KDWPT

PRATT – It can be difficult to quantify the positive effect a public program has, but when it comes to the Kansas Hunter Education program, there’s no denying the program is not only working, but exceeding expectations. The 2018 Kansas hunting season has proved the safest one yet ­– with zero fatalities and a record-low of just four reported firearm-related incidents.

“It has been years of hard work and dedicated services that has brought us to this point,” says Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KDWPT) Hunter Education Program coordinator Kent Barrett. “Having said that, we also know that next year will bring us a whole new set of circumstances that will test us once again.”

Of the four incidents reported in 2018, two were the result of hunters swinging on game; one was attributed to poor firearm handling; and one was the result of the unsafe use of a decoy. Thankfully, none of the reported incidents were fatal.

Though no firearms were involved, Hunter Education staff keep record of treestand-related incidents, as well. Two were reported for 2018, and in both cases the hunters were not wearing fall arrest systems. Neither incident proved fatal.

Kansas Hunter Education staff attribute these record-breaking low numbers to one thing: the program’s more than 1,400 volunteer hunter education instructors who share with students safe firearm handling practices, ethics, wildlife regulations and conservation principles.

According to Barrett, volunteer instructors meet with, teach, and certify approximately 9,000 students per year.

While staff and volunteers would ideally like to see the number of incidents dropped to zero, current reports remain a stark contrast to statistics from 50 years ago when seven lives were lost in a year, two years in a row.

Hunting remains one of the safest outdoor activities in Kansas, but everyone must do their part to keep it that way. As any Kansas Hunter Education instructor will tell you, the best piece of equipment a hunter can have afield is right between his or her ears.

To find a Hunter Education class near you, visit ksoutdoors.com/Services/Education/Hunter.

OFFICE OF SEN. MORAN

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) commemorated the 65th anniversary of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education, a landmark decision that started the legal process of integrating schools across the nation in a speech on the floor of the United States Senate Friday.

“On this anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, we remember the legacy left behind by Linda Brown and her parents,” said Sen. Moran. “Linda Brown just passed away last year, and we honor her, her family and all those involved in the civil rights movement. This legacy is one which requires all Americans, each of us, to uphold the self-evident truth that all men and women are created equal. Let us remember the legacy of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education, and in doing so, I ask every American to commit to racial justice and equal opportunity.”

Earlier this week, Sen. Moran joined the Kansas delegation in introducing a resolution recognizing the 65th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision and its importance to Kansas and our country.

Remarks as delivered: 

“Mr. President, thank you. On the 65th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision, Brown v. Board of Education, I rise to pay tribute to Kansas families, led by the Browns, and all Kansans who took part in challenging the injustice of racial segregation. 

“For 60 years leading up to Brown, much of America adhered to the Supreme Court ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson that established the doctrine, ‘separate but equal.’ But, when applied to our school buildings and the education of our children, nothing about it was equal. 

“In 1951, Linda Carol Brown was in the third grade and she would walk six blocks to a bus stop that would take her to Monroe Elementary more than a mile away from her home. This, despite the fact that Sumner Elementary just was seven blocks from her home. Even after repeated applications for attendance at the neighborhood school, the Browns and other families were rejected because of the color of their skin. 

“In that year, 13 parents – led by Linda’s father, Oliver – filed suit against the Topeka Board of Education on behalf of their 20 children. Combining other cases throughout the country, Thurgood Marshall argued on their behalf before the United States Supreme Court; the court that he would later join as a justice. 

“On May 17, 1954, the Supreme Court unanimously issued its landmark decision, announcing Plessy’s ‘separate but equal’ doctrine violated the Fourteenth Amendment. While full integration would take years to accomplish, the events set in motion by these intrepid parents were irreversible, and they are worthy of our respect and honor today. 

“Nowhere was this truer than in the city where it all started. Before the case had even reached the Supreme Court, the Topeka Board of Education began integrating its primary schools. 

 “Kansas has its pre-Civil War bloodshed to determine whether the territory would enter the union as a free or slave state, and Wichita was home to one of the first sit-ins to integrate drugstore lunch counters, but it is Brown v. Board of Education that is our state’s greatest connection to the nation’s pursuit of racial justice. 

“That these events happened in Kansas reflect the imperfect history of our state – and our nation – but also the resolve of individual Kansans and national organizations like NAACP to right wrongs and to make a ‘more perfect union’ that our Constitution contemplates. 

“On this anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, we remember the legacy left behind by Linda Brown and her parents. Linda Brown just passed away last year, and we honor her, her family and all those involved in the civil rights movement. This legacy is one which requires all Americans, each of us, to uphold the self-evident truth that all men and women are created equal. 

“Let us remember the legacy of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education, and in doing so, I ask every American to commit to racial justice and equal opportunity.”

KDWPT

PRATT – At its April 25 meeting in Colby, the Kansas Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KWPT) Commission voted on a number of amendments to current regulations, a few of which will benefit furharvesters.

• In a 6-0 vote, Commissioners voted in favor of amending current furbearer regulations to clarify how to measure the jaw spread on body-gripping and foothold traps.
• Commissioners approved an amendment to current furbearer regulations eliminating the requirement that furharvesters permanently surrender the lower canine teeth of an otter when presenting it to the department for tagging.
• Commissioners approved amendments to current bobcat trapping regulations, removing outdated provisions related to tagging and effective dates on nonresident bobcat hunting permits.
• Passing 6-0, Commissioners voted to accept an amendment to current fur dealer regulations that will allow the sale of swift fox pelts from states that don’t have tagging requirements for swift foxes.

Other items voted on and approved during the public hearing portion of the meeting include:

• A series of amendments to regulations which establish hunting, fishing and furharvesting restrictions on department-managed lands. Current restrictions can be viewed on ksoutdoors.com by clicking “Laws, Regulations and Enforcement,” “Law and Regulations,” then “All Regulations.” See K.A.R. 115-8-1.
• Amendments that will simplify the application process for field trial permits, removing extensive event mapping requirements.
• An amendment to current dove hunting regulations that will remove pellet guns as a legal method of take.

Commissioners also approved 2019-2020 waterfowl seasons as follows:

Youth

High Plains Unit: Oct. 5-6, 2019

Low Plains Early Zone: Oct. 5-6, 2019

Low Plains Late Zone: Oct. 19-20, 2019

Low Plains Southeast Zone: Nov. 2-3, 2019

Teal

High Plains Unit: Sept. 21-29, 2019

Low Plains Zones: Sept. 14-29, 2019

Duck

High Plains Unit: Oct. 12, 2019 – Jan. 05, 2020 and Jan. 17-26, 2020

Low Plains Early Zone: Oct. 12-Dec. 8, 2019 and Dec. 14-29, 2019

Low Plains Late Zone: Oct. 26-Dec. 29, 2019 and Jan. 18-26, 2020

Low Plains Southeast Zone: Nov. 9, 2019 – Jan. 5, 2020 and Jan. 11-26, 2020

Goose

White-fronted geese: Oct. 26-Dec. 29, 2019 and Jan. 25-Feb. 16, 2020

Dark/Light geese: Oct. 26-27 and Nov. 6, 2019 – Feb. 16, 2020

Light Goose Conservation Order: Feb. 17 – April 30, 2020

The next KWPT Commission meeting is scheduled for Thursday, June 13, 2019 at the Rolling Hills Zoo, 625 N. Hedville Road, in Salina.