32 Nebraskaland • August-September 2024
ebraska has always had a proud hunting tradition, but
by the 1970s, an increase in the number of incidents in
the fi eld was becoming a big concern. Some incidents
had deadly consequences. Additionally, many hunters didn't
know the game laws or how to hunt ethically.
Many factors could have played into the increase.
The state's population was growing rapidly, and baby
boomers were taking to the fi eld. The population also was
becoming increasingly urban, so more kids were growing
up on playgrounds instead of hunting rabbits on the farm
after learning how to safely use the .22-caliber rifl e they
got for Christmas. Most of the incidents involved young,
inexperienced gun handlers.
Regardless of the cause, the need to teach people how
to hunt safely was real. In 1974, the Nebraska Legislature
recognized this need and passed a bill requiring youths ages
12 to 15 to pass a Hunter Safety course before they could hunt.
The results have been what was hoped for and expected: The
number of accidents began to decline, a trend that continues
to this day.
The Need
The roots of Hunter Education stretch to 1949, when the
National Rifl e Association worked with the state of New York
to develop the nation's fi rst Hunter Safety training program to
address a problem: Many hunters knew little about fi rearms,
hunting or how to hunt safely.
That program served as the basis for programs now taught
and required, in some form, in every state. A few other
states followed New York's lead and launched Hunter Safety
programs. Elsewhere, including in Nebraska, there were
voluntary programs taught by NRA members, sportsmen's
clubs and 4-H groups.
In 1970, a major change was made to the 1937 Pittman-
Robertson Act, which distributes federal excise taxes
collected on fi rearms and ammunition to states for wildlife
management and restoration work. Through the Dingell-
Hart Act, a portion of a new excise tax on handguns could be
Conservation
Offi cer Larry
Elston teaches
fi rearm safety to
a young student
during a Hunter
Education class
in 1981.
JACK CURRAN,
NEBRASKALAND
50 Years
Educating
Hunters
By Eric Fowler
N
