Published 3 days ago 

Constitutional change would expand hunting, fishing & trapping protections

onMarch 16, 2023

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PHOTO BY MICHIEL ANNAERT

By Austin AmestoyMONTANA PUBLIC RADIO

State Republican lawmakers are again lining up in support of a change to Montana’s Constitution that could expand existing protections for hunting and fishing and make it more difficult to regulate trapping.

The proposed constitutional amendment would change Montana’s protections for hunting and fishing from an “opportunity” to a “right,” and would include trapping as a protected right.

Versions of the bill have been introduced andgained momentum since 2017.House Bill 372mirrors a measure brought during the last Legislative Session that failed by three votes, largely along party lines.

The bill drew heated testimony in its first hearing before the House Judiciary Committee Tuesday. Proponents included pro-trapping groups and Montanans who said constitutional protection of trapping was necessary to…