Funding for Hunter Ed and Archery Programs Potentially at Risk as a Result of New Law

The National Wild Turkey Federation has been following reports that suggests overly broad language in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act of 2022 has resulted in an interpretation that could impact federal funding for schools with hunter education, archery and shooting programs.

The language in question was intended by Congress to address arming educators and other school staff, but the U.S. Department of Education’s current interpretation could affect schools with these programs because they include training with a “deadly weapon.”

Senator John Cornyn and Senator Thom Tillis, two Republican senate leaders who sat on the committee that negotiated the language of the bipartisan bill, said the bill was a direct response to tragic mass shootings of children in Uvalde, Texas and Buffalo, New York, and the Department of Education’s interpretation is incorrect.

On July 10, the two senators penned a letter to Education Secretary Miquel Cardona stating that the Department’s interpretation of the language is not in line with Congress’ intent when they passed the law. The pair requests the Department follow the intent of the law and reinstate federal payments to the schools that have been impacted.

School-based hunter education and archery programs are vital to the outreach efforts of the hunter recruitment, retention and reactivation (R3) efforts of state agencies and the NWTF.

“Hunter education and school archery and shooting sports programs are gateways for young people to start hunting, and they provide a wide range of benefits to students who participate in these activities,” said Mandy Harling, NWTF director of education and outreach programs. “Students in these programs learn about the safe use of firearms and archery equipment and how to hunt and recreate outdoors safely and responsibly. But more than that, there are proven health benefits — physical and mental — for people who spend time in the woods and outdoors.”

The NWTF has been engaged in R3 efforts long before there was a name for R3, which is aimed at turning the tide of declining hunter numbers nationwide. The Juniors Acquiring Knowledge, Ethics and Sportsmanship (JAKES) program was founded in the 1980s to teach hunting and outdoor skills to youth. Women in the Outdoors was founded in the 1990s to encourage more women to hunt. And Wheelin’ Sportsmen was adopted by the NWTF in 2000 to help people with disabilities enjoy the outdoors. NWTF chapters nationwide embraced these programs and other R3 efforts, such as Field to Plate and Hunt for Food events, and introduce thousands of people to the outdoors and hunting every year.

“Hunters are important members of our society, and they play a vital role in our nation’s conservation efforts,” Harling said. “State wildlife agencies depend on hunters to scientifically manage wildlife populations in a humane and ethical manner, and the license fees and excise taxes paid on firearms, ammunition and archery equipment help fund these agencies and conservation work on the ground. Without hunters, successful wildlife conservation wouldn’t exist in America.”

The NWTF will continue to monitor this development, and while the organization did not have a part in crafting the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, we and our sporting conservation partners will diligently work with Congress to amend the law with language that cannot be misinterpreted.