Trump hosts outdoor industry leaders at White House to roll back hunting and fishing rules

President Donald Trump is scheduled to host a dinner for over 100 hunters, anglers and outdoor-industry leaders in the White House Rose Garden on Thursday. During the event he is expected to sign two executive orders aimed at expanding access to public lands and waterways, fostering healthy wildlife populations and increasing offshore recreational fishing. Attendees will include companies such as Bass Pro Shops, Yamaha Marine Group and Polaris, as well as groups like the National Rifle Association, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and Ducks Unlimited.

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, representatives from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Commerce Department and NOAA will be present, and the secretaries of Interior, Agriculture, War and Commerce have been directed to propose policy changes. The orders target Biden-era restrictions on lead ammunition and tackle at wildlife refuges, seek to cut federal red tape for anglers, shift charter operators to multi-year permits, replace mail-in catch surveys with mobile reporting and create artificial reefs on offshore oil-gas platforms. The administration highlighted that the outdoor recreation sector contributes more than $1.2 trillion annually and sustains over five million jobs.