Kansas voters next month will decide the fate of a proposed amendment to the state constitution declaring that Kansas residents have the right to hunt, fish and trap wildlife.
Constitutional Amendment 1 would add a section to the state’s Bill of Rights to preserve hunting and fishing as a preferred way to manage wildlife. The measure adds that future limits would need proof that an animal could become endangered.
If approved, the amendment would make Kansas one of roughly 20 states where hunting and fishing is a constitutional right.
Supporters call it a pre-emptive safeguard against possible restrictions. Critics counter the amendment could make it more difficult to ban hunting practices deemed cruel. The Humane Society of the United States questions the need for such protection of a recreational pastime.