URGENT UPDATE & CALL TO ACTION
Florida Bear Kill Bill Passes!!!
On 3/7/2024, HB 87 "Taking of Bears," passed the final floor vote and is now en route to Governor DeSantis.
Act now, contact Governor DeSantis, and respectfully request that he VETO HB 87 "Taking of Bears." You can simply ask Governor DeSantis to VETO HB 87 "Taking of Bears," or you can explain why you want the bill vetoed. Please feel free to use the information on our petition and our petition updates as reference points. When calling, please wait on the line until your call is answered. The mailbox has been full. You can also send an email. If emailing, be sure to put VETO HB 87 "Taking of Bears" as your subject title.
Phone: (850) 717-9337Email: GovernorRon.Desantis@eog.myflorida.com
To everyone who called, gave testimony, signed our petition, and emailed lawmakers, we appreciate you and thank you for your advocacy.
Stay tuned for more updates and calls to action!
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This petition serves as written opposition to House Bill 87 (HB 87) - Taking of Bears and Senate Bill 632 (SB 632) - Taking of Bears.
We, the undersigned,strongly oppose House Bill 87 (HB 87) - Taking of Bears, and Senate Bill 632 (SB 632) - Taking of Bears, which would enable a person to kill a Florida Black Bear because they "feel" threatened. These bills open the door for people to claim self-defense in instances where bears are not a threat. They override the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission's (FWC) authority to investigate crimes committed against this protected species (black bears) if the person claims they felt threatened.
UPDATE: The verbiage of "feels threatened" was changed to "reasonably believes one's life is in danger," Which is essentially the same thing. The bills now include property. Provisions that stated one could not lure or provoke a bear were removed.
*There is no burden of proof that an individual has to provide to substantiate the claim that they reasonably believed their life, or a loved one's life (pets included), was truly in danger.
If a bear poses a threat to you or your loved ones (pets included), you have a right to self-defense, currently covered under the Common Law Defense of Necessity. This law allows you to act in self-defense against any wildlife. It doesn't differentiate between protected wildlife and unprotected wildlife. The difference between these two bills (HB 87 - Taking of Bears and SB 632 - Taking of Bears) and the Common Law Defense of Necessity is that HB 87 and SB 632 remove the capacity for law enforcement to investigate and prosecute individuals who unjustifiably kill black bears.
*** UNDER LAW, YOU ALREADY HAVE A RIGHT TO SELF-DEFENSE.***
Last year in Sanford, FL, a man shot a bear that he says charged at him and his dog. According to the FWC. He did not get in any trouble because it was deemed self-defense. Click here to learn more.
HB 87 and SB 632 will allow people like John Anthony Falango (the Sebring Bear Killer) to avoid prosecution for killing bears without justification.Click here for more info about this case.
These bills promote a false narrative that bears are overpopulating and threaten human safety. The increase in bear-human conflicts in some regions of Florida, like Franklin County, is due in part to the failure of people to remove bear attractants and adequately secure their trash. Seminole County, which once ranked highest in bear-human conflicts, has seen a significant reduction since implementing bear-resistant trashcans. The FWC previously stated they saw a 95% reduction in bear-related incidents in a Volusia County neighborhood since the introduction of bear-resistant trashcans. Bear-human conflicts will continue to rise until the root causes are addressed (unsecured trash and other attractants). If we apply common-sense measures such as bear-resistant trash cans, securing garbage until morning pickup, and removing attractants such as birdfeeders, we can resolve these issues and prevent future incidents. These methods have proven successful worldwide.
Click here for an easy, cost-effective way to make your trashcan bear-resistant.
The proposed bills state that people cannot lure or provoke a bear. Anyone who were to kill a bear also cannot keep it or sell it afterward; rather, they would have to turn the bear’s body into the FWC within 24 hours.
The problem is these bills override the FWC's authority to investigate, so an individual will not have to prove they acted in self-defense and didn’t lure a bear onto their property. In areas where conflicts are present, the bears are already being lured onto private property, whether directly or indirectly, by trash and other bear attractants.
The truth is that black bears are not overpopulating and pose no significant threat to human safety. Floridablack bears are predominantly vegetarian, with 80% of their diet consisting of plants, 15% insects, and only 5% animal matter, usually carrion. They are not the voracious man-eating carnivores that the people who wish to kill them would like you to believe. In fact, since recorded history, no one in the State of Florida has ever been killed by a black bear. Since 1900, only 61 people in North America have been killed by black bears.
Unprovoked bear attacks are extremely rare. According to bear expert Lynn Rogers, Ph.D. of the North American Bear Center, you are 45 times more likely to be killed by a dog, 120 times more likely to be killed by bees, and 60,000 times more likely to be murdered by another human being than to be killed by a black bear.
Florida black bears are a keystone species. Their presence positively impacts the environment and other species they share it with. They disperse more seeds than birds, meaning they quite literally influence the types of plants that grow in the forest. The vitality of a healthy functioning ecosystem depends upon the existence of bears.
Wildlife is a public trust, and we, the people, have a right to defend animals for the benefit of those living today and future generations. Bears should not be killed because some humans refuse to take preventative measures when it comes to bear-human conflicts.
The public, as the beneficiary of the trust, has the right to ensure that its trust is being respected. The public's overarching interest in the preservation of its trust assets may not be overridden by the complaints of homeowners who have failed to take appropriate steps to secure their trash, by beekeepers who have failed to employ cost-effective fencing around their apiaries, by drivers who collided with bears while speeding, texting, or talking on a cell phone, by hunters upset that bears have been raiding their deer-baiting stations, or by uneducated people who have never been taught that a bluff charge is a black bear's way of asking for space and respect, not an act of aggression.
SB 632 and HB 87 are considered antithetical to conservation principles for several reasons.
These bills are neither focused nor equipped to meet the extraordinary challenge of conserving Florida’s wildlife species and ecosystems. Conservation, in the context of environmental science and wildlife management, refers to the careful management, protection, and sustainable use of natural resources, including wildlife, forests, water, and habitats, to ensure their long-term viability and health. Conservation aims to strike a balance between human needs and the preservation of ecosystems and biodiversity for future generations.
House Bill 87 - Taking of Bears and SB 632 - Taking of Bears fail to address the issues at the heart of all bear-human conflicts. They choose violence over non-lethal solutions, undermine the jurisdiction of the FWC, and ignore the current law that exists to protect those acting in self-defense.
For all the reasons aforementioned, we, the undersigned, respectfully request that you vote NO to House Bill 87 - Taking of Bears and SB 632 - Taking of Bears.
For questions and inquiries, you can contact us directly at contact@oneprotest.org.
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OneProtest
Bear Defenders
Photo credit: Chris Norcott Photography.
