply copy and paste the text from the enclosed document into
the response box at the site or attach the document instead after entering
the requested personal information: name, address, email, etc.
To post the response, go to http://www.regulations.gov/search/index.jsp
and in the "Comment or Submission" box enter the search term 1024-AD70
and click on Go. Next, click on "Send a Comment or Submission" then
enter your personal information and paste your comment in the box below or or attach the document.
If, at a later date, responders wish to change amend their comment, they may
do so by entering new information at the same website.
Please forward this to as many individuals and organizations as
possible. We need to reaffirm to the Department of the Interior that the
original Virginia Citizens Defense League proposed amendment is much more
logical and avoids the potential for further regulatory restriction.
Thanks to PFSC member Rick Povich for being our lead person on this issue, and for
providing this update and information.
More on the issue:
Interior chief wants to ease gun ban in national parks
- Houston
Chronicle
Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne proposed new
regulations Wednesday that would allow people to carry a concealed weapon in
some national parks and wildlife refuges.
Read More
NEWS RELEASE
May 2, 2008
CCRKBA URGES GUN OWNERS
TO COMMENT ON PROPOSED NAT’L PARK RULES CHANGEBELLEVUE, WA –
American gun owners, especially those licensed to carry concealed handguns,
are urged to comment on a proposed Interior Department rules change that
would allow concealed carry in national parks and national wildlife refuges.
The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms supports this rule
change.
“Citizens do not leave their right of self-defense at the gates of a national
park or the boundary of a wildlife refuge,” sai d
CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb, co-author of America Fights Back: Armed
Self-Defense in a Violent Age. “Millions of Americans legally carry concealed
for personal protection, and contrary to the rhetoric of anti-gunners, parks
and refuges are not immune to crime.
“According to National Park Service data,” he continued, “between 2002 and
2007, there were 63 homicides in national parks, 240 rapes or attempted
rapes, 309 robberies, 37 kidnappings and 1,277 aggravated assaults. Opponents
of this rule change dismiss those numbers as insignificant, but those crimes
are very significant to the victims!”
To comment on-line, simply visit www.regulations.gov and follow the
instructions for making public comment.
You can mail comments to: Public Comments Processing, Attn: 1024-AD70;
Division of Policy and Directives Management; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service;
4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 222; Arlington, VA 22203.
“Opponents of this sensible rule change are already spreading hysteria with
claims that it will lead to poaching and reckless target shooting, and make
parks dangerous,” Gottlieb said, “and that is simply a lie. It is the same
extremist nonsense that anti-gunners preach when they oppose state
right-to-carry laws, and none of their wild predictions have ever come true.
Studies indicate that concealed carry actually reduces violent crime.
“Changing the rules to recognize the progressive changes in state laws over
the past 25 years is both reasonable and responsible,” he concluded. “Legally
armed citizens have just as much right to enjoy national parks as anyone.”
-END-
Copyright © 2008 Citizens
Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, All Rights Reserved
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NRA-ILA Update
5-2-08
Weinstein Reversed Again, This Time in NYCs
Suit Against Gun Makers
- Wall Street Journal
Brooklyn federal district Judge Jack Weinstein is known for getting assigned
huge class actions with billions at stake. Hes also
known for getting reversed by his colleagues on the Second Circuit Court of
Appeals. In the latter respect, the month of April has been a doozie. On April 3, the Second Circuit reversed Weinstein
in the so-called light cigarette litigation, decertifying a class of 50
million plaintiffs. And today, the court tossed out New York Citys lawsuit accusing the gun industry of selling
firearms with the knowledge they can be diverted into illegal markets.
Read
More
Bloomberg Anti-Gun Suit Suffers a Blow
- New York Sun
Mayor Bloombergs anti-gun crusade suffered a defeat
yesterday when a federal appellate court rebuffed his attempt to sue
manufacturers of firearms.
Read
More
The McCain Coalition
- Townhall.com
"In May, Senator McCain will give a much-anticipated speech on judicial
nominations and will speak to the members of the National Rifle Association
on May 6 and 16, respectively," writes Ken Blackwell. "These two
speeches are smart moves."
Read
More
New
York City Lawsuit Against America's Firearm Industry Dismissed
Read
More
To
Tell the Truth
- Front Page
"E.J. Dionne`s column in the Washington Post
asked this question about Barack Obama: "Is he Adlai Stevenson or John F.
Kennedy?" In the New Republic online, John Judis
wondered if Obama might be "the next"
George McGovern, the 1972 Democratic presidential nominee who lost in a
landslide," writes Fred Barnes. "Both are interesting questions.
But there`s a more relevant and important one: Is Obama who he says he is?"
Read
More
Whitewashing
vote fraud
- Washington Times
Monday`s 6-3 Supreme Court decision upholding Indiana`s voter-identification law has unhinged Democrats
and their allies on the political left. Within hours of the ruling, the ACLU
was wringing its hands about the judgment of the court that requires someone
to produce photo identification in order to vote was not unconstitutional.
Sen. Charles Schumer, New York Democrat, complained that it was "a body
blow to what America stands for -- equal access to the polls." But a
careful reading of the opinions of the six justices who voted to uphold the
Indiana law shows this assertion to be nonsense.
Read
More
Interior
chief wants to ease gun ban in national parks
- Houston Chronicle
Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne proposed new
regulations Wednesday that would allow people to carry a concealed weapon in
some national parks and wildlife refuges.
Read More
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUDITOR GENERAL JACK
WAGNER ANNOUNCES AUDIT OF DEP DAM AND LEVEE SAFETY
Nate Collins, PA Legislative Services
5-1-08
Auditor General Jack Wagner announced the release of an
audit of the Department of Environmental Protection’s work regarding dam and
levee safety. Wagner noted that this is the first audit of dam safety ever done
by the Auditor General.
Wagner said Pennsylvania is blessed with abundant
waterways, but they make the state vulnerable to flooding. According to the
Federal Emergency Management Agency, Pennsylvania had more than 15
flood-related federally declared disasters from 1997 to 2006, he offered.
As of September 2006, 595 of 793 high-hazard dams in
Pennsylvania, including 74 owned by the state, were being operated without an
adequate emergency action plan, he announced. He commented that thousands of
people and their property would be in jeopardy if the dams experience
structural failure.
The special performance audit of dam safety covered the
audit period July 1, 2002 to Sept. 18, 2006, he explained. He said the
auditors reviewed DEP files and interviewed residents and emergency
responders in the flood prone regions. He added that they also visited the
unsafe high hazard dams to see the problems firsthand.
Wagner said the audit found that not enough is being done
to safeguard Pennsylvanians and their property in the areas near dams.
He commended Governor Rendell for seeking an additional
$43 million for dam safety in the 2008-09 budget,
but said DEP’s Division of Dam Safety must do more.
“This is not just a dollars and cents issue; DEP needs to
improve its accountability for federal, state and privately owned dams in the
state by significantly improving inspections, monitoring and oversight of
local emergency action plans,” Wagner said. “Our audit found that, on
average, 5 percent of the state’s high-hazard dams failed to receive their
mandated annual inspections, either from their owner or from DEP, during our
audit period.’’
He said DEP is falling short, explaining that the auditors
found deficiencies in monitoring, oversight and emergency action plans.
Wagner offered that DEP has made progress in addressing
dam safety since the audit began, but the department has estimated that more
than $1 billion is needed for safety upgrades to more than 500 dams that are
either deficient or are projected to become deficient within the next five
years.
He commented that the most common problem at
unsafe high-hazard dams was inadequate spillways, which permit the release of
excess water to relieve pressure on dam walls and prevent them from spilling
over during heavy rainfall.
This is especially critical, he said, because administrators at 31 of 34
special-needs facilities, such as day-care centers and nursing homes, that
were interviewed by auditors said they were unaware that their facilities
were located in flood areas that faced a catastrophe from the failure of
nearby high-hazard dams, even though state regulations require that dam
owners list such facilities in their emergency action plans.
Wagner stated that the audit included seven findings and
made 29 recommendations. It called on the Division of Dam Safety to take
immediate action to tighten up its oversight policies and procedures and
inform the public. Specifically, Wagner said, DEP should:
- Require dam
owners to prepare and submit timely emergency action plans.
- Confirm that
the plans are distributed to appropriate county and local agencies.
- Communicate
dams’ potential danger to all special-needs facilities located in flood
areas and verify the posting of public notices to ensure public
awareness of dams’ potential danger.
- Evaluate and
monitor conditions of federal dams in Pennsylvania.
- Ensure all
high-hazard dams are inspected annually.
He offered that DEP accepted most of the recommendations
and the department has been working with his office they implement the
recommendations as soon as possible.
“Public safety is one of the primary missions of state
government,” Wagner said. “We must do all that we can to safeguard lives and
property. With Pennsylvania seemingly suffering from increased hurricane- and
storm-related flooding in recent years, it’s imperative that the Department
of Environmental Protection step up its efforts and give proper attention to
dam safety.”
Click
here to view a copy of the audit report.
The
Auditor General then answered questions from the press.
Who is responsible for inspection of
privately owned dams?
Wagner
replied that the owner of a high hazard dam must have a professional engineer
inspect it on an annual basis. He said about 5% do not have an annual
inspection.
Who inspects the federal dams?
“We
know very little about the federal dams,” he answered. He said the state has
not monitored the inspection of those dams, but he added that even though it
is not the state’s responsibility we should still receive the inspection
information.
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