New Rule Bans Recreational Shooting on 1.3 Million Acres of Public Land; Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation Plans to Challenge
Today, the Bureau of Land Management issued a final rule on its proposed management plan for Bears Ears National Monument in southern Utah, which includes an outright prohibition on recreational shooting of any kind for any purpose. Bears Ears, like all national monuments, are generally open to recreational shooting by the public, and for many in the western United States, public lands such as these provide the only opportunity for such activities.
“No surprise here, BLM told everyone many months ago that the agency’s preferred alternative was to ban recreational shooting altogether,” said Dr. Todd Adkins, Senior Vice President at the Sportsmen’s Alliance. “The notice and comment process proved meaningless, so we must turn to the courts to keep public land truly public.”
The Sportsmen’s Alliance is pulling together a coalition of organizations and individuals to challenge the BLM rule in federal court. Many organizations fight to protect America’s outdoor enthusiasts, including recreational shooters, and the Sportsmen’s Alliance is actively engaged with many of these groups to find the right pathway forward.
“There are federal statutes that require BLM to have considered a different approach than an outright ban,” said Michael Jean, Litigation Counsel for the Sportsmen’s Alliance. “Whether by oversight or with clear intent, we cannot stand by as our members and supporters are thrown off public land in violation of existing law, and we won’t.”
About the Sportsmen’s Alliance: The Sportsmen’s Alliance protects and defends America’s wildlife conservation programs and the pursuits – hunting, fishing and trapping – that generate the money to pay for them. Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation is responsible for public education, legal defense and research. Its mission is accomplished through several distinct programs coordinated to provide the most complete defense capability possible. Stay connected to Sportsmen’s Alliance: Online, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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