HB 77 would be bad for hunting and fishing

To the editor:

During the recent legislative session, a bipartisan group of legislators blocked House Bill 77, a bill also known as the “Silencing Alaskans Act.” Former Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Dan Sullivan developed this controversial legislation. He proudly speaks about the failed bill as an achievement.

Now that there’s a renewed debate about the impacts of the “Silencing Alaskans Act,” I want to set the record straight about what it would have done.

The Silencing Alaskans Act would have given DNR sweeping authority to ignore public input on land use in Alaska. If HB 77 had passed, we could have lost a lot of world-class hunting grounds and fishing streams because DNR didn’t have to listen to what local Alaskans had to say.

Alaskans from all over spoke out against HB 77. During three public hearings, the only person to speak in favor of the bill was a paid lobbyist. Fortunately, a bipartisan group of legislators stopped HB 77 from passing, noting that it was the most unpopular bill considered by the Legislature.

Now Dan Sullivan is trying to rewrite the history of HB 77. In a recent news story, Sullivan’s former coworker at DNR inaccurately claimed HB 77 wouldn’t have an impact on moose hunting. That’s completely inaccurate. HB 77 could stop Alaskans from hunting in places they have for generations.

The Silencing Alaskans Act/HB 77 would have taken away our ability to shape land management decisions, meaning that DNR could ignore input from real Alaskans when considering decisions that affect our land. One day you could be hunting on public land, and the next day there’s been a land swap with zero public input and you’re trespassing on a Canadian company’s land. That clearly would be an impediment to moose hunting and would affect Alaska hunters.

HB 77 would have had a devastating negative impact on hunters and fishermen. That’s why so many Alaskans spoke out against it and killed the bill.

Dan Sullivan can’t get his former coworkers at DNR to whitewash that history.

Jim Chesbro

Wasilla