sbschindler's Link
The 2013 House Judiciary Committee is as follows:
Kerns, Krayton (R - Ch) Bennett, Jerry (R - V Ch) MacDonald, Margie (D - V Ch) Blasdel, Mark (R) Court, Virginia (D) Doane, Alan (R) Eck, Jenny (D) Fiscus, Clayton (R) Gursky, Jenifer (D) Halvorson, David (R) Hill, Ellie-Boldman (D) Laszloffy, Sarah (R) Lenz, Dennis (R) Lynch, Ryan (D) O'Neal, Jerry (R) Pease - Lopez, Carolyn (D) Regier, Keith (R) Smith, Bridget (D) Wagoner, Kirk (R) Warburton, Wendy (R)
Sponsor of HB 235, Rep. Hill (D) and co-sponsor, Rep. Kerns (R) have introduced an amendment to the Bill that will specify "walk-in only access" for some corner crossings. Rep. Kerns (R), who is the Chairman of the Judiciary Committee where this Bill is being heard, is going to delay Executive Action for up to 10 days before a Committee vote is taken.
Z Barebow's Link
I signed the petition in link and submitted comments. I urge others to do so also.
Z Barebow . . . Too Much Information (TMI). I now have to go wash my eyes out with soap for that visualization. LOL
Someone should post on the main bowsite page also.
Mr. Lenz responded (he was the only one). . . I have to be honest . . . I'm impressed. I appreciated his honesty.
He did however state that because the way the proposed Bill is currently worded, he felt there may be some private property issues and would be voting against the Bill as it is currently written.
One of a hundred reasons..
Can't say I'm surprised........it's sad what money is doing to this sport...
Outfitters are ruining some of the best fishing rivers in the state and they are ruining hunting as well.
I personally wish outfitting was illegal.....if you can't hunt or fish.....sit on your couch and dream about it.
They're is no pride in a guided animal to me anyway....mostly rich people wishing they were something they're not.....it's sad.
I've guided dozens of hardworking blue collar bowhunters that save for years to go on an outfitted elk hunt. Do you think someone who works their ass off for their family doesn't deserve to buy an elk hunt for themselves? Please don't generalize, it makes you sound stupid.
The good news is the sponsor, Rep. Hill, is going to try and blast it out of Committee on Monday Feb. 18th which is the President's Day holiday. There will be a rally from 10-11 that day on the Capital grounds. Though we cannot testify on the House floor we can be in the gallery to show our support to have this bill blasted out of committee so that it goes to a vote from the entire House. WE NEED A MINIMUM OF 300 PEOPLE TO SHOW UP FOR THIS RALLY. Randy Newberg (On your own Adventures) will be there with his film crew and we will be notifying the press and hope to have the press there from all the major newspapers and TV stations.
Contact every Republican Representative, especially those from your district, and ask for their support to blast this out of committee.
This may be our only shot at getting the bill passed. We must put enough pressure on the legislature that it becomes too much of a hot potato to handle for fear of it's impact on future elections.
The Goetz law firm has done a Memorandum which gives the reasons that corner crossing is legal. Go to www.montanasportsmenalliance.com to review the Memorandum.
Speak Now or Forever Hold Your Peace.
Montana Sportsmen Alliance Leadership Group
Bowslinger
I don't think that wild animals should be bought and sold....it's bad for the sport...and bad for real sportsmen....I don't care what color your collar is....so yes I do generalize...I don't like outfitting...that doesn't make me stupid.
If it wasn't for outfitting, I'd still be able to hunt many of the farms and ranches I used to be able to hunt....before an outfitter came and offered the landowner 20K-30K to keep everyone else off.....I can't blame the landowners for taking it.....Outfitters have locked up hundreds of thousands of acres that anyone used to be able to hunt (especially if you didn't mind stopping by and helping with a branding) So the hardworking blue collar bowhunters you guided probably just needed a spot to go....it's not hard to kill an elk if you have a spot where they like to be.....no self respecting bowhunter I know "needs" a guide for anything.
Have you ever tried to go fishing on the Madison or the Bighorn rivers on a nice day in Sept.? Good luck....and most of the boats are guides...guiding people that don't know how to fish.
My point is....there are people who spend their whole lives doing the the things they love....learning the sport ....respecting the sport and the animals involved... Then there are people who want to go out and kill a big bull....so they hire someone that knows how and has a good spot to go.....there is no pride in that.....and it is becoming more and more difficult to find places to hunt that you don't have to pay for....BECAUSE OF OUTFITTING.. Call me ignorant, call me stupid, I really don't care....I've watched outfitters and rich wannabees completely change hunting and fishing over the last 20 years....and it hasn't changed for the better.....it makes me sad....it's going to be tough for my boy....you guys can rub each others feelers all you want....tell yourself whatever you need to to sleep at night
If private lands aren't marked, that gives no reason to stop the public from attempting to access their lands. Hell, no landower would mark their lands if that were the case.
If landowners want to keep people off their lands they should fence it or mark it very well. They also better be ready to lose any leases that they have if they post or mark the properties wrong, or the wrong properties, like state land leases.
Maybe they should have included that in the bill.....it would take a while, but with that 10000 dollar gps that Mtfury has it wouldn't be that big of a deal....I'm sure that most relevant corners could be located by this fall.
So the state locates the corner and marks it....if the landowner disagrees with the location he or she if free to have it surveyed and we will use which ever location the landowner prefers.
I think a good part of the reason the bill died was because it does have rules for posting private land.......I don't want to add any new rules for the landowners to follow.....it is our responsibility to know where we are, on that same note....if the land is not marked....it would be damn near impossible to be convicted of trespassing......you could simply demand that they prove exactly where you were. If there is no boundary line they would have to have the land surveyed just to prove that you were on private......
Most private land owners that are concerned about trespassers do mark their land.
Just look at any National Forest recreation map and you will see the great number of checkerboarded public sections. I don't think many of those sections have fencing around them or on any boundary. They are public and the public should be allowed access. I am pretty sure that when the private lands were ceded to the railroads and then subsequently to other private parties the intent was not to then shut them down to public interests. If the GPS technology is not good enough, then for those who have been exploiting the use of these public lands for over a century, it is encumbent on them to mark corners if there is a real concern about John Q. Public putting a six-inch wide track on their fragile soil.
~ Dunner
~ Dunner
Landowners would be surprised at "our" good will towards them if they would also be willing to bend a little. I have to believe the "silent majority" of landowners would be OK with the bill.
If not, I won't think of them as the "salt of the earth" any longer!
Historically, I doubt you would find a Co. Atty that would pursue the matter. However, I'd feel better about doing it if there were in fact a legal "permission" to do so. I respect private landowners... I just want to be able to access what is public ground w/ a clear conscience if this passes.
This is exciting - hope they take another look nxt monday! ~ Dunner
