UPDATE: SB 268 – March 21, 2017

After Passing in the Senate, NM SB 268 Fails to Get a Hearing Before the full House  – Project Coyote Thanks Our Supporters

Read more on this update here

See Original Action Alert on SB 268 Below:

SB 268 ~ Bill to Ban Coyote Killing Contests

Senate Bill 268 would make it illegal to organize and participate in coyote killing contests (CKCs) in New Mexico.

A recent editorial in the Albuquerque Journal supported the bipartisan bill, stating:

“The bill … is a carefully and narrowly crafted bipartisan proposal that protects the rights of true sportsmen, ranchers and residents by ending one thing, and one thing only: the practice of shooting as many coyotes as quickly as possible. The contests are not about removing a predatory threat or gathering pelts and meat or a trophy; like cockfighting, which the Legislature banned, they are only about blood sport. New Mexico is better than strapping knives on game birds to watch them fight to the death, and it is better than encouraging grotesque kill-fests that upset the delicate balance of predator and prey.”

SB 268 is also widely supported by leading wildlife scientists and researchers. In 2015, fifty scientists signed a letter in support of the prohibition of wildlife-killing contests, citing peer-reviewed studies that show that indiscriminate killing of predators is not an effective wildlife management method for reducing livestock losses or boosting ungulate prey (deer, etc.) populations – in direct contravention of arguments made by killing contest proponents. Read a recent article quoting Project Coyote Science Advisory Board member Dave Parsons about these issues here.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

1- Please join us in supporting SB 268 by writing and calling your State Senator today. Locate your Senator here. If you have more time, please also write and call members of the committees that will be hearing the bill. Contact information for Committee members can be found by going to the Committee links – Senate Conservation Committee, Senate Judiciary Committee, and the Senate Finance Committee – and then clicking on the committee members’ names.

2- Join us for Lobby Day: Learn about becoming an effective citizen lobbyist, hear from – and talk to – state legislators, and meet Project Coyote’s New Mexico Representative Judy Paulsen (that’s me):

**Wednesday, February 8, from 9am-3pm, the Sierra Club will host its Lands, Water and Wildlife Day 2017 at the New Mexico State Capitol Building Rotunda in Santa Fe. Details here.

**Wednesday, February 22, from 9am-7pm, Animal Protection Voters will host Animal Lobby Day 2017 at the PERA Building in Santa Fe. Register here.

3- Write Letters to the Editor of your local paper(s) to raise public awareness and to encourage others to take action. Use our tips and tools for writing LTE’s.

Talking Points (please personalize your letters):

• Coyotes play an important ecological role in helping to maintain healthy ecosystems and species diversity. As the top carnivore in some ecosystems, coyotes provide a number of benefits, including regulating the number of mesocarnivores (such as skunks, raccoons, and foxes), which in turn helps to boost biodiversity as well as song and ground bird populations. Read more here.
• Coyote killing contests perpetuate a culture of violence and send the message to children that life has little value and that an entire species of animals is disposable and despicable.
• Coyote killing contests put non-target wildlife (including highly endangered Mexican wolves), companion animals, and people at risk.
• Senate Bill 268 will not restrict the ability of ranchers or others to protect their property (including livestock), will not undermine Second Amendment gun ownership rights, nor limit hunting in any other way.

PLEASE SEE PROJECT COYOTE’S WILDLIFE KILLING CONTEST FACT SHEET FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.

“The non-specific, indiscriminate killing methods used in these commercial and unrestricted coyote killing contests are not about hunting or sound land management. These contests are about personal profit, animal cruelty…It is time to outlaw this highly destructive activity.”

~Ray Powell, former New Mexico Land Commissioner