Bear hunting is a longstanding tradition that is deeply engrained both in Maine's heritage and economy.  This longtime tradition pumps an estimated $60 million into the economy each year and sustains 900 hunting/outfitting jobs and accounts for the majority of black bears harvested in Maine each year.

The bear population is currently estimated at 30,000 bears and continues to increase annually.  With human/bear conflicts on the rise— with an average of approximately 500 incidents per year— Maine wildlife biologists predict that between 3,500-4,500 bears need to be removed from the population annually.  Since 2005, annual harvest has averaged only 2,910 bears with the vast majority taken over bait or with dogs.  If voted into law, the Maine Bear Hunting Initiative (MBHI) would make it a crime to hunt bears with bait, traps or dogs, except to protect property, public safety or for research. A restriction which would undermine the mission of annual bear harvests.

A "NO" vote on Question 1 will protect Maine’s sporting tradition by preventing anti-hunting organizations and outside interests from chipping away your hunting heritage one piece at a time by criminalizing traditional hunting practices our economy relies on.

Hunting laws should be set by wildlife biologists and experts in the field who rely on sound management practices, not by outside interest groups with an anti-hunting agenda. In the absence of these traditional hunting methods, bear populations will soar, creating an unbalance which will negatively impact deer and moose populations as well as drastically increase our already high rate of human/bear interactions throughout Maine.

PAID FOR BY NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION INSTITUTE FOR LEGISLATIVE ACTION