BILL NUMBER:  S7751

 TITLE OF BILL :

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION OF THE SENATE AND ASSEMBLY proposing an
amendment to the constitution, in relation to the right to hunt, trap
and fish

 PURPOSE :

This proposed constitutional amendment would provide within the New
York State Constitution for a right of the people to hunt, trap and
fish.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

A new Article Twenty would be added to the state constitution to
ensure the right of the law-abiding citizen to hunt, trap and fish
subject to reasonable regulation by the state.

 JUSTIFICATION :

The roots of hunting, fishing and trapping go deep into the soil of
our American experience. A way of life to Native Americans and
European settlers and sources of food and commerce, they have since
matured beyond their subsistence origins to become revered outdoor
              

pastimes enjoyed by 1.7 million New Yorkers and visitors for the
pleasure, challenge, companionship, food and additional income that
our outdoor sporting traditions provide.

New York's outdoor sporting traditions have a significant impact on
New York's economy as well: According to the 1996 National Survey of
Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation conducted by the
U.S. departments of Interior and Commerce, recreational anglers and
hunters spent more than $2.5 billion in pursuit of their pastimes in
New York in 1996. New York hunters and anglers annually spend millions
of dollars for goods and services provided by businesses located
throughout the state. Apart from the cost of their sporting licenses,
outdoorsmen's expenditures support jobs, generate sales and income
taxes, and are integral parts of the tourism industry. Hunters and
anglers come from all over the United States to fish legendary
Catskill and Adirondack streams and enjoy the thrill of the ruffed
grouse flushing in our many forests and state wildlife management
areas.

Sportsmen spend money for equipment, bait and tackle, hotels and
motels, restaurants, lodges and camps, grocery and hardware stores,
vehicles, boats, fuel and guide services. The survey found that these
expenditures and their associated economic impact supported 43,000
jobs and generated $100 million in state sales taxes and $32 million
in state income taxes in New York State in 1996.

New York has invested considerable sums of tax dollars in the
acquisition of land for outdoor recreation, including canoeing,
kayaking and hiking, fishing rights, and hunting. Habitat restoration
projects, funded by the state, are designed in part to enhance fish
spawning and the proliferation of game species. Because of the public
dollars and license fees that have supported game reintroductions and
habitat improvements, the increasing suburbanization of the state,
continued loss of open and wild areas, the distance between the
population and our subsistence roots, and their foundation in our
culture and history, particularly in our rural areas, the time honored
and respected pastimes of hunting, fishing and trapping should be
recognized in our constitution as rights of the people.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :
2013-14: A1704 referred to Environmental Conservation/S3049 referred
to Judiciary
2011-12: A6864A referred to Environmental Conservation/S2382A passed
Senate
2009-10: S3049 referred to Judiciary
2007-08: S2639 committed to Rules
2005-06: A2047 referred to Environmental Conservation/S158 committed
to Rules
2003-04: A1531A referred to Environmental Conservation/S1771 referred
to Judiciary
2001-02: A11232 referred to Environmental Conservation/S7088 referred
to Judiciary

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

None.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
RESOLVED (if theconcur), That the foregoing amendments be referred to
the first regular legislative session convening after the next
succeeding general election of members of the assembly, and, in
conformity with section 1 of article 19 of the constitution, be
published for 3 months previous to the time of such election.