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November 3, 2026 at 5:36 pm
OREGON – A proposed Oregon amendment would turn hunting, fishing, and trapping into fundamental rights under the state constitution.
The Oregon Freedom Amendment, a ballot initiative petition to protect hunting, fishing, trapping, farming, ranching, wildlife management, and agricultural animal husbandry, is one step closer to the November 2028 ballot. The petition, also known as IP 25, was recently authorized for circulation across the state.
“We really are a very avid hunting and fishing and recreation area, even bringing out people from outside of the state because of what we have here in the state of Oregon,” said Chief Petitioner Kari Goodheart.
“The people of Oregon deserve to have this protected and safeguarded as a constitutional right. They deserve that, and so do the future generations.”
This effort comes as a response to the PEACE Act, or IP 28, a petition that aimed to remove exemptions for hunting, fishing, and related activities from Oregon’s animal cruelty laws. The initiative received widespread criticism from across the political spectrum and failed to qualify for the November 2026 ballot due to a lack of valid signatures.
“The economy of Oregon is very much based on these practices,” said Goodheart. “Not only- you have hunters, and fishers, that are going out, providing for their families and communities, but you have businesses.”
In order to make it to the 2028 ballot, the Oregon Freedom Amendment will need an amount of signatures equal to 8% of the votes cast in the 2026 gubernatorial election. To learn more about the Oregon Freedom Amendment, you can visit oregonfreedomamendment.org.
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