Restoring America's Wildlife, 1937-1987

Enacted when times were desperately hard for people and animals alike, the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act observes its 50th birthday in 1987 amid ample evidence that America's wild birds and mammals-after a long era of scarcity-are prospering again and their number growing. This happy outcome was by no means assured when the landmark Federal-State cooperative program began. Deer, wild turkeys, and many waterfowl species were only some of the creatures that had vanished from great parts of the country. The legendary abundance of wild game in earlier times was gone, potentially forever. Money and skills to reverse the downward trend were scarce. The conservation leaders who addressed this wildlife crisis recognized that no one could offer a quick fix or a free ride. Human distress was severe in 1937 after years of economic depression and drought, putting heavy pressures on all financial and natural resources.

Looking for an answer, conservationists united behind two basic principles drawn from the earliest days of the Republic: Let those who stand to benefit the most be the ones to shoulder as much of the cost as possible, and give the States authority to do the needed work with just enough Federal monitoring to assure high standard of quality. An existing Federal excise tax on sporting arms and ammunition was before Congress for renewal that year. Wildlife advocates, nearly all of them hunters and supported strongly by the taxed industry, proposed that the levy be continued. But this time, they said, let us earmark the receipts for wildlife restoration projects to be designed and conducted by the States, instead of turning the money back into the Treasury general fund, as in past years and let the States share the costs of wildlife restoration projects, using funds from their hunting license fees. Enthusiasm was bipartisan and nationwide.

Fittingly, the Act's chief sponsors were a Senator from Nevada, Key Pittman, and a Representative from Virginia, A. Willis Robertson. The Pittman-Robertson Act, as it came to be called, sped through Congress and was signed into law by President Franklin Roosevelt on September 2, 1937. From a modest beginning, the Pittman-Robertson program has grown with the economy and the human population of our country. By now it has channeled nearly $1.7 billion in Federal excise tax receipts, augmented by some $600 million from the States, into activities to restore wildlife. The projects include State acquisition of acreage needed to bring wildlife back, research into wildlife requirements and problems, active management of habitats, and development of scientific ways to enable wildlife and people to share our land in harmony. The program has strengthened State governments and built wildlife management into a respected profession.

For the past 15 years it also has been training some 700,000 hunters annually in safety and sportsmanship, substantially lowering the hunting accident rate and promoting sound conservation ethics. It has stimulated the economy of rural communities all across the land and given healthful outdoor recreation to many millions. But most of all, Pittman-Robertson has restored to abundance many of America's most beloved wild mammals and birds which are so much a part of our national heritage. And the beneficiaries include no only the game species but also many which are not hunted, from songbirds to bald eagles, from sea otters to prairie dogs. All this has been accomplished without resorting to general tax revenues. Those who pay the freight are those who purchase firearms, ammunition, and in recent year, archery equipment. Millions of Americans who never have purchased bows or sporting arms have shared in the enjoyment of wildlife that has come back as a result of those special levies.

Pittman-Robertson's 50th anniversary is an ideal time to take stock of what this remarkable program has accomplished, what still needs to be done, and what the future seems to hold for our wildlife in a period of rapid change. It also is an appropriate time to salute the thousands of concerned Americans who have made substantial contributions of time and money to the success of this national effort. These are important achievements that give all of us yet another reason to take pride in America. They demonstrate that people can respect and replenish our living resources so that those resources many endure and be shared on this blessed planet, so rich n all forms of life, with present and future generations. Ronald Reagan.