Hunting and Fishing Rights Go Before Florida Voters

Hunters and fishermen are up in arms about bans across the U.S. on hunting and fishing leading to a Florida state constitutional amendment seeking to declare hunting and fishing rights. Meanwhile, some conservationists are concerned an amendment making hunting and fishing a 'right' could become yet another assault on wildlife.

While the voters take on the state-level issue with amendment 2 on ballots November 5, Marco Island is currently wrestling with such a controversy with a potential ban on shark fishing brewing in its waters, if a petition on change.org gets Marco Island City Council attention for an ordinance change or other means to ban shark fishing from Marco beaches.

The proposed state amendment going before Florida voters will pass if it receives 60 percent “yes” votes. Amendment 2 will “preserve forever fishing and hunting, including by the use of traditional methods, as a public right and preferred means of responsibly managing and controlling fish and wildlife.” 

It further specifies that the amendment does not limit the authority granted to the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission under Section 9 of Article IV of the state constitution.

The words “traditional methods” are a concern for many opponents. “Traditional methods” are those hunting and fishing methods that are legal at the time of passage, proponents state.

Thomas Trotta, of Port of the Isles, located in East Naples, expresses some concerns raised by opponents and skeptics. 

“Does this mean we use bear traps?” questioned Trotta. “Does this mean we go back to the way they used to kill ducks?” Trotta pondered aloud. “…like when they mounted a gun on a boat and killed 100 ducks in one shot?” he questioned.

However, prohibitions on gill nets and regulations on hunting black bears, as well as all other current regulations currently in place, will not change with the passage of the amendment, FWC officials confirmed. The amendment specifies in the second sentence that FWC retains their power to regulate wildlife. 

“Both our conservation and legal teams have stated that the current language proposed in Amendment 2 does not change or alter the existing net ban or the ability for it to be enforced. 'Traditional methods' does not undo regulation, nor reset FWC's regulatory authority. Moreover, the net ban is protected by the constitution already, similar to private property rights. Nothing in Amendment 2’s language affects these laws,” wrote FWC Chairman Rodney Barreto in a prepared statement.

“The FWC maintains regulatory authority over all fish and wildlife in our state. Seasons, bag limits, methods and licensing are still in place and will continue to govern time, place and manner should Amendment 2 pass,” added Barreto.

In 2023, Florida legislators overwhelmingly approved HJR 1157 which put this proposed Right to Hunt and Fish Amendment on the ballot this year. The amendment is one of six amendments on the Florida ballot. 

Florida Amendment 2, the Right to Hunt and Fish Amendment, gives voters an opportunity to say “yes” or “no” to establishing this constitutional right to hunt and fish in Florida.

The proposed state constitutional amendment comes in the wake of cities, counties and states across the U.S. passing regulations restricting or banning individuals’ hunting and fishing rights.

Trotta echoes the sentiments of opponents and recommends a “no” vote on amendment 2, stating that hunting and fishing is protected by Florida state statute and the amendment’s language poses animal conservation risks. 

Supporters of the amendment, however, say the state statute allowing hunting and fishing could too easily be changed without this constitutional amendment.

Betty Osceola, a member of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, supports amendment 2 as a conservation method. 

"Courts have determined that this right cannot exist 'in the abstract,’” said Osceola. “What that means is that the right must be able to be exercised. If waters are damaged, for instance, there is now a recourse for damage to the fishery. Similarly, you can’t just overdevelop and wipe out game populations. This truly is a conservation protection, first and foremost,” she said.

Several opponents to Amendment 2 come from national backers of animal rights overall, who are pushing for more stringent rules on hunting and fishing throughout the U.S. 

“People who have the luxury to not have to worry about food don’t understand that there are many people in Florida who hunt and fish to put food on the table,” said Osceola. 

Not only do Florida’s indigenous people hunt and fish, but also the farmers of Immokalee, the migrants of Homestead, people who are not wealthy, often hunt and fish for survival and their rights could be taken away by a legislative change if not protected in the constitution, she added.

An op-ed written by law students on behalf of the Animal Law Section of the Florida Bar cites concern that passage of Amendment 2 would make hunting and fishing “the preferred means of managing wildlife.” 

“I don’t have an issue with the right to hunt and fish. The part that kills it is that this is the preferred method of management,” said Trotta. 

Opponents to Amendment 2 argue that this portion of the amendment could minimize abilities to protect wildlife in the future. But proponents say hunting and fishing as a constitutional right secures healthy land and water.

“If there is the right to fish and hunt constitutionally that could be used to leverage making our water cleaner to even have any fish to fish for, to help curb development to have land for animals to exist to even have animals to hunt,” Osceola said. 

If voters do approve the right to hunting and fishing amendment, Florida will become the 24th state in the U.S. to do so.

“If you fish and hunt in Florida, this is the single most important thing you will vote on in your life,” said Mike Elfenbein, executive director of the Cypress Chapter of the Izaak Walton League American, a nonprofit that protects natural resources. “This is do or die for us,” Elfenbein said. 

One thing supporters and naysayers agree upon is the need to protect land and water. 

“There aren’t as many places to hunt and fish because of development. That’s the big issue. It’s not just lack of land and private property issues, we’re polluting the water so much there won’t be any fish,” Trotta said. 

While hunting and fishing is sustenance in challenging economic times for individuals and families, these activities also have an economic impact on the state. 

Recreational fishing, hunting and wildlife viewing generate $15 billion annually, according to FWC executive director Roger Young. 

Learn more about the pros and cons of this amendment by visiting Yeson2Florida.com and NoTo2.org. 

To learn more about this and the other five amendments on the ballot, visit ballotpedia.org.

• Amendment 1 Partisan Election of Members of District School Boards: Proposing amendments to the State Constitution that require members of a district school board to be elected in a partisan election rather than a nonpartisan election and to specify that the amendment only applies to elections held on or after the November 2026 general election. However, partisan primary elections may occur before the 2026 general election for purposes of nominating political party candidates to that office for placement on the 2026 general election ballot.  

• Amendment 3 Adult Personal Use of Marijuana: Allows adults 21 years or older to possess, purchase, or use marijuana products and marijuana accessories for non-medical personal consumption by smoking, ingestion, or otherwise; allows Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers, and other state licensed entities, to acquire, cultivate, process, manufacture, sell, and distribute such products and accessories. Applies to Florida law; does not change, or immunize violations of, federal law. Establishes possession limits for personal use. Allows consistent legislation. Defines terms. Provides effective date. 

• Amendment 4 to Limit Government Interference with Abortion:  No law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider. This amendment does not change the Legislature’s constitutional authority to require notification to a parent or guardian before a minor has an abortion. 

• Amendment 5 Annual Adjustments to the Value of Certain Homestead Exemptions: Proposing an amendment to the State Constitution to require an annual adjustment for inflation to the value of current or future homestead exemptions that apply solely to levies other than school district levies and for which every person who has legal or equitable title to real estate and maintains thereon the permanent residence of the owner, or another person legally or naturally dependent upon the owner is eligible. This amendment takes effect January 1, 2025. 

• Amendment 6 Repeal of Public Campaign Financing: Proposing the repeal of the provision in the State Constitution which requires public financing for campaigns of candidates for elective statewide office who agree to campaign spending limits.

Voting Events: 

- Get Ready to Vote in the November Election: 12 p.m. - 1:15 p.m., Thursday, October 17, Sandy Parker, publisher of Sparker’s Soapbox, will present a webinar hosted by the nonpartisan League of Women Voters of Collier County, to review the federal, state, and local offices and candidates along with these six proposed amendments to the Florida constitution to be on the ballot Nov. 5. Contact Paula Schwerin, pkhoff3@gmail.com, or visit lwvcolliercounty.org for the free event link. 

- Naples Reagan Club hosts Conservative Cocktails, an evening about the Florida amendments with attorneys Patrick Neale and Kristina Heuser, along with Collier County Sheriff’s Office Commander Mike Williams, 5 p.m. - 7 p.m., Tues. Sept. 17, Stix Sushi and Seafood, 4221 Tamiami Trail E, Naples. Tickets are $30 - $45 with event details at NaplesReaganClub.com.