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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The State of Illinois has a rich and storied
3tradition of hunting and angling that dates back further than
4the State itself and carries forward to this day; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Illinois' sportsmen and women were among the first
6conservationists to support the establishment of the Illinois
7Department of Natural Resources to conserve fish, wildlife, and
8their habitat, and, through their license fees, helped fund
9State efforts to provide for healthy and sustainable natural
10resources; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Upon realizing that license fees alone were
12insufficient to restore and sustain healthy fish and wildlife
13populations, sportsmen and women supported self-imposed excise
14taxes on hunting, fishing, and boating equipment to raise
15additional conservation funds; and
 
16    WHEREAS, To this day, the Illinois Department of Natural
17Resources is funded primarily by sportsmen and women through
18the American System of Conservation Funding - a "user pays -
19public benefits" approach that is widely recognized as the most
20successful model of fish and wildlife management in the world;
21and
 

 

 

HR0787- 2 -LRB099 14217 GRL 38281 r

1    WHEREAS, In 2013 alone, Illinois's sportsmen and women
2generated $63,419,348 through this System to support the
3conservation efforts of the Illinois Department of Natural
4Resources; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Illinois' 1,309,000 hunters and anglers support
6the State's economy through spending more than $2.34 billion
7while engaged in their pursuits; this spending supports over
831,597 jobs in Illinois and generates $277 million in State and
9local taxes; and
 
10    WHEREAS, National Hunting and Fishing Day was established
11in 1972 to celebrate and recognize hunters and anglers for
12their immense contributions to fish and wildlife conservation
13and to our society; therefore, be it
 
14    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
15NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
16designate September 26, 2015 as National Hunting and Fishing
17Day in Illinois, a day to be set aside in celebration of
18Illinois's sportsmen and women; and be it further
 
19    RESOLVED, That we recognize the many and varied social,
20cultural, economic, and ecological benefits of our
21time-honored traditions of hunting and angling.