This bill would ban wildlife killing contests on federal public lands, including lands managed by the National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, and Forest Service. The legislation prohibits organizing, sponsoring, conducting, or participating in events where people kill animals for cash prizes, entertainment, or other rewards, though it makes exceptions for field trials with hunting dogs, contests targeting ungulates and certain birds, and government-authorized control of invasive species. The bill applies only to federal lands and does not prevent states from enforcing their own, more restrictive rules. Federal land management agencies would have one year after the law's enactment to issue regulations implementing the ban. The bill's supporters argue that scientific evidence shows these contests do not effectively reduce wildlife populations or prevent human-wildlife conflicts, and that the practice wastes animal carcasses and undermines ethical hunting traditions.
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