Land Access Provision Added to Interior Appropriations Bill

With the strong support of the NRA, U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), chairman of the House Appropriations Committee’s Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, has included a provision in the fiscal year 2013 Interior and Environment appropriations bill that protects hunters’ access to millions of acres of federal land. The bill was passed by the subcommittee this week and will be considered next week by the full committee. The provision specifically restricts the use of any funds to close any federal lands to sportsmen if the land was open to hunting on Jan. 1, 2012, unless the closure was done in compliance with an established management plan that was in place as of that same date. The provision does allow for temporary closures of up to thirty days to accommodate special events or for public safety reasons...more