TALLAHASSEE, Florida — A proposal to enshrine hunting and fishing rights in the state constitution is pitting some Florida conservationists against one of the country’s largest environmental groups, as sportsmen and anglers who see a threat to their ways of life push for similar language in state constitutions across the country. Supporters in Florida — including most prominently Republican Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson, a potential 2026 gubernatorial candidate — say the measure is needed to thwart any future efforts to ban hunting and fishing, and is part of a broader goal to preserve Florida wildlife and residents’ enjoyment of it as a key part of the state’s culture and economy.
“There has been an undertone across the country of states wanting to pass hunting, fishing bans,” Josh Kellam, chair of the Yes on 2 political committee, told POLITICO. “It has been brought to our attention Florida was a potential threat. So we took a very proactive approach.”
But the measure has divided environmental supporters in Florida. Some have dismissed the need for the language in the constitution, arguing that there is no threat in Florida to hunting and fishing, which already are protected in state law.
Opponents also argue that the measure’s vague wording — it protects “fishing, hunting, and the taking of fish and wildlife, including by the use of traditional methods” — could force the state wildlife commission to approve cruel hunting and fishing tactics. And declaring hunting and fishing the “preferred means of responsibility managing and controlling” wildlife could tie the hands of state officials to protect animals, they say.
