In the same state with a thriving outdoor recreation industry, a ballot initiative with 120,000 signatures is threatening the hunting and fishing scene in the state by making such activities a criminal offense.
According to an Axios Portland story, the outdoor recreation industry generated $8.4 billion in Oregon's economy in 2023. Hunting and fishing were a big part of that.
Scenic places like the Columbia River and the Cascade Foothills drive outdoorsmen to the state for such activities.
Liberal activist David Michelson, the campaign leader for Initiative Petition 28, says the group wants people to shift away from killing animals and start treating all wildlife the same as they treat their companion animals, such as their dog or cat.
IP 28 is formally titled the People for the Elimination of Animal Cruelty Exemptions (PEACE) Act. It also restricts trapping, farming and animal research.
On Fox News, Oregon Democratic state Sen. Anthony Broadman says that he hasn't seen much support for the proposed ballot initiative.
“I personally haven't met anybody who supports this,” he shared. “In fact, when people hear what the ballot initiative is actually going to do, they're pretty shocked.”
Broadman also stated Oregon's hunting and fishing industry is a bipartisan issue and said he'd rather be focusing on other things, such as education or public safety. However, he added it is the beauty of the public process to look at all issues, even the poor ones.
"There's so many things wrong with limiting hunting and fishing," he insisted. "At the end of the day, hunting and fishing licenses are one of the ways that we do some of the incredible habitat restoration for game and non-game species here in Oregon.
