Bill creating Right to Bear Arms against bears advances in the Florida Senate

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Standing your ground against bears.

That’s how conservation advocates are characterizing a controversial bill moving in both the Florida House and Senate.\

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According to FWC stats, there were 1,104 bear-related calls in 2003.

Fast forward to 2022, and call volumes increased to 5,907, which represents a 435% increase over about two decades.

With bear-human interactions at such a high level, Florida lawmakers want to ensure residents can defend themselves.

Their solution is a bill that would allow Floridians to kill bears on their property if they believe their life is in danger.

“That’s all this bill is, is a self-defense bill,” said Senate sponsor Corey Simon (R-Tallahassee).

But conservation advocates who testified in the bill’s first committee stop in the Florida Senate Wednesday argued the legislation would give people a free license to kill bears for nearly any reason.

“This bill transforms our forests, sanctuaries of peace, into potential shooting galleries gambling with lives on the trigger fingers of untrained individuals,” said Libby Lavette, an advocate for bears who testified before the Senate Environment and Natural Resources Committee.

But Simon argued the bill has nothing to do with hunting and even requires people to notify FWC within 24 hours of killing a bear.

It also prohibits people from baiting bears onto their property and from keeping any parts of the animal for food or as a trophy.

He argued under current FWC regulations people fear they could be arrested for simply defending themselves and bear self-defense cases often go unreported.

“Currently, right now, it’s the three S’s that are in play that we’re trying to get rid of. It’s the shoot, shovel, and shut up,” said Simon.

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Kate MacFall with the Human Society of the US contended bearing arms against bears isn’t the proper solution and advocated instead for increased use of bear deterrents like bear-proof trash cans.

“They’re in neighborhoods and people are seeing them because there are attractants. Bears are hungry and trash smells good apparently to the bears,” said MacFall.

But sheriffs from rural counties testified those deterrents oftentimes aren’t enough.

Franklin County Sheriff AJ Tony Smith cited various bear emergencies he’s encountered on the job where bears have entered homes.

“The lady hid in the bedroom and locked the door. And coming in your house is not a trash issue,” said Smith.

The bill passed on a vote down party lines, with the two Democrats on the committee voting no.

State Senator Jonathan Martin (R-Fort Myers) went as far as to contend the bill doesn’t go far enough.

He said he hopes to see the bill expanded going forward.

“Under the way this is written, somebody could read this and say well, I can’t defend my kids or my wife or my grandmother or the garbage man,” said Martin.

The bill still has two more stops in the House and Senate before it will be ready for floor votes.

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