Policy
Great Lakes decree put in place despite stakeholders’ and anglers’ objections
A federal judge accepted a proposed consent decree controlling five sovereign Michigan Tribes, the federal government and the state, overruling evidence that expanded gillnetting would negatively impact the Great Lakes. In handing down his order, Judge Paul Maloney rejected the Coalition to Protect Michigan Resource’s claim that biological harm is likely to happen to the resource and…
Read MoreAugust 2023 NRC Recap
With no new orders for action in front of the Natural Resources Commission (NRC), work focused on a group of proposed warm water regulation changes and introducing new conservation partners. Lisa Walker, the new executive director of Michigan Sportsmen Against Hunger, was in person and introduced herself to the commission prior to the meeting. She…
Read MoreBiden administration withholding funding for schools with hunter safety education, archery programs
There are still more questions than answers right now as the conservation community grapples with the Biden administration’s withholding of funding to public schools over school archery and hunter safety programs. Late last week, it came to light that the administration was withholding Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) funds from schools based on an…
Read MoreAugust NRC Preview
Proposed fisheries orders take the spotlight at the August 10 Natural Resources Commission (NRC) meeting. The meeting begins with coffee with commissioners at 9 a.m. at the Grand Valley State University Cook-Devos Center for Health Sciences located at 333 Michigan St. NE Grand Rapids, MI 49503. There are five proposed fisheries orders up for information.…
Read MoreJuly NRC Recap
It was a short Natural Resources Commission Meeting with no items for information or action in front of commissioners. Attendees learned what to expect for the rest of 2023 at commission meetings. NRC Chair Tom Baird laid out an outline for the commission over the next few months and what topics to expect on the…
Read MoreJuly NRC Preview
The July Natural Resources Commission (NRC) meeting has no orders for commissioner action. The meeting at Lansing Community College West Campus is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. on Thursday, July 13. Acting Department of Natural Resources Director Shannon Lott has three orders up for action: Land Use Order of the Director #2 of 2023…
Read MoreLegislature Passes SB 52, Failure to Report Deer Harvest Decriminalized
The Michigan House passed the decriminalization of failure to report a deer harvest on a 61-47 vote at the end of June, and the bill was signed on July 11 by Governor Whitmer. Michigan United Conservation Clubs (MUCC) worked with Sen. Cherry and his office toward the passage of the bill. MUCC and other stakeholders…
Read MoreSenate passes commercial guiding legislation
The Michigan Senate, on a bipartisan vote, passed stakeholder-led commercial guiding legislation Thursday morning. Commercial guiding in Michigan is woefully unregulated – nothing currently exists in statute to prevent serial poachers from posing as legitimate guides. Senate Bills 103, 104, SB 105 aim to address that, though still need to pass through a House committee…
Read More#Fight4Fish: Helping keep Boating Access Sites open
Since its inception, Michigan United Conservation Clubs has worked to promote unfettered, responsible access to our wild places in Michigan. Throughout Michigan, boating access sites (BAS) are subject to closures, often during nighttime hours, that inhibit anglers, hunters, trappers and recreationists access to public waters that should be open. MUCC understands that opening all sites…
Read MoreCommercial Guiding Bills: What’s Myth and What’s Fact?
The Senate Natural Resources and Agriculture Committee passed out an MUCC-supported commercial guiding package (SBs 103,104 and 105) today. Commercial guiding in Michigan is woefully unregulated. Nothing in state law prevents a serial poacher or felon from guiding. For more than 10 years, Michigan United Conservation Clubs has worked to provide much-needed sideboards for an…
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