URGENT: Bladen Co. Commissioners will conduct a Public Hearing on Monday, 2/19/18 at 6:30 pm on roadside hunting. Notice: “The Bladen County Board of Commissioners will hold a public hearing on Monday, February 19, 2018, at 6:30 p.m. in the Commissioners meeting room of the Bladen County Courthouse located at 106 East Broad Street, Elizabethtown. The purpose of this hearing is to seek public input regarding a possible law making it illegal to hunt or discharge a firearm on, from, or across a state-maintained right-of-way or to retrieve dogs from a public road while in possession of a loaded firearm.”
If Bladen County Commissioners voted for a Local Law to be passed to include all of the above, the result would be devastating for dog hunting.
Dog hunters must attend this Public Hearing and inform the Commissioners of the danger of criminalizing the act of retrieving dogs from public roads. Few of us oppose a ban on the discharge of a firearm across a public highway. However, we must never agree to a ban of “hunting.” Under NC law, “hunting” includes all the activities involved in hunting with dogs. “Hunting” comprises letting out the dogs, any activity involved in tracking the dogs, and getting up the dogs at the end of the hunt, whether or not the hunter has a firearm. It is not reasonable to ban a hunter from retrieving his dogs. No one wants a dog left to wander along a public highway, with the hunter unable to legally recover his dog. The suggested language contained in the Notice of Public Hearing is far too broad. We suspect the NC Wildlife Resources Commission may have had a hand in drafting this far reaching proposal.
Immediately contact Bladen County hunters to alert them to the problems with this overly restrictive language. We need a room full of orange hunting hats on Monday evening, 2/19/18. We also need local hunters to contact all of the Commissioners in advance of the Public Hearing.
Bladen County citizens should call, email or visit all the Commissioners, including the District Commissioner for the District in which each citizen resides.
Click here to see the contact information for each Bladen Co. Commissioner.
Click here for the photographs and Districts of each Bladen Co. Commissioner.
Speakers will have only two to three minutes to speak. Organize your thoughts in advance and write down your talking points. Time your comments with a watch and practice. Know how long your comments will take. Practice until you can make your important points in two minutes. Plan in advance with other speakers to cover all the essential aspects of this issue. Be prepared to tell the powerful story of the history, traditions, and love of the outdoors of Bladen County dog hunters. All in two minutes. Always polite and courteous.
If you have questions about this Public Hearing, please call Henri McClees (252) 671-1559.

NC Legislative News
No news is good news for us. The NC General Assembly is in session. There are continuing redistricting issues, of course. Among other matters this week, the Senate and House are voting on bills to amend elementary class size mandates and voting to confirm the Governor’s appointments to the NC State Board of Education. There is no dog legislation in sight.

2018 Spring Membership Drive
Thank you to all Clubs and Individuals who have joined in 2018. Our website now allows you to join online with payment by credit card or via PayPal. On this page, print out the 2018 Membership Application, complete it, and mail with your payment. If you have questions about this process, call our office at (252) 249-1097.

Encourage Others to Sign Up for Our Email Newsletters
By visiting our website, any dog hunter can sign up for our free mails. We do not email you unless we have something to say. We have simplified the Mail Chimp email signup with a simple pop-up menu. Opt-in or opt-out at any time.

Thank you for your continuing support of the NC Sporting Dog Association. We appreciate you.

Best regards, Joe & Henri

Joe & Henri McClees, Lobbyists
NC Sporting Dog Association, Inc.
PO Box 430, Oriental, NC 28571
Office (252) 249-1097, Fax (252) 249-3275