"The Voice of an Individual Hunter"

I would think that most individuals have heard of “Quail Unlimited”, “Grouse Unlimited”; ECT.

A good source of current information can be received by Email from your own State Game & Fish Commission.

It is our hope that these new links will give you a good starting point on sources of current information relating to each of us as individual sporting people.

The SAOVA page will provide contact information for your State and Federal Representatives. Don’t disregard the need for you to tell each of them that in your opinion a certain proposed Bill is or is not of benefit to you personally as well as your region or state as a whole.

AOK, Sr.

King Llewellin Kennel

I read the following in Texas Sporting Journal and found it so interesting that I did a web search for the phrase “$76 billion a year on hunting”. I really wanted to see if there was more information than was given in this document. I found references to many magazines and organizations that have picked up on this report.

I suggest you do the same for information relating to the particular “GAME” of interest to you!

Washington, D.C.

Sept. 26, 2007

The report: Hunting and Fishing: Bright Stars of the American Economy — A force as big as all outdoors.

Powerful Economic and Political Impact Wielded by Hunters and Anglers

A new report produced by the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation details how America's 34 million hunters and anglers drive the economy from big business to rural towns, spending more than $76 billion a year on hunting and fishing and directly supporting 1.6 million jobs.

According to the report, America's hunters and anglers would rank in the top 20 list on the Fortune 500. Their spending is greater than the revenues of high-tech giants Microsoft, Google, eBay and Yahoo - combined. Sportsmen directly support 1.6 million jobs, which is twice as many jobs as the combined civilian payrolls of the Air Force, Army, Navy and Marine Corps.

That impact may even be greater because for a variety of reasons, there are millions of hunters and anglers not documented in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's 2006 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting and Wildlife-Associated Recreation.

"If you count hunters and anglers who are not legally required to buy a license, because of age or other exemptions, and you also include those sportsmen who may only buy a license every couple of years, the total number of hunters and anglers reaches nearly 84 million," said Keck. "These numbers include our next generation of conservation stewards, Americans 6 years of age and older. And even though some people may not hunt or fish every year, you can bet on this: once a sportsmen, always a sportsmen."

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates there are 62.4 million Americans who fish and 21.5 million who hunt at least once every 5 years.

"Their clout in the voting booth is well documented, too, both in terms of numbers and their commitment to supporting "pro sportsmen" candidates," Keck said. "When you have 40 million sportsmen of voting age in the U.S., and 8 out of 10 of them vote in presidential elections, you can see why the candidates have courted this huge, active voting block."

Anyway you slice it, hunters and anglers are among the most prominent and influential of all demographic groups.

"While hunting and fishing are generally thought of as just outdoor traditions, they actually comprise an outdoor nation - both in terms of economic impact, and in turning out the vote on Election Day," stated Jeff Crane, president of the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation. "If the $76 billion sportsmen spend on hunting and fishing was the Gross Domestic Product of a country, sportsmen as a nation would rank 57th out of 181 countries."

Broken down to a daily spending figure, the economic stimulus of hunting and fishing comes out to an astounding $208 million a day. This spending keeps people working: not just in typical hunting and fishing jobs, but also in gas stations, retail, restaurants and hotels throughout every state and congressional district of the USA. Of course, government coffers also benefit -- spending by sportsmen generates $25 billion in federal, state and local taxes.

AOK, Sr.