Legislature provides little foolish column fodder this year.

Byline: INSIDE THE OUTDOORS By Mike Stahlberg The Register-Guard

April Fool's Day was Sunday, and the Oregon Legislature is in session. That means it's time for this column's biennial look at what in the world of outdoor recreation is going on at the state Capitol.

Some folks assume the timing of this legislative update is a not-so-sly commentary on the intellect of those serving in the state legislature. Not so.

April Fool's Day is simply the midway point of a six-month legislative session. So it's a good time to check in and see what new recreation-related laws our representatives may have in store for us.

The need for outdoorsfolk to keep an eye on Salem became apparent in the mid-1990s, when a lawmaker who had fooled the electorate into sending him to Salem introduced what other legislators snickeringly referred to as "The Road Kill Pizza Bill."

The proposed law would have made it legal for anyone to salvage the meat of any game animal struck and killed by a motor vehicle.

While the bill's author thought it would be a grand blow for eliminating waste and fighting hunger, wiser heads immediately understood such a law would give any Bubba with a big bumper on his rig a license to hunt year-round, on-road and off.

Thus was the April Fool's column inspired. Over the years, there have been plenty of proposals that seemed, well, a bit odd. Last session (2005), for example, we had bills on "virtual hunting" and "teak surfing."

This year, however, things have been so quiet in Salem, I almost overlooked the tradition.

On April Fool's eve, however, a battle erupted in California over a proposal to ban hunting with lead bullets in much of the Golden State. That reminded me to look into what our politicians are up to.

(The political controversy in California is over the alleged threat posed to endangered California condors by lead fragments in animals shot, but not retrieved, by hunters. Some research indicates condors have suffered lead poisoning - apparently from scavenging carcasses of game animals. So California is considering a requirement that hunters use copper bullets while hunting within the condors' range.)

Just because we haven't heard much in Oregon doesn't mean our lawmakers haven't been busy drafting and crafting new laws.

Forty-seven bills that could have some impact on wildlife have been introduced so far, according to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, which assigns staff members to track bills and work on legislative issues. Another 17 bills relate to fish.

But there's nothing very bizarre in the hopper - unless you think teaching 9-year-olds to hunt deer and elk is strange.

House Bill 3165 direct the state Fish and Wildlife Commission to establish a youth hunter mentoring program that would open the door to big game hunting by persons 9 to 13 years old. The current minimum age for big game hunting in Oregon is 14, although younger kids may hunt rabbits and birds.

Under the proposed law, "mentored" hunters would have to 1) complete a hunter safety course prior to taking the field, and 2) be accompanied by a licensed hunter age 21 or over. (The adult's tag would have to be used for any animal taken).

The youth hunter and the mentor could possess only one firearm between them.

About a dozen states have adopted "mentored hunter" programs. Several hunting organizations and the National Rifle Association support such legislation as a way to help preserve this country's "hunting heritage."

Another bill in Oregon intended to preserve hunting is HB 3164, which would require that all Oregon-owned public lands used for wildlife management purposes be accessible for hunting. The bill would also require the Fish and Wildlife Commission to avoid making management decisions that result in a net loss of access to hunting.

House Bill 2970 would clarify the length of time that Oregon hunting and/or fishing privileges are taken away from anyone caught violating fish and wildlife laws in any of 24 other states which are members of the interstate Wildlife Violators Compact. Oregon violators have been able to serve shorter suspensions by filing appeals that have allowed them to keep hunting/fishing while their suspension in other states was being served.

Other bills of interest include:

SB572 would ban the hunting of exotic game mammals on private hunting preserves.

Senate Bill 680 directs the ODFW to develop a 25-year plan to enhance angling opportunities in Oregon.

HB2295 defines the gray wolf as a game mammal, and directs the ODFW to establish management regulations, including circumstances in which wolves may be hunted.

SB702 loosens the voter-approved prohibition against the use of hounds to hunt cougars; dogs would be allowed three months a year in areas of the state where the cougar harvest quota would otherwise not be met.

HB2509A requires climbers on Mount Hood during winter months to carry electronic signaling devices.

HB3365 allows the use of telescopic sights on muzzleloading firearms while hunting game mammals.

HB3351 requires the department to "develop and implement a plan to control and reduce pinniped predation" on game fish in the Columbia River.

Mike Stahlberg can be reached at [e-mail].