Is Oregon About to Ban Hunting and Fishing?

Out on the left coast, the animal rights crowd thinks that it has cracked the code to utopia: ban hunting, fishing, and pretty much anything involving a dead animal on your plate.

I wish I were joking, but it’s true. Leftists are hoping to get Initiative Petition 28, dubbed the PEACE Act — People for the Elimination of Animal Cruelty Exemptions — on Oregon's November 2026 ballot. And they're getting close.

The proposal begins by noting that “Oregon state law already recognizes that animals are sentient beings capable of experiencing pain, stress, and fear,” then argues that “current exemptions permit unnecessary and inhumane harm to animals.” Backers say those exemptions undermine the spirit of existing protections. The PEACE Act seeks to amend Chapter 167 of the Oregon Revised Statutes, which they contend “provides unnecessary exemptions to laws governing animal abuse, animal neglect, and animal sexual assault.”

Umm… Never mind.

Anyway, the stated goal of the measure is “to reduce the suffering of animals and improve their quality of life.”

David Michelson, the man leading this charge, admits straight up it's a long shot. "We really want to make Oregon the first state to vote on something like this," he said. "We are aware that it's unlikely 50% of Oregonians are ready right now to move away from killing animals. But we want to get that conversation out there."

According to KOIN 6 in Portland, if passed, the PEACE Act would “change the current Oregon animal cruelty laws, which currently protect pets such as dogs and cats, and would expand coverage to wild animals, livestock, and animals used in research.”

Convicted hunters would face a 15-year ban on possessing any animals, plus 100 hours of mandatory community service at wildlife rehabilitation facilities or animal care centers. The act also eliminates protections for livestock operations, rodeos, and other animal-based industries. The bill does carve out exemptions for veterinarians and for self-defense. Isn’t that nice?

While he acknowledged the need for wildlife management in situations such as controlling the proliferation of invasive species or pests, Michelson said there are non-lethal ways of achieving this.
“It specifically requires non-lethal forms of wildlife management. That could be the introduction of sterile males into a population,” he said.
Opponents say hunting is a crucial part of many Oregonians’ lives and for the economy.
“There are a handful of predators that do make a huge impact on our herbivore species, like deer, throughout the state,” said Oregon Hunters Association Hoodview Chapter President Levi Barrera. “If you take away hunting, there will be an out-of-control effect on the population.”

Barrera also warns that banning hunting would be a serious economic blow to Oregon, particularly for those who depend on it to put food on the table, at a time when grocery prices are already high due to Biden-era inflation.

“Even bigger towns that rely on the agricultural side of things, not just the economy and fishing side of things,” he said. “It has great impacts through communities that rely on hunting and fishing and that really sustains their communities and their families throughout the year. The industries that rely on hunting and fishing, you know, coastal towns, rely heavily on the fishing and salmon fishing.”

According to Michelson, they have more than 100,000 of the 117,173 signatures they need by July 2 to qualify for the November ballot. It may be true that this is a long shot with little chance of passing, but stranger things have happened, and again, this is the left coast we’re talking about here.

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