The National Shooting Sports Foundation® (NSSF®), the trade association for the firearms, ammunition, hunting and shooting sports industries, praised the passage today by the U.S. Senate of the Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act. The act was passed as an amendment to S.2012, the Energy Policy Modernization Act. Similar legislation passed the House of Representatives earlier in the 114th Congress. As a result, today’s vote brings the Bipartisan Sportsmen’s package closer to enactment than ever before.  

“The National Shooting Sports Foundation would like to thank the bill’s sponsors, Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and the leadership of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus for their tireless and unwavering commitment to working on a bipartisan basis to secure passage of this legislation on behalf of current and future generations of America’s hunters and sportsmen. Senate leaders deserve special thanks for securing the unanimous consent agreement that allowed the Senate to complete its work on our industry’s top legislative priority. We look forward to continuing to work in a bipartisan fashion with the Senate and Members of the House in pursuit of our shared goal of securing enactment of this vital legislation in this Congress,” said Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF senior vice president and general counsel.  

“The Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act will help ensure that our nation’s hunting, fishing and shooting traditions are preserved, protected and promoted. This legislation addresses many priorities for American hunters, anglers and recreational shooters and its passage today by the Senate represents a significant accomplishment for the sportsmen’s community and for America,” Keane continued. NSSF, along with a number of partner organizations, has been working closely with Senators to ensure inclusion of a number of legislative priorities in the package including provisions that will provide greater flexibility for states to utilize Pittman-Robertson funds to create and enhance public shooting ranges and facilitate greater access to Federal lands and waters for hunting, recreational fishing and shooting.