LANSING (WWJ/AP) - A bill that would lift Michigan's ban on using bait to hunt deer continues to advance in the Legislature despite Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's opposition.
The Republican-led Senate passed the legislation on a mostly 21-14 party-line vote Wednesday, a week after it cleared the Republican-controlled House. Senators made changes to the bill such as restricting the size of bait and revisiting the issue in two years.
The Michigan Natural Resources Commission in 2018 banned baits, such as corn or vegetables, throughout the Lower Peninsula and in some areas of the Upper Peninsula to prevent the spread of chronic wasting disease -- a contagious, neurological disease that affects deer, elk and moose. According to the DNR, CWD, which can be spread in deer saliva, causes a degeneration of the brain resulting in emaciation (abnormally thin), abnormal behavior, loss of bodily functions and then, in all cases, death. Many Republican lawmakers question the science supporting the decision.
The regular firearm deer-hunting season starts Friday and goes through Nov. 30.
The legislation would need a final House vote before moving to the Democratic governor. The House is currently on a multi-week break.
In the meantime, the deer baiting ban remains in effect.
Get more information about deer baiting ands feeding rules in Michigan HERE. Learn more about CWD HERE.
