Right-to-hunt amendment clears Senate, will go to voters in November

The Senate has voted 31-3 in favor of HJR 2, the right-to-hunt amendment to the Idaho Constitution; that’s more than two-thirds, so the House-passed measure now will go to voters in November. “This is a very important step that we’re taking today, and an even more important step the citizens of Idaho will take in November,” Sen. Lee Heider, R-Twin Falls, the measure’s sponsor, told the Senate. “I maintain that this amendment does indeed clarify our rights. It tells us what we can do. It says we have a right to hunt, fish and trap, and that right shall be preserved for the people.”

After that vote, the Senate adjourned for the day; they’ll be back in at 9 a.m. tomorrow. The Senate Transportation Committee will meet at 1 p.m., the Senate Local Government & Tax Committee right afterward; and the Senate Judiciary Committee at 1 or just after. Senate Finance Chairman Dean Cameron, R-Rupert, said JFAC is “hoping” to meet tomorrow morning at 8, although the agenda is still in the works.