Dear allies,

This year we introduced legislation to end the Nest Predator Bounty Program in the 101st South Dakota Legislative Session. Senator Tim Reed (District 7) and Representative Spencer Gosch (District 23) are serving as prime sponsors of Senate Bill 148, which would end public funding for bounty payments:
https://sdlegislature.gov/Session/Bill/26987 .

We have already secured bipartisan support for SB 148, but we need more legislators to join as co-sponsors. Hearings are approaching, and your voices matter now, especially those of South Dakota residents and of people in neighboring states (Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, and other nearby states) who hunt, travel, or spend money in South Dakota. Legislators prioritize emails from constituents, but they also pay attention to messages from non-resident stakeholders. Without direct emails from people who care and are affected, this bill will not move.

You do not need to write a long explanation - leave that to NGOs. Legislators do not read long texts. They count how many people speak up. What matters is the number of short messages. Your voice matters. Please take two minutes to email your legislator and ask them to co-sponsor SB 148.

South Dakotans, find your legislators here: https://sdlegislature.gov/Legislators/Find

Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota (as well as other nearby states): find members of Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee as a plain list below, or from the SD legislature web site: https://sdlegislature.gov/Session/Committee/1277/Detail

Send a short email, even a few sentences make a difference. Below are example templates you may copy and personalize, or (better) you may write your own.

//------------for South Dakotans-----------
Subject: I am a constituent of District ___. Requesting co-sponsorship of the Anti–Nest Predator Bounty Program Legislation (SB 148)

Dear Representative/Senator __________
My name is ____ ____, and I am your constituent (District __). I urge you to co-sponsor SB 148, introduced by Senator Tim Reed, to terminate the Nest Predator Bounty Program.
This program is opposed by wildlife professionals and by a majority of South Dakotans. After seven years of implementation and millions of dollars spent, GFP has not provided scientific evidence to support the claim that chaotic trapping reduces predator abundance in the field or increases pheasant populations. Nevertheless, the program continues to consume millions in public funds without a clear public mandate.
Senator Reed has recently circulated a call to legislators encouraging co-sponsorship of SB 148. With that clarification, I respectfully ask you to consider joining the bill as a co-sponsor to demonstrate fiscal responsibility and end this wasteful program.
//------------for South Dakotans-----------

//---------for non-South Dakotans---------
Subject: Requesting support SB 148
Dear Representative/Senator __________
I am a non-resident stakeholder who contributes to South Dakota’s economy. I urge you to co-sponsor SB 148, introduced by Senator Tim Reed, to terminate the Nest Predator Bounty Program.
This program is opposed by wildlife professionals and by a majority of South Dakotans. After seven years of implementation and millions of dollars spent, GFP has not provided scientific evidence to support the claim that chaotic trapping reduces predator abundance in the field or increases pheasant populations. Nevertheless, the program continues to consume millions in public funds without a clear public mandate.
Senator Reed has recently circulated a call to legislators encouraging co-sponsorship of SB 148. With that clarification, I respectfully ask you to consider joining the bill as a co-sponsor to demonstrate fiscal responsibility and end this wasteful program.
//---------for non-South Dakotans---------

For those who want more background, I have prepared an educational booklet, “Nest Predator Bounty Program: Science vs. Misconceptions,” outlining the scientific context, overlooked details, and inconvenient facts behind the program:
https://phas-wsd.org/wp-content/uploads/ScienceVsMisconceptions_20260131_82.pdf . The booklet includes dozens of illustrative pages exposing the program’s absurdities from multiple analytical perspectives. You may attach a few pages if you wish, but this is optional.

Current co-sponsors of SB 148:

Senator Tim S. Reed (Prime) — Republican
Representative Spencer Gosch (Prime) — Republican
Representative Scott Moore — Republican
Representative Erik Muckey — Democrat
Representative Nicole Uhre-Balk — Democrat
Representative Kadyn Wittman — Democrat

Bipartisan support matters, but success depends on securing more co-sponsors. Your voice can make the difference. Please help us end this wasteful and cruel program.