Understanding the Economics of Hunting and Shooting with Rob Southwick and Jim Curcuruto – Season 3 Episode 6 – March 30
This episode of Talking Mule Deer is focused helping to understand the economic impact of the hunting and shooting have on conservation and why that’s so important. Rob Southwick, a natural resource economist who runs Southwick Associates, and the National Shooting Sports Foundation's Jim Curcuruto talk about what they are doing to take participation and spending data and make it relevant to the public. Hunters and target shooters spend billions of dollars every year in pursuit of their pastime (we’ll tell you how much!) – but when you factor the economic ripple effect for each dollar spent that impact is even greater, particularly in the rural communities where we hunt and fish. Rob and Jim also work with groups like the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation and American Sportfishing Association to put those numbers in context with other mainstream industries and share that information with elected officials and the media. We discuss about how this spending goes back into state wildlife conservation – and increasingly for state-run shooting ranges – through excise taxes on certain hunting and shooting products through the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act of 1937 (also known as Pittman-Robertson Act) Program. Finally, Jim talks about how NSSF is working with state wildlife agencies and the shooting sports industry to “Partner with a Payer” so that industry staff can understand what states are doing with the taxes they pay, and state agency staff can understand more about the manufacturing of guns and ammunition. He also talks about recent research that shows there’s a lot of interest in the general public about learning how to shoot and what three things might help get them out on the range.