Senate nixes exempting vets from hunter safety

BOISE (AP) — Idaho lawmakers decided battlefield training is no substitute for a good hunter safety course.

A Senate committee Friday unanimously rejected exempting military members from having to take a hunter education course before getting a hunting license.

The measure had cleared the House 49-21, but it raised Senate Resources Committee members' eyebrows.

They questioned why a three- or four-hour course was really such an onerous requirement.

Panelists also underscored that hunter safety courses cover ground that even people well-versed in field stripping their weapons would find useful before heading out in pursuit of game.

Rep. Lynn Luker of Boise sponsored the bill after hearing from an Iraq veteran who decided on a spur-of-the-moment hunting trip — but was blocked by the course requirement from immediately being able to purchase a license.