On Tuesday, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a measure to protect the use of lead ammunition on a selection of federal lands. H.R. 615, the Protecting Access for Hunters and Anglers Act, steps in to prohibit the Department of Interior from regulating the use of lead ammunition or fishing tackle on federal land or water, provided that land or water is made available for hunting and fishing.
The bill was introduced by U.S. Rep. Rob Wittman (R-Va.), and passed the house by a hairline margin of 214 to 201.
“As a lifelong hunter and recreational fisherman, I was appalled by the Biden administration’s effort to restrict access for our nation’s sportsmen and women who use traditional lead fishing tackle and ammunition on federal lands and waters,” Rep. Wittman said in a news release following passage of the measure by the House. “Effective environmental stewardship and wildlife conservation rely on the valuable contributions of our hunters and anglers, and affordable lead ammunition and tackle are crucial to reducing financial barriers that limit accessibility for sportsmen and women. I’m pleased to see this critical piece of legislation pass the House, and I urge my colleagues in the Senate to take up this bill and send it to the president’s desk.”
H.R. 615 seeks to put an end to the worry that the Department of Interior will steadily erode the viability of lead ammunition, by limiting its real-world use by hunters. As the NRA Hunter's Leadership Forum reported here, the first steps on such a move had already been taken, as a federal rule opening 48 hunting opportunities across 3,000 acres of National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) lands to hunting was proposed last year, while simultaneously, banning the use of traditional lead ammunition on those and several other wildlife refuges. In monitoring the issue, HLF explained The Final Rule would ban the use of traditional lead ammunition on eight national wildlife refuges and lead fishing tackle on seven NWRs.
Your NRA has been fighting such bans almost since the idea was first considered decades ago. The organization's Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) has continuously explained how such a ban would make hunting more difficult and more expensive for hunters who want to access these public lands—an effective prohibition for some folks. Further, proof that lead ammunition is harming wildlife on public lands (to include NWRs) has been lacking.
“The NRA applauds the U.S. House of Representatives on the passage of the Protecting Access for Hunters and Anglers Act,” said Randy Kozuch, Executive Director of NRA-ILA. “This common-sense legislation would block the Biden administration’s attempts to ban the use of traditional ammunition, which is the most affordable, readily available ammunition for America’s hunters and shooters. On behalf of the millions of NRA members, gun owners and sportsmen across the nation, we thank Chairman Bruce Westerman and Rep. Rob Wittman for their leadership on this issue.”
Despite this win, the fight is not over. As HLF reported in 2022, U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) introduced a measure that would ban the use of lead ammunition on all federal public lands managed by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Nonetheless, H.R. 615 now goes to the U.S. Senate for consideration. A companion measure in the Senate, S. 1185, would also require the secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture to provide site-specific, peer-reviewed scientific data in cooperation with state agencies that demonstrates traditional lead ammunition or fishing tackle is causing detrimental wildlife population impacts before prohibiting their use by hunters and anglers.
For updates on this legislation, check back at americanhunter.org or nrahlf.org.
