First, based on a petition submitted by EPIC and others, by a 4-3 vote the Oregon Fish and Game Commission baned the trapping of Humboldt martens in Oregon. This is a big move for Oregon, particularly considering that we had to fight the industry-aligned Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to get the trapping ban passed. (ODFW recommended only banning trapping in one of the two known populations.)
Second, in a first-in-the-country move, California has banned all commercial trapping of fur-bearing mammals. The Wildlife Protection Act of 2019, signed by Governor Newsom on Sept. 4th. EPIC supported the law and sent our endorsement to the legislature and governor.
The Wildlife Protection Act follows on the successful efforts to ban the trapping of bobcats, which EPIC helped rally the troops for in 2015.