News

House Could Give OK to Dove Hunt Bill Tuesday

Published October 20, 2003. By Stacey Range, Lansing State Journal.
House Could Give OK

House could give OK to dove hunting bill Tuesday, 1,000 hunters set to rally for mourning dove season.

Initial passage Wednesday of a bill to legalize mourning dove hunting in Michigan has set up a showdown vote next week in the state House. The House Conservation and Outdoor Recreation committee unanimously approved a bill to change the classification of mourning doves from songbirds to game birds. The bill now goes to the full House, where members could vote on the issue Tuesday when more than 1,000 hunters are expected to rally at the Capitol to urge support of the bill.

The mourning dove - known for its somber coo - has been the subject of controversial and emotional debates for years.

Proponents of hunting the bird say the small, fast-moving creature is a challenge to kill, and because 39 other states have made mourning doves legal targets, why not Michigan? And they say the doves make excellent dishes. Doves are often grilled, broiled, or roasted, for a serving of two to four birds per person.

Opponents say hunters want to kill the bird simply for sport, not for food, because each bird produces less than an ounce of meat. They say hunters have enough game to shoot in Michigan.

State Rep. Sue Tabor, R-Delta Township and sponsor of the bill, said she expects it to pass the House. She's not sure about the Senate but said she's optimistic. "I want to do this quickly," Tabor said. "It's such a controversial issue."

Tabor, in her third and final term in the state House, has been the main proponent for overturning the nearly 100-year ban on hunting the bird, of which there are an estimated 4 million in Michigan. State officials have forecast that about 40,000 hunters will harvest 200,000 of the birds if the state establishes a fall season.

As in the past, the bill is expected to be met with outcry and support. Members of both sides of the controversy attended Wednesday's hearing, arguing the economic, environmental and emotional sides of the debate. While some opponents simply abhor the thought of people shooting the tiny birds, others said there's just no reason for the hunt. The birds are neither a nuisance nor overabundant.

And one hunter said the birds don't make a good hunt. "Mourning doves ... get no fair chase or fair chance for survival," said John Honhart of Waterford, a hunter and member of the National Rifle Association. "Fair chase settles all arguments about a species being huntable." His sister, Anne Honhart of Birmingham, said the bill would devastate Michigan's mourning dove population. She also said mourning doves aren't a good source of food. "Why? No meat. All feathers," she said.

In addition to the Honharts, opposition included the state's Songbird Protection Coalition, the Humane Society of the United States and the Michigan Humane Society.

In support of the bill are the Michigan United Conservation Clubs and the Michigan Coalition for Responsible Gun Owners. The MUCC has been pushing for a dove hunting season for 20 years.

Playing on the state's most pressing matter, David Felbeck, past president of the Michigan Coalition for Responsible Gun Owners, said dove hunting could bring in much-needed revenue for the state by luring out-of-state hunters and keeping Michigan hunters here instead of going to other states for mourning doves. Mourning dove hunters collectively spend an average of $100 million a year on ammunition, lodging, licenses, food, gasoline and other amenities.

But the fate of the bill is uncertain with a new Legislature and governor. The Senate has passed the measure three times, most recently in 1995. In 2000, the bill passed the House but fell one vote short in the Senate. Senate Majority Leader Ken Sikkema, R-Wyoming, will consider whether the Senate should take up the bill after the full House approves it, spokesman Bill Nowling said.

Gov. Jennifer Granholm has yet to take a stance on the bill. But she said in a statement last month that dove hunting supporters chose not to include dove hunting in a 1996 ballot issue dealing with bear hunting restrictions because they recognized the public broadly opposes such a season. She expressed doubt that any new effort would succeed.

Tabor said the state's fragile economy could convince several lawmakers to overturn the ban. "Legislators have got the budget on their minds and this would bring in a lot of money," Tabor said. "Hopefully, I'll be hunting them here next year."

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