Public Shooting Range Bill Passes House

By Chris Eger

The Target Practice and Marksmanship Training Support Act would allow states to better use their allocation of Pittman-Robertson funds to construct new public shooting ranges or improve existing state-run ranges. (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
A bipartisan measure to increase the number of shooting ranges available on public land passed the U.S. House on Monday. The bill, H.R.1222, was introduced in February by U.S. Reps. Ron Kind, D-Wisc. and Rob Bishop, R-Utah. The proposal proved uncontroversial and passed in a voice vote this week following on the heels of a similar vote in the Senate on an identical measure earlier this month.
Currently, states must match federal government funding 25 cents on the dollar to begin working on public shooting ranges administered through local conservation agencies. The range bills currently approved by Congress drop the matching formula to 90/10 while also allowing funds to accrue for up to five years– up from two.
As such, they would modify the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act. This 80-year-old law uses an 11 percent excise tax levied on all guns and ammunition commercially sold or imported into the country to perform conservation-related tasks such as restoring habitat, funding hunter safety programs and establishing public ranges. Paid for by firearms industry

Source: Guns.com