House approves deer baiting bill

Shooting deer over bait would be legal under a bill passed Thursday by the Mississippi House of Representatives.

By a vote of 74-47, the House approved H.B. 1089 that would allow “the hunting of deer over grain or other supplemental food during any deer hunting season if the food is placed in a feeder that keeps the food covered or protected from the direct elements of weather and the feeder is located only upon private property.”

Among the dissenters speaking against the bill was Rep. John Mayo (D-Clarksdale).

“We just passed a bill to allow hunters to build a trough, cover it with a roof to protect it from the elements, and shoot deer that come up to feed from it,” Mayo said in an e-mail to The Clarion-Ledger. “That is exactly the way I phrased a question. The bill passed 74-47. …I was on the losing side — along with the deer.

“Why not just tie your cow up to a feed bucket and shoot it? Where’s the sport?”

H.B. 1089 now goes to the Senate for consideration.

Mississippi’s Senators must first consider its own version of a baiting bill, S.B. 2290. It is very similar to H.B. 1089, except that is also requires a $50 permit to hunt over bait.

The 2007 Legislature had passed a bill and Gov. Haley Barbour signed it, giving the Commission on Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks the authority to allow baiting. The Commission had not taken any action on the issue, and now it may not have to.

Mississippi sportsmen are divided over baiting, and thousands have done so illegally in growing numbers in recent years.

“I hope the Senate gets on board with this bill and finally makes it legal,” said Paul Jackson of Hattiesburg. “So many people are already baiting, it would finally give all of us a chance to catchup.”

 

By Bobby Cleveland • bcleveland@clarionledger.com