Bear bill...

This is how a bill gets started in the State. http://www.maine.gov/legis/house/path/path.htm

The main issue I see here is time. I thought the deadline to submit was Friday.

Writing a bill is no easy task. It contains all kinds of legalese. It’s not something we can do without requesting copies of other bills from other States and then researching where it can be tailored for this state. That’s the first step. We can’t copy it verbatim as there are codes that are current law in other states, etc. that may or may not be codes here, etc. We need either an attorney OR someone who has experience drafting bills to help.

What I think can be done fairly quickly is a form letter than can be passed around to everyone we know. The letter than can just be signed by individuals who can fax it or mail it to their Representatives/Senators. The more the better. Inundate them with requests. Included in the letter could be both issues (which I see as separate). 1. Leave the status quo as far as bear hunting goes and 2. Put forth a Heritage Bill that protects us in the future.

Why I think this is important is that IF reps see the overwhelming support for both from the community, they may elect to let the HSUS propaganda bill--for lack of a better description--die in committee. Then, we have time to work on getting a bill for the next legislative session.

Just my .02.

If we elect to go this route, first thing we would have to do is gather all the information we need to make a case in one place, including copies of the other Heritage Bills. This information would have to be all Data based. I would also suggest we speak with IFW regarding the current already sponsored bill that is going to committee. http://www.mainelegislature.org/lawmakerweb/summary.asp?ID=280046424

My general feeling is that since this has been ordered to committee, this current session of Legislators are going to wait till they get the results of this study before they move forward. Of course, I could be wrong and they could be swayed by the ignorant pleas of the uniformed, emotional and irrational HSUS peeps who want to ban all hunting irregardless of whether or not it serves a very real and valuable service to wildlife management.

he was saying he thought it cld get approved even tho it was after the deadline

Crossing all the t's and dotting all the i's is one of our biggest challenges....Know'n all the in's and out's of the laws and how to research the bills and counter them is beyond my country boy mentality.....Give me a shovel and a pick axe and I'll dig a hole to china and back to help,but the suite and tie part of things is'nt my strong point.....lol.....I know it's hard to believe....lol.....Hell I cant even spell legislator??????....hahahaha....hmmmmm Lisa ya better help!.....My letter to them might be a bit embarressing for us.....with a stain on the envelope....lol.....damn it......

Congrats to yall for taking this to the next level.. This has been awesome to see it worked over and the commitment yall are showing is great. What yall are doing has been posted on my Maine Trapping site and you all will have support...

We should all know more sometime today as legislators release all bills presented today...We should get a first look at what the actual bill says....They say there's like 1080 of them.....might have to paw thru them to find it......lol....

Talked with Senator Dave Burns this morning and exspressed my concern about this bill. Dave is a great fella that serves on the IF&W now and is a avid outdoorsmen with knowlage of whats happening....I have great trust in him as he's always willing to step up for us sportsmen/women to help protect our right and heritage.....I urge everyone to call or write the elected offical in there area....

hopefully we can get this taken care off write off!!

When and if there is a date to go to Augusta and I will go. These Motha%@#$#%@%$ need to be stopped. Our Reps need to grow a set like bones' says, they are sheep.

I have been in contact with a good friend the past few days who is a member of the Republican Caucus so heres what I know regarding the "Bear Bill" and the status of the legislation...

(1) It is the goal of the Humane Society of America to have this legislation passed and put on the books by this upcoming June.

(2) The HSUS have made statements declaring that if the legislation is not passed this legislative session they will immediately move to collecting signatures to have the issue be brought forward as a referendum in Novemeber of 2014.

(3) The HSUS, are actively polling maine residents via phone calls as to establish where they need to direct their money for a referendum campaign and coinciding vote in 2014.

(4) The final "language" of this bill is still being worked out, but once its final, the steps in the upcoming months are to include: public hearing, work sessions to discuss/ammend in committee, if the committee votes in favor of the bill they will recommend it to the floor where a "role call" will take place for a vote by the Maine house of Representatives, if it makes it through the House then it goes to the Senate, and ultimately to the Governor for his signature if passed by the Senate.

(5) Yes it is true Senator Mazurek was mislead by HSUS, and has recently made statments to the effect he would like to rescind his sponsorship of the bill, unfortunately the deadline to submit/remove a bill for this session was this past friday.

(6) It is my understanding from the conversations I've had with members of the legislature, our best case scenario is to have this end in committee, and this is where we all need to do our part and be a voice for the sport we love.

Here is a link to the list of the current members of the IFW...

http://www.maine.gov/legis/house/jt_com/ifw.htm

(7) This bill has not been reported on yet from the revisors office, but once the bill language is made public its going to be vital everyone emails every member on the list (see link above) explaining our concerns in the most RESPECTFUL manner possible. We need to remember these are the people we are counting on to save our sport.

( 8 ) Just as importantly, when the public hearing takes place we need to SHOW UP! This will be our only public opportunity to provide facts and information for the committee to take under consideration. This means we need to be prepared to testify on behalf of our respective interests.

(9) I'm expecting an email within the next week with the finalized language from the revisors office. Once I have it in my hands I will forward it here for everyone to start wrapping our minds around.

(10) It is important to remember there are many possible outcomes from the upcoming commitee session. Once in committee lobbyists from both sides are going to get involved. On our side we have a myriad of interest groups attempting to protect differing parts of this proposed bill, and on the other side we face a united HSUS who have perfected their craft in over a dozen other states. It is very likely deals are going to be offered and possibly taken as to avoid this bill from pushing through. This afterall was the case the last time the issue was pressed upon, when the state "set aside" the first two weeks of bear season to bear baiters only. All be it small, this is important to remember, the HSUS is going to attempt to seperate our unity as hunters and sportsman by initially focusing on small sects of our sport. While it will appear they are leaving "your sport" alone this time, it will be their target next time around. It is time for all Maine sportsman to stand together and protect our "hunting heritage" as we know it today.

Derek,
Thanks for posting! Appreciate everything your doing to keep us informed and a huge thank-you to your buddy thats telling us how it is....The info you posted is spot on! Very informative and direct with what needs to be done!.Great Job!

Great info, Thanks.