BILL INTRODUCED TO BAN PURSUIT OF BEAR AND BOBCAT IN CA

[Dale T]

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What can we outta state guys do other then send money an emails?[/

quote]

When the time comes the best way to get there attention is to write letters, what we were told years ago when we lost Lion season was that a hand written letter carried more weight than a phone call or a E-mail due to the effort and time it takes to write it and send it in.

I'll post info to sent letters to when the time comes for it.

Dale

[RIFLEMAN]

bjbmtry,

Another thing, where does the CDFG stand on this one????

With the bill being so new and not yet even formally introduced, the Department hasn't yet come out with a position.

I am hoping logic and science will prevail, and motivate them to officially oppose the bill. However, it would not surprise me if they stay silent on the subject and let us hunters and anti-hunters duke it out ourselves.

[RIFLEMAN]

Clint,

Who are you? What you have written above is one of the best and most inspiring things that i have ever read on this web sight.

I'm happy to say that CRA is one of the newly elected CHC Trustees as of the recent election. We are glad to have someone with his passion and common-sense approach on board.

I do have a question that hopefully someone can answer. How does a citizen like myself find out how much money is being shelled out to controll depredation Mt. Lions in this state since prop. 117?

I'm not sure if the Department keeps track of the cost, but I will do what I can to find out.

Also i seen something mentioned about how i believe Idaho is proposing a bill to protect their hunting rights. Can we do something like this as a counter proposal where this issue of losing our hound hunting rights can never be brought up again?

A very watered-down attempt to establish a constitutional right to hunt was introduced a few years ago, but failed to get out of committee two years in a row.

[RIFLEMAN]

kickemall,

Just a couple more thoughts on the matter. Its funny how a Senator from L.A. is willing to introduce legislation that has no bearing on his district at all, especially when his district is one of the most crime ridden in the state.

Yep, you raise a very good point. This callous disregard for the legitimate needs of his constituents is appalling.

Also, I hope that C.H.C. or someone gets in touch with Ducks Unlimited and lets us know where they stand, hopefully on our side as the propaganda machine is saying that even duck hunters are against hounds. Finally, the timber companies on the northcoast (Green Diamond, Humboldt Redwoods and to a lesser extent Sierra Pacific) need to be contacted for their support as they are saved millons of dollars by houndsmen work.

We are currently reaching out to dozens of organizations, including many of the ones you have mentioned. They have been very vocally supportive of our efforts, and we are in talks to have more formal assistance from them.

My personal thanks to all you out of state guys for your support.

You've got that right. The response from our out-of-state brethren has been overwhelming. We've had several guys from many other states send in their dues to join CHC...I'm hopeful that this will inspire more Californian houndsmen and women to join CHC, too.

[RIFLEMAN]

meagain,

Might be a good idea get the cattlemans association, almond growers, sheep hearders...... involved also. just a matter of time till we have the same problem with wolves as other states. As i see it this will only open the door to that issue if they are allowed to get this bill passed.

I spoke with representatives from a couple of these organizations, and will be having follow up conversations later this week once they have formally established their position on SB 1221

[RIFLEMAN]

Hi Dale,

is there any way we can get a phone tree or something like this to notify as many as we can?

A phone tree is being set up as we speak in order to reach the greatest number of people possible. However, it is important that everyone send in their $20 bill and join CHC so that we will be able to reach them by phone or email most effectively. It is also critically important that everyone attend the CHC fundraising dinner on Saturday 7-APR at the Tehama County Fairgrounds in Red Bluff. We will be providing a lot of tactical information that cannot be shared on this site because of its utter lack of privacy.

[RIFLEMAN]

Dale,

When the time comes the best way to get there attention is to write letters, what we were told years ago when we lost Lion season was that a hand written letter carried more weight than a phone call or a E-mail due to the effort and time it takes to write it and send it in.

As you indicate, handwritten letters are most compelling because of the time and effort they require. Letters of any kind are most influential, followed by faxes and phone calls. Emails and petitions are the least influential and effective.

[RIFLEMAN]

Hi All,

First, I want to thank each and every one of you for your passion and responsiveness to this situation; it is truly during situations like this one that the houndhunting community shows what it is capable of.

Here's some of what we know at this time. Unfortunately, I cannot share everything given the sensitivity and confidentiality of some information that is not suitable for the Internet:
1. SB 1221 would criminalize the use of dogs for the pursuit or take of bear and bobcat, allow Department of Fish and Game employees to kill any dog threatening to injure a bear or bobcat, and prevent the owner of the dog from pressing criminal charges or filing a civil claim against that employee.
2. SB 1221 has not yet been formally introduced, but will likely be today or tomorrow.
3. SB 1221 will first be heard in the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee. Information regarding this body and its members can be found at http://sntr.senate.ca.gov/.
4. The hearing on SB 1221 is likely to be scheduled for 10-APR, but this has not yet been confirmed.
5. CHC is amassing the assistance of a large number of organizations across several fields and industries to defeat this bill.

Here are the steps to immediately take in response to SB 1221:
1. Join CHC. This will fund our efforts to kill SB 1221 and every other threat to houndhunting, strengthen our numbers, and get you connected via telephone and email to the distribution lists and phone trees being established. You can join by visiting CHC's website at http://www.californiahoundsmen.com
2. Attend CHC's annual fundraising dinner on 7-APR at the Tehama County Fairgrounds on Antelope Blvd in Red Bluff. Again, this will provide much-needed funds to the cause, allow you to join CHC in person, sign letters that will be submitted to the legislature, and learn more information about SB 1221 and our campaign to stop it.
3. Contact the leadership of every other organization that you belong to and request that they submit formal opposition to SB 1221 and send out Action Alerts to their membership asking that members voice their opposition. Lieu, Steinberg, and HSUS are counting on dividing us; otherwise, they wouldn't have made it a point to mention that SB 1221 would not interfere with the use of dogs for birdhunting.
4. Rather than contacting your representative, focus your initial efforts on the members of the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee. Their contact information is provided below. In order of effectiveness, letters are best, followed by faxes and phone calls, followed by emails.
5. Visit the websites of CHC, COHA, NRA, USSA, and other organizations for more information and tools to make your voices heard in opposition to SB 1221. You will be provided with sample letters as well.
6. After you have performed all of these steps, please be certain to ask all of your family, friends, hunting buddies, co-workers, schoolmates, congregants, and neighbors to perform these steps as well.

[RIFLEMAN]

Here is the contact information for the body of legislators that can kill SB 1221 on the day it is heard...provided that we all stand shoulder to shoulder with each other and fight this bill, that is.

Here are some things to keep in mind when contacting the members of this committee:
1. Address the recipient of your letter, fax, or email as, "Senator" rather than "Mr" or, "Ms."
2. Remain courteous, respectful, and polite in all communications.
3. Clearly and concisely state your opposition and ask that they oppose the bill as well.
4. When making phone calls, calmly and slowly state your opposition.
5. You can and should reiterate your position in a letter, fax, phone call, and email to each and every member. However, you are encouraged to focus on the Democrats, as they are the ones most likely to support this bill.
6. Use spell-check and have somebody review your letter, fax, and email before you send it...nothing will kill the credibility of your statement like a message full of grammatical errors.
7. If you are unsure of the eloquence or articulation of your statement or may become nervous on the phone, simply state your opposition to SB 1221 and respectfully ask that they, "vote No on SB 1221."


Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee Members

Fran Pavley (D), Chair
State Capitol, Room 4035 Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 651-4006
Fax: (916) 323-2263
Email: senator.pavley@sen.ca.gov

Doug La Malfa (R), Vice Chair
State Capitol, Room 3070 Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 651-4004
Fax: (916) 445-7750
Email: senator.lamalfa@sen.ca.gov

Anthony Cannella (R)
State Capitol, Room 3048 Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 651-4012
Fax: (916) 445-0773
Email: senator.cannella@sen.ca.gov

Noreen Evans (D)
State Capitol, Room 4034 Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 651-4002
Fax: (916) 323-6958
Email: senator.evans@sen.ca.gov

Jean Fuller (R)
State Capitol, Room 3063 Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 651-4018
Fax: (916) 322-3304
Email: senator.fuller@sen.ca.gov

Christine Kehoe (D)
State Capitol, Room 5050 Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 651-4039
Fax: (916) 327-2188
Email: senator.kehoe@sen.ca.gov

Alex Padilla (D)
State Capitol, Room 4038 Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 651-4020
Fax: (916) 324-6645
Email: senator.padilla@sen.ca.gov

Joe Simitian (D)
State Capitol, Room 2080 Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 651-4011
Fax: (916) 323-4529
Email: senator.simitian@sen.ca.gov

Lois Wolk (D)
State Capitol, Room 5114 Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 651-4005
Fax: (916) 323-2304
Email: senator.wolk@sen.ca.gov

[BOSS HOG]

the email addresses for senators La Malfa, Cannella and Evans dont seem to be correct they keep getting returned to me with an error notice the others seem to work fine

[RIFLEMAN]

Boss Hog,

the email addresses for senators La Malfa, Cannella and Evans dont seem to be correct they keep getting returned to me with an error notice the others seem to work fine

Legislators are not required to have or use an official email address, so some opt not to. If they do use email, their address is, "senator.[LASTNAME]@sen.ca.gov." Based on your discovery, they likely do not use email. The good news is that La Malfa and Cannella are Republicans and need no convincing to oppose this bill.

[BOSS HOG]

I was just told by a guy at senator Padillas office, that I was the first person to call about sb.1221

I really hope he didnt know wtf he was talking about

[RIFLEMAN]

I'm getting reports that at least one of the numbers (Senator Pavley's) is incorrectly indicated on their roster documentation available for download on the committee's webpage...it is actually the number for Senator Steinberg who coincidentally is the co-author of SB 1221.

Senator Pavely's correct number is 916.651.4023. I contacted her office and they indicate that they will be correcting their documentation shortly.

[RIFLEMAN]

Clint,

I heard back from the Department as to what the costs are to respond to lion depredations situations. I was told that they do not track their expenditures relating to lions.

[KLS]

I called every member on the list!! I Was very nice , it's important
to be polite and clearly let them know you stance.We want to
project a level headed approch and screaming at some poor woman does no good
Think before you speak.
Tell them to have a nice day!
it's not their fault they work for an idiot!!
On to the email's and the letters last.
Fight On