Why It Matters: Michigan students that otherwise may have never been exposed to our time-honored outdoor traditions could soon sign up for an important elective: hunter education. Counting as both a credit towards graduation and the classroom requirement to obtain a Michigan hunting license, this standardized course stands to create lifelong hunters to join us afield and contribute to the conservation efforts of the Wolverine State.
Highlights:
- Senate Bill 664 was introduced by Michigan Legislative Caucus Co-Chair Senator Jon Bumstead, and its companion, House Bill 5334 was introduced by fellow Caucus member Representative Curt Vanderwall.
- Together, the bills have more than 70 bipartisan co-sponsors, as well as the support of both the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the Michigan Department of Education.
- Advancing hunter education opportunities in schools is a policy priority for the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF). During the 2024 session, CSF has actively worked with legislators and stakeholder partners to help guide these bills through the legislative process.
Senator Jon Bumstead, longtime Co-Chair of the Michigan Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus, introduced Senate Bill 664 alongside fellow Co-Chair Senator John Cherry, mandating that the Michigan Department of Natural Resources collaborate with the Michigan Department of Education to adopt and make available to schools a model program of firearm safety instruction. The course would both count as an elective credit and qualify as the classroom portion of Michigan’s hunter education requirement. Although the bill does not allow firearms to be brought into the classroom setting, the course would instruct students on proper firearm handling, safety, storage, and maintenance, while exposing students to hunting and the numerous benefits that it provides to conservation and society at large.
CSF has worked with the Caucus in developing this concept since before the bill was first introduced in 2023 and has continued that support throughout the bill’s legislative cycle. Following its unanimous approval by the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Agriculture, the bill moved to the floor for full consideration, where it was passed almost unanimously. The bill has since been received by the House and could be passed this week. SB 664’s sister legislation, HB 5334, has more than fifty bipartisan co-sponsors in the House, including Michigan Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus Co-Chairs Representative Sarah Lightner and Representative Amos O’Neal, who also sits on the National Assembly of Sportsmen’s Caucuses’ Executive Council.
For youth that may not have grown up participating in hunting or may not have been exposed to the outdoors by family members, allowing an elective hunter education course in schools stands to create prospective lifelong hunters. As the legislative session nears conclusion in Michigan, CSF will continue to support Senate Bill 664, and the general concept of hunter education in schools throughout the country.
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