Lobbyist is no longer shared. It is an election year for the BOD. Nominate your self[/quote]
These days I prefer to cut out the middleman and speak directly to my legislators. I relate it to the unions representing the pipeline workers. Lots of smooth talk and money. Now where are they?

Speaking for myself, I would rather be out trapping than doing the hard work of helping an organization stay afloat. I am much happier having others fill that position but someday I will need to reconcile whether I did all I could when the attack comes.

In Oregon, New Mexico and maybe some others, that time is now. All states will be under attack in the not too distant future imho.

How are your local legislators feelings on trapping. I have talked with a lot as well and doesn’t seem to fall on party lines more so on urban and rural

The best reason to join a trappers association, be it state or national, depending on your finances, is the amount of money needed to be generated to hire lobbyists to keep on top of bills trying to prevent trappers from losing more ground. I think generally the membership of the Minnesota Trappers Association has been roughly 1/3 of the number of licenses sold each year. Politics are always in any organization, but I think a lot of people use that as an excuse to let somebody else do their bidding when actually their are just too self-centered and cheap to spend a nickel of their own because it might benefit some other person (trapper). My two cents worth, life member MTA and NTA.
Gary J

AMEN trapping brother

I thought trapping associations just put on conventions and trappers ed.

I have been involved with district 8. Yep, the MTA’s favorite district! Been generous with my time and money compared to most. Honesty and TRANSPARENCY are essential to people taking an association seriously. Not closed door meetings and whispers in the corner.

Why join a State Association?

If it weren't for the ITA, we would have lost trapping or faced severe restrictions across most of the state as the result of a lawsuit a couple years back. The ITA spent a lot of money intervening in the lawsuit and the folks that fought the hardest would never have been affected by the outcome. There were only a couple hundred members at that time....

Since then our organization has grown to nearly 800 members across 20+ states. We're unified with the other sportsman's groups and have a lobbyist working on our behalf. When we propose changes to the regs, the state listens and works with us. We maintain good relationships with our elected officials and other state organizations (cattlemen, sheep, farm bureau, etc, etc). In this day and age, protecting your livelihood, hobby, heritage, interests, etc comes down to fighting to make your voice heard. The larger your coalition, the louder your voice. Pretty simple concept.

It's not a huge cost to be a member and not a lot of work to make your voice heard. If you have time to surf and post on Trapperman, you have time to comment to your State Association. It makes a difference and the funds help! If you don't like your leadership - change it! It's really disheartening to see folks complaining or apathetic - and even harder to hear about states with hardly any members facing ballot initiatives or organized anti-trapping campaigns. It doesn't take a lot of work to get organized and there's plenty of help available.

The NTA western this June in Glenn's Ferry will be a good chance for State Assn's to visit. The planning crew is looking at scheduling a "Summit" for the State groups to get together and discuss what's working, how to better work together. Don't wait until your faced with restrictions to do something.


Dirt - in my experience, new hobbies cost a lot of money to get started!

The above post should be enshrined as to what us other states should aspire to. Great job Idaho!

Sounds like you are slowly being converted to a conservative.

You guys hear me do nothing but (This word is unacceptable on Trapperman) and moan about my state association but honestly I wish we had a state association that resembled the many bee associations I'm a member of and active in.

One thing I know as a club president is that my club is only as good as our last membership drive, only as good as the encouragement we give our new members, only as good as we are active in supporting and serving the membership.

This weekend I will be speaking in a breakout session at my state bee meeting, teaching. This meeting will have over 300 in attendance from all over the nation, via zoom. And has over 1000 members statewide.
I imagine beekeepers and trappers, both specialty pursuits, have similar numbers of participants yet I doubt our state trapping association has a tenth of those numbers.

Maybe its a holdover of the old days of Johnny Sneakum but we as trappers have to be willing to welcome newcomers with open arms. And there's a ton of newcomers out there. Maybe not the old crusty fur trapper types but trappers nonetheless. Welcome them into our ranks and associations or die.

IL TA

NTA

FTA

which one to join? It seems it would be better to have ONE with more influence and resources to get behind.

J,
Their gonna howl at me for this post, but I like howling at the moon music, so oh well.

It has been theorized from some very deep thinkers that when this country tossed out the Bible as the source of Truth (late 1800's really was the landslide)
it absolutely opened the door wide open for everyone to decide their own truth.
And here we is today.

I am in that camp of how we got here. And we're not going back to anything normal or close to it, on the backs of human wisdom. Never. Mars, or no Mars.

It's pretty evident as we lament about our differences.
It even resides in this marvelous forum.
Each of us can be what we always wanted to be: The Boss.


Where does Truth come from anyway?

Blessings,
Mark

What does it hurt to spend a few raccoon hides and join more than one association?
It's not a money thing. People spend more on the weekend for R&R than supporting 5 associations for a year.
It's what YOU think is important to YOU.


Blessings,
Mark

We trapper's should support many associations,I'm MTA MN ,MTA Montana,ID,NTA and Fur Taker's.

I have always suspected that many people involved in the National organizations are in the trapline supply business?

???? Who?

Who would have time to do both?

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What is your point Dirt? It's not obvious. It seemed you were saying people who own trapping businesses were board members of associations?

At one time a state org did not allow dealers to be O or D.
That did not last long as no one else would step up.
Pretty sure they are taking applications.
Even from those who resupply at conventions, who are not yet members.
Those chores are all gravy, step right up lol.