On the recordApril 17, 2012
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would like to respond to some of the statements that were made. I received a petition of thousands of hunters from Louisiana and several States who wanted this to continue. The State, not the Federal Government, is in the best position to make this determination. By October 6, 2009, the Forest Service had received 1,237 responses to its 2009 request for comments. Of these, 320 agreed with the proposed prohibition, but 917 were against it. That's a 77 percent majority of these respondents who were actually from central Louisiana where this Kisatchie National Forest exists. During October 2011, the Forest Service received over 1,300 more comments on the original proposal and environmental analysis. All but five letters--all but five letters, Mr. Chairman--were opposed to the proposed prohibition. I reserve the balance of my time.
