CHENANGO COUNTY – It is slightly mind-blowing to consider that one of the most important pieces of federal legislation involving the conservation of wildlife, is now over 80 years old. In 1937, Congress based the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act – or commonly referred to as the Pittman-Robertson Act, which is named after the two Congressmen that sponsored the bill.

This act placed an 11-percent excise tax on sporting arms and ammunition that would later be reimbursed by the Secretary of the Interior to each state’s Wildlife Management Agency – the Department of Environmental Conservation in New York – paying up to 75-percent of the cost of approved wildlife focused projects. Those projects could include land acquisition, habitat improvement, wildlife research, wildlife surveys, developing access facilities for public use, and hunter education programs.

This tax is collected at the manufacturer before any of the items are sent to market. This means that the tax is included in the price of said firearms and ammunition when purchased by the consumer.

33 years after the bill was first set, Congress added provisions to the law, one adding a 10-percent excise tax placed on pistols and revolvers. And just two years later, in 1972, the Pittman-Robertson Act was further amended to include an 11-percent excise tax on bows, arrows, and other archery parts and accessories.

The bill was amended in 1984 to finally include crossbow arrows in the archery excise tax.

The money collected is deposited into the Wildlife Restoration Trust Fund and is made available to each state the year following their collection. Year after year, $8 million is dedicated for use in the Enhanced Hunter Education programs offered, which include the construction and maintenance of public target ranges. An additional $3 million is set aside for projects that require multiple states’ cooperation.

One half of the money collected from handguns is set aside for Basic Hunter Education programs while the remaining money is split into two equal amounts. The first half is divided among the states in a ratio that matches the state’s amount of land compared to the total amount of land in the country. The second half is then divided up among the states in a ratio based on the number of individual paid hunting licenses sold in each state compared to the total nationwide.

In order for a state to be eligible to receive money from the Wildlife Restoration Trust Fund, the state legislature must have passed legislation that distinctly specifies any money collected from hunting licenses sold in the state can only be used by the wildlife management agency of the state.