Everyone keeps coming up to me telling me about new hunting bills that were just passed.

They tell me "we can hunt with AR's now!"
I tell them we already could

They tell me "We can hunt with handguns now!"
I tell them we already could

I look it up and see news articles trying to do shock and awe reporting about how ar15's and semi automatics were just legalized for hunting and how it will make blood run in the streets...
One article suggests that they just created a "new january antlerless season that will allow ar15's to be used in iowa"



So what is this supposed new legislation? Because I can't find a actual bill number or legal wording anywhere.

Did they just reopen january antlerless again? Or did something notable actually happen?

There is a shitload of disinformation and nothing that actually explains what they passed

https://iowafc.org/?s=hunting

IowaFC.org is the place to get the info from the people making it happen. @septic-tank13

They opened up a few more individual counties to the IA antlerless season, not the whole state. Since the goal is population reduction they dropped the .35"-.50" bullet diameter limits for those counties, in that season.

the bill most people are referring to regarding the use of an ar15...  the goal is to make sure the herd isn't getting out of control and allowing disease and nature to cull the herd in an unhealthy fashion.  thus, ANY tags unsold through the regular december season in ANY county can be purchased and used in january for antlerless harvesting.  the calibers are contained with .224 and .50.

so... if there are leftover tags, buy them and use them to harvest antlerless deer in january.  if they all get bought up in december, let's hope the tags get filled.

Thanks-I either misread it or it got changed since I read the article. Could have sworn it said something like 15 counties were covered, up from 9.

Howard County usually sells out pretty early, and I'm not sure I could eat another one by the next season anyway, but I'm glad the option is there.

shack,

i kind of doubt any of the "thin" counties will have tags left over, but if we keep losing hunters, there may be more in future years.  some of those counties that are flush with deer though???  they might unsold tags, you never know.

i guess we'll see how it goes.  i'm hearing dnr has a concern about the deer numbers getting high enough a disease will come through and really wipe them out.  if so, they'll not only be in rough shape for getting folks outdoors, but suffer on revenue from tag sales.  

dnr appears to routinely be in a tough spot.  they're trying to balance the herd with funding.  and the way they've done this in the past was to places limits on lethality with their weapon and caliber choices, which is completely unethical, and tag costing structure.  personally, i wouldn't want the job of getting that all figured out.  but, i don't do it.  they do.  and they asked to work there, rather than indentured servitude, so i'll remain critical.  as should others.

i actually had a highly placed dnr person tell me they loved the shotgun season, as the tag sales were high and the harvest was low.  when i reminded this person that lethality was an issue, they said an unharvested deer that was shot poorly with a slug was potentially another tag sold.  you can imagine my response.  from that point in the conversation forward they were far more reserved with their opinions.  i think they blurted out the truth and when i let them know that was fucked, they remembered who i was and what i do.  thus, a change in topic.

oh well...  if i ran the place nobody would like it, so i'll help guide as best i can through advocacy...

been a while since you and i visited.  we should have another get-together at my shop and you can make the trek down to show us some new goodies you've put together...

Maybe I'll bring this one.
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Oh hell yeah!

Michael, from what you posted above bottleneck cartridges from .224 to .50 will ALSO be legal in any county that has leftover tags from the December season for the January antlerless season.  So I could use .300 AAC Blackout in January, am I correct?
thanks

@IAShooters I believe so, yes.