Senate Engrossed

State of Arizona Senate Fifty-second Legislature Second Regular Session 2016

SENATE CONCURRENT MEMORIAL 1018

 

A CONCURRENT MEMORIAL

 

urging the united states bureau of land management to maintain access to public recreational shooting opportunities in the Sonoran Desert National Monument.

 

 

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

 

To the Director of the United States Bureau of Land Management:

      Your memorialist respectfully represents:

Whereas, article II, section 26, Constitution of Arizona, recognizes the right of citizens to bear arms by stating that "[t]he right of the individual citizen to bear arms in defense of himself or the state shall not be impaired."  Likewise, the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution safeguards the "right of the people to keep and bear arms"; and

Whereas, in order for the citizens of this state to exercise a meaningful constitutional right to arms guaranteed by their state and federal constitutions, they must have readily available venues to practice and hone their shooting skills, as they have since territorial days; and

Whereas, the Multiple-Use Sustained-Yield Act of 1960 and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA) legally prohibit the federal land management agencies from affecting the state's jurisdiction and responsibilities; and

Whereas, FLPMA establishes a multiple-use mission for public lands under the jurisdiction of the United States Bureau of Land Management (BLM); and

Whereas, recreational target shooting is recognized as a highly valued activity that has been enjoyed by multiple generations of Arizonans on public lands, including the Sonoran Desert National Monument; and

Whereas, federal lands make up 42% of Arizona, and more than 43% of those lands have special land use designations that prescribe significant restrictions to recreational opportunities; and

Whereas, the United States District Court in Arizona has ordered the BLM to temporarily close 10,599 acres of the Sonoran Desert National Monument to recreational target shooting; and

Whereas, due to a ruling from the United States District Court issued in March 2015, the BLM will develop new management actions to address recreational target shooting in the Sonoran Desert National Monument Draft Resource Management Plan; and

Whereas, BLM lands have traditionally been intended to accommodate multiple uses, including recreational shooting, plinking, hunting, hiking, biking, rock climbing, bird-watching, off-road vehicle travel and camping, without jeopardizing the public safety; and

Whereas, the importance of hunting and recreational shooting as a gateway to hunting are recognized in 2006 Executive Order 13443, "Facilitation of Hunting Heritage and Wildlife Conservation," which called for the development of a "Recreational Hunting and Wildlife Resource Conservation Plan" and a ten-year implementation plan; and

Whereas, the Arizona Game and Fish Commission has long supported and advocated for responsible and environmentally sound recreational shooting for the purpose of promoting marksmanship, public safety, hunter education, competition and lawful hunting; and

Whereas, more than 269,000 hunters in Arizona, who spend $341,668,000 annually in pursuit of outdoor activities, currently use BLM lands as areas to safely and responsibly sight-in their firearms and engage in the practice of their hunting skills, ensuring the safe and humane harvest of game animals; and

Whereas, the sale of sporting arms and ammunition generates vital funding for conservation efforts in Arizona and across the United States through the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act, a fundamental component of the American System of Wildlife Conservation Funding; and

Whereas, the availability of recreational shooting opportunities is key to the recruitment and retention of recreational shooters and the shooting tradition; and

Whereas, the Sonoran Desert National Monument Draft Resource Management Plan states that continued changes in Arizona are straining the limits of where and how recreational target shooting can be accommodated; and

Whereas, the BLM has committed to engage public and private stakeholders in discussions of collaborative options and acceptable solutions; and

Whereas, the BLM has received letters of comment from nongovernmental organizations representing sportsmen and sportswomen engaged in hunting and recreational shooting, as well as wildlife conservation organizations, the Arizona Game and Fish Department and the Wildlife and Hunting Heritage Conservation Council, recognizing and appreciating the values and objectives that the Sonoran Desert National Monument was created to protect and emphasizing the necessity of finding a balance between protecting the monument's resources and providing for recreational opportunities; and

Whereas, in its environmental analysis, the BLM Draft Resource Management Plan made a strong case for keeping some number of shooting sites open; and

      Whereas, the BLM has numerous partners that have already offered assistance and expertise in identifying existing or new sites that provide safe shooting recreation in the Sonoran Desert National Monument while protecting its resources.

Wherefore your memorialist, the Senate of the State of Arizona, the House of Representatives concurring, prays:

1.  That the United States Bureau of Land Management consider the economic and social benefits inherent in recreational shooting in Arizona and across the United States.

2.  That the United States Bureau of Land Management recognize that opportunities for recreational shooting are being increasingly threatened by urbanization and that the availability of federal lands is vital to the continuation of the recreational shooting tradition.

3.  That the United States Bureau of Land Management take steps to maintain access to public recreational shooting opportunities in the Sonoran Desert National Monument and complete a cumulative impact analysis on recreational target shooting as a legal, valid and compatible recreational activity on the monument and other monuments in Arizona.

4.  That the Secretary of State of the State of Arizona transmit a copy of this Memorial to the Director of the United States Bureau of Land Management.