News

State Senate Passes Bill
Only a Veto from Granholm can Keep Ban in Effect

Published April 1, 2004. By Stacey Range. Lansing State Journal
State Senate OKs dove hunting bill

Michigan's mourning doves are putting all their eggs in Gov. Jennifer Granholm's basket. The state Senate, without discussion, voted 22 to 15 Wednesday to pass a bill adding the doves to the state's game list and ending a 99-year-old ban on hunting the birds. Thirty-nine states allow it.

It's the closest Michigan hunters have ever come to an open season on the small, gray birds known for their mournful song. Hunters hoped the vote would end the issue that has been controversial in Lansing for at least the past two decades, pitting animal rights activists against sportsmen and women.

But Granholm, who wanted the issue to go before voters, will likely veto it. "The governor feels this is obviously a very highly charged issue on both sides and a lesson in democracy to give people the right to vote on this issue," spokeswoman Elizabeth Boyd said.

Supporters of the bill declared the vote a "victory for all sportsmen and woman in Michigan."

"This is fantastic," said state Rep. Sue Tabor, a term-limited Delta Township Republican who has spent nearly six years on the effort. "We've worked so hard to get this far I just hope the governor signs the bill now."

Opponents called the bill's passage a "great disappointment."

"Clearly the majority of the people were not represented today by the Legislature," Julie Baker, co-founder of the Lansing-based Songbird Protection Coalition, said. "These senators are elected to represent the people's voice and that didn't happen." Within an hour of the vote, Baker issued an e-mail alert to coalition members across the state, urging them to direct letters, e-mails and calls to Granholm.

Proponents say the state would benefit by keeping hunters in-state and attracting others to boost the economy. 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.

Becky Brown, 34, said she longs for days when she and her girlfriends can shoot the doves flying around her 60 acres near Charlotte. "They're such a tender, tasty little bird," Brown said. "They're like the filet mignon of birds."

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 and they want to protect the songbird.

"There is no compelling reason to institute a target-shooting season on these entirely inoffensive birds," said Wayne Pacelle, senior vice president of the Humane Society of the United States.

Chances of a public vote on the measure are slim, meaning the issue could resurface in the Legislature. A House version of the bill includes $350,000 for a brochure about the dove. But the funding, which the Senate Fiscal Agency has said is far more than needed, is seen largely as an effort to prevent a public vote. That's because bills that include appropriations cannot be overturned on a statewide ballot.

The Senate bill withdrew the funding, leaving open the possibility for a group to try and override it on a ballot initiative. Animal rights activists have said they will consider a ballot initiative to overturn mourning dove hunting if necessary. "We will fight this vigorously with as many resources as we need to make sure it goes down in flames," Pacelle said.

Hunters supporting the bill fear they would lose at the ballot box. A February poll by the Lansing-based EPIC-MRA found about half of Michigan voters oppose letting hunters shoot mourning doves, while 30 percent favor it and 19 percent are undecided. The poll of 600 likely voters has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

Mourning doves have been the source of emotional controversy for decades. In 1987, the Natural Resources Commission voted to approve a mourning dove hunting season, but the courts ruled that the NRC didn't have the authority. Efforts intensified in 2000, when legislation passed the House but fell one vote short in the Senate, which had passed the measure three times before, most recently in 1995. The House passed the latest dove hunt bill by a 64-44 vote in November.

If approved by Granholm, Tabor said a hunting season most likely would begin in or around September. Michigan officials have forecast that about 40,000 hunters will harvest 200,000 of the birds if the state establishes a fall season. Federal officials estimate there are more than 400 million mourning doves in North America, including about 4 million in Michigan. The birds are especially abundant south of a line from Ludington to Bay City.

The Senate-passed version of the bill would require hunters to buy a $2 dove stamp fee as well as the state's regular small-game hunting license. The money would be split between the state's nongame and game fish and wildlife funds.

The House now must OK changes before sending the bill to Granholm.

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