Safari Club International
A Busy Week on the Hill
September 18, 2023
SCI President John McLaurin and Vice President Mike Leonard visited Washington, D.C. for a great week of meetings with some of SCI’s biggest allies in Congress, including Chairman Steve Daines, Chairman Richard Hudson, Chairman Bruce Westerman, Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith, and Congressmen Green, Rose, and Pfluger. We thank our Champions in D.C for their tireless efforts to defend the freedom to hunt and pushing back against attacks on hunting access, from attempts to restrict hunting education to the closure of public hunting lands.
On Wednesday, September 15th, SCI President John McLaurin, Vice President Mike Leonard, and SCI staff attended the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation’s (CSF) 34nd Annual Banquet & Auction and enjoyed an incredible event with our industry partners and allies in Congress. SCI was CSF’s first supporter and has been proud to continue our support ever since. SCI thanks CSF for their continued friendship and work towards our shared goal of preserving hunting freedoms.
Following SCI’s visits to the Hill, H.R. 5110, a bill to ensure schools can teach hunter education and archery classes passed out of committee unanimously (42-0). This is a bipartisan issue, and we thank Rep. Green and Rep. Hudson for protecting the next generation of hunters and encourage House leadership to bring this to a floor vote as soon as possible.
It will continue to be a busy fall on the Hill, with our priorities of the Biden Administration’s attack on hunter education, the U.S. Foundation for International Conservation Act, reforming the Endangered Species Act, and access to lead ammunition taking front and center. Stay tuned for more updates!