Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW)
Adopts Restrictions on Recreational Shooting;
Disregards Concerns of NRA Members
Monday, January 14, 2008
At a public meeting last month, the nine-member Washington Fish & Wildlife Commission unanimously adopted rules that will make it easier to prohibit recreational shooting on all state land controlled by the Department of Fish & Wildlife (DFW) and that imposes other restrictions on shooters.
Ignoring the concerns raised by NRA members, including testimony provided by NRA staff at the meeting, the Commission unanimously rubberstamped the proposal that was before it. The new rules, WAC 232-13-130 (1) (b), authorize the DFW to prohibit the discharge of firearms on any or all portions of Department land at any time and for any (or no) reason. Without public notice or input, DFW will be able to prohibit recreational shooting on any state land by merely posting signs. In turn, it may designate limited areas open for limited shooting under WAC 232-13-130 (2).
Further, the rules create an arbitrary 1000-foot diameter "no-shooting area" around every designated campground (500 feet out in all directions). It was clearly conveyed to the Commission that one individual could be "illegally" shooting 100 feet away from a campground and be entirely safe while another could be "legally" shooting 501 feet away and be unsafe. Specific local conditions such as topography and variables such as campground usage and the direction of the shooting should be the relevant factors. Essentially, all nine commissioners went along with the argument made by the DFW Chief of Enforcement that campgrounds should be covered by the same standards already in state law that apply a 500 foot buffer around schools and homes. They ignored the NRA arguments that there are very basic differences between schools and homes in populated areas and campgrounds in the middle of rural, forested land where recreational shooting has occurred safely for generations.
Incredibly, the Commission even refused to add language that would exempt the discharge of a firearm for self-defense in campgrounds. As NRA pointed out during the public meeting, the new blanket prohibition violates Article I, Section 24 of the Washington State Constitution.
Finally, WAC 232-13-130 (1) (c) now makes it unlawful to fail to remove expended shell casings and other target shooting debris after shooting activities. Another NRA suggestion that a "good faith effort" or "due diligence" standard be added to the language was ignored. What this means in practical terms is that a conscientious shooter who makes a legitimate attempt to clean up after his target practice session, but recovers only 99 percent of the shell casings he fired, is subject to sanctions for "littering."
It is important to note that there were four sections of the proposed rules that were very controversial. In addition to the section on firearms and shooting, there were sections regarding vehicle use, livestock and resource removal. The Commission acknowledged the concerns of the other user groups by voting to defer action on those issues but ignored the concerns of shooters when adopting the restrictive language outlined above. This action is a clear indication of how commissioners feel about the concerns of shooters as compared to those of other public land users. Firearm owners and recreational shooters need to stand up and take note of how this policy-setting body and its individual members feel about your interests and rights!
Unfortunately, the vote has been taken and, for now, the damage has been done. However, amendments to the section on firearms could be made in the future.
