Committee Press Release

Michigan Board of State Canvassers Certifies Vote to Restore Dove Shooting Ban

Certification Puts Referendum On Michigan's Statewide Ballot in November 2006 and Stops the Shooting of Mourning Doves for Next Two Seasons Leading Up To Election 

Today, the Board of State Canvassers officially approved and certified the more than 275,000 petition signatures presented by the Committee to Restore the Dove Shooting Ban to place the referendum on the November 2006 ballot.

"Mourning doves are backyard songbirds and symbols of peace that have been protected for 100 years in Michigan," said Julie Baker, Campaign Director for the Committee. "These tiny birds are not hunted for food or management, but simply for target practice. It's just plain wrong and we're confident that Michigan voters will restore the dove shooting ban." 

Official state certification of the Committee's petition signatures stops the shooting of mourning doves until the November 2006 election as stipulated by Article II, Section 9 of the Michigan Constitution, which states that, "No law as to which the power of referendum properly has been invoked shall be effective thereafter unless approved by a majority of the electors voting thereon at the next general election."

The Committee to Restore the Dove Shooting Ban seeks to restore Michigan's 100-year ban on the shooting of mourning doves. The committee submitted 73% more signatures than the 159,000 required by law for certification, illustrating the overwhelming support for the referendum campaign by the voters of Michigan. Committee members include the Michigan Audubon Society, the Detroit Audubon Society, the Michigan Humane Society, and The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS).

"Gentle and inoffensive mourning doves are once again safe in Michigan, at least for the next two years," said Michael Markarian, Executive Vice President of The HSUS. "Michigan voters will have the ultimate say in whether the bird of peace should be blasted into pieces for nothing more than target practice."

For more information and a complete list of organizations working to restore Michigan's dove shooting ban, visit the Committee to Restore the Dove Shooting Ban website at http://www.StopShootingDoves.org.

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