On Tuesday, Jan. 25, several hundred and perhaps more sportsmen will be in the "Well" of the Legislative Office Building in Albany for the nd Annual Sportsmen & Outdoor Recreation Legislative Awareness Day. The event is the result of Minority Leader Brian Kolb and the Assembly Minority Conference’s idea to allow hunters, fishermen, trappers, snowmobilers, ATV devotees and others to gather at the State Capitol to showcase their products, lobby their legislators and network with like-minded New Yorkers.. Last year’s event attracted about 3,000 participants.

The event has largely replaced the old Sportsmen March on Albany, sponsored by the NYS Conservation Council, which had enjoyed only modest success as a lobbying tool. Historically, the biggest lobbying hurdle facing the state’s sportsmen has been funding and solid organizational structuring. When you talk lobbying in Albany, you’re talking about busing in thousands of well prepared (and often paid) lobbyists that know how to work the attending media for maximum benefit. Unfortunately for sportsmen, these are often the anti hunting and anti gun ownership supporters, many hailing from far downstate and even out of state.

So the real question is: how effective are sportsmen lobbying efforts in gaining any legislators’ attention and support? If past history is any indication, not very. Yes, many elected officials may give lip service to agreeing with sportsmen’s concerns, but come tomorrow, most will probably be forgotten. After all, if you’re a downstate politician, representing thousands of urban-minded voters, you’d best be careful about rubbing shoulders with those plaid-shirted, gun-toting upstate sportsmen.

Given the fiscal state of the State, and especially the NYSDEC, I can only suspect that any complaints about program and personnel cuts that negatively affect fish, wildlife and other conservation themes that are near and dear to sportsmen will be met with a very simple response – show us the money. This was the stock-and-trade answer given two years ago that led to across the board license fee hikes that were designed to keep DEC programs operating. Of course we know how that worked out, and now we’re dead broke again, according to our state bean counters.

The frustration felt by sportsmen is very understandable, given that, as a group, they pour more than $2 billion annually into New York State, but have little or no say about how their money is used. Most never write or contact their elected officials to demand accountability, but rather hope “someone else” is guarding the store on their behalf. So having their day in Albany seems like a wonderful opportunity to make up ground. Obviously, it has proven rather ineffective if the current direction of the DEC is an indication.