Sportsmen and women know hunting is not poaching, and that poachers are thieves not hunters. But there is a public perception problem—and perceptions can become reality. Poachers must be held accountable and pay for their crimes. This is what the Boone and Crockett Club’s Poach & Pay Project will address.

The Boone and Crockett Club commends today’s action by the Senate Agriculture Committee to pass the Fix Our Forests Act (S.1462), introduced by Sens. John Curtis (R-UT), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Tim Sheehy (R-MT), and Alex Padilla (D-CA), by a bipartisan vote of 18-5. The following is a statement by Boone and Crockett Club chief executive officer Tony A. Schoonen.