With only a week left in the 2024 legislative session, time is running out for a bill that that would do several good things for wildlife.
House Bill 4148 would set up a wildlife coexistence program in the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to focus on humane, non-lethal approaches to dealing with human-wildlife conflicts such as wildlife wandering into populated areas or damaging private property. The program would also support wildlife rehabilitation centers that treat injured or orphaned wildlife.
Another section of HB 4148 would require further planning to help reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions, which should lead to more structures giving wildlife safe passage over and under highways that cut through wildlife migration corridors.
HB 4148 passed unanimously out of the first committee to which it was assigned but is now in the Legislature's "Joint Committee on Ways and Means," which considers all spending bills and decides which ones get voted on by the full Legislature. With the legislative session coming to an end, HB 4148 needs help getting the attention it deserves among the numerous spending bills in the Ways and Means Committee. You can help by emailing these legislative leaders:
House Speaker Dan Rayfield: Rep.DanRayfield@oregonlegislature.gov
Senate President Rob Wagner: Sen.RobWagner@oregonlegislature.gov
Please let them know where you live (so they know you are an Oregonian), let them know wildlife is important to you, and ask them to help wildlife by making HB 4148 a priority for the Ways and Means Committee. Let them know also if you are a "constituent" of theirs, meaning you live in their district. You can find out here (Rep. Rayfield represents a district including parts of Corvallis and Sen. Wagner represents a district including the Lake Oswego area.) With the legislature wrapping up soon, decisions are being made any day now, so please get your comments in right away (today if possible).
It's best to use your own word, but here are a couple of possible talking points:
Oregon needs more humane approaches to addressing human-wildlife conflicts. Too often, these conflicts are addressed by killing wildlife. HB 4148 would help create a more humane approach by creating and funding a program in the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to focus on strategies for people to coexist with wildlife, such as nonlethal deterrents and more education and outreach.
Safe highway crossings for wildlife are a win-win for everyone. They keep wildlife from getting hit by vehicles and allow wildlife to migrate more freely. They also protect people from property damage and injuries by reducing vehicle-wildlife collisions and reducing traffic accidents caused by attempts to avoid hitting wildlife.
With other provisions addressing zoonotic and wildlife diseases and invasive species, HB 4148 is a great example of different interest groups - including hunting groups as well as conservation and animal-welfare groups - working together to support a common set of goals.
Thank you for helping us advocate for animals!