Make Your Voice Heard At NC Wildlife Commission Hearings

The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission will start its yearly round of public hearings on proposed rule changes for fisheries, game lands, hunting, and other issues. The commission will start their hearings on Tuesday in Bladen County and conclude them on January 21st in Rocky Mount. Hearings will be held in all nine districts.

Among the proposed regulations are the opening of an elk season and an alligator season. Some of the proposed regulations are to bring them into compliance with state law. There is one proposed regulation that has gun rights implications. The text of the proposed regulation deals with US Army Corps of Engineers managed properties that are enrolled in the NC Game Lands program.

On Butner-Falls of Neuse,
Jordan, Kerr Scott and Vance game lands, no person shall possess loaded firearms, ammunition, bows and arrows,
crossbows, or other weapons except as provided in the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 36, Chapter III, Part 327.13.

That section of the Code of Federal Regulations prohibits the possession of loaded firearms unless you are law enforcement, hunting, at a target range, or have written permission from the District Commander. This was the issue in Nesbitt v. USACE which was a win at the District Court level but was appealed by the government to the 9th Circuit.

Written public comments can be submitted until January 25th. The comment form is located here. Personally, I’d wait to make my comment until the wording of the proposed regulations are released.

The schedule and location of the hearings is below:

The schedule for the 2016-17 public hearings is below. Public hearings begin at 7 p.m.
DATE
DISTRICT
CITY
LOCATION
Jan. 5 
(Tues.)
4
Dublin
Bladen Community College
Auditorium 
7418 N.C. Hwy. 41W
Dublin, N.C. 28332
Jan. 6 
(Wed.)
5
Graham
Southern Alamance High School
631 Southern High School Road 
Graham, N.C. 27253
Jan. 7 
(Thurs.)
6
Norwood
South Stanly High School
40488 South Stanly School Rd. 
Norwood, N.C. 28128
Jan. 12 
(Tues.)
9
Clyde
Haywood Community College
Auditorium
185 Freelander Drive
Clyde, N.C.
Jan. 13 
(Wed.)
8
Morganton
Western Piedmont Community College
Leviton Auditorium, Moore Hall
1001 Burkemont Ave.
Morganton, N.C. 28655
Jan. 14 (Thurs.)
7
Elkin
Elkin High School
334 Elk Spur Street
Elkin, N.C. 28621
Jan. 19
(Tues.)
1
Edenton
Swain Auditorium
200 E. Church St.
Edenton, N.C. 27932
Jan. 20
(Wed.)
2
New Bern
Craven Community College
Orringer Auditorium
800 College Court
 New Bern, N.C.  28562
Jan. 21
(Thurs.)
3
Rocky Mount
Nash Community College
Brown Auditorium
454 N. Old Carriage Road
Rocky Mount, N.C. 27804

Free Elk Hunting Opportunity – No Joke

Imagine a chance to go elk hunting where you don’t have to buy a license or special tags and don’t have to pay a fee to participate. It sounds too good to be true but isn’t. The Theodore Roosevelt National Park is seeking applications from hunters to help cull 250 cow elk from their herd.

They need up to 20 hunters per week for the 12 week program beginning on Nov. 1. According to Park Superintendent Valerie Naylor,

In order to be considered, applicants must be able to demonstrate a high level of shooting proficiency using lead-free ammunition, agree to participate for an entire five-day week, self-certify they are fit enough to perform the rigorous activity necessary, be able to legally possess a firearm, and be willing to sign a volunteer agreement after arriving at the park.

To be considered, you must fill out an online application here and return it by August 9th. More information can be found here.

The only downside to this opportunity is that you have to get to North Dakota and might be hunting during December and January. The average temp in January is 18 deg. Medora, the closest town, has a whopping population of 100. That said, Medora does have 1 hotel and 2 motels. Go here for more info.