March 12, 2012

Vol. 13 No.10

This Week:

NSSF Grants Help States Promote Hunting

TEN YEARS, $4.7 MILLION IN FUNDING . . . Since the National Shooting Sports Foundation began the Hunting Heritage Partnership program 10 years ago, 121 grants have been awarded to 40 state wildlife agencies and one regional agency, providing $4.7 million to fund projects that give hunters more opportunities to go afield and new resources to plan hunts. "Some programs have been more successful than others, but overall NSSF is very pleased with what has been accomplished in 10 years," said Melissa Schilling, NSSF's director of recruitment and retention initiatives. "More and better hunting opportunities exist today thanks to these efforts." This year 12 grants totaling $392,185 were awarded to fund programs that will work to expand hunting opportunities for all ages. Among those state wildlife management agencies receiving awards are first-time grant recipients Utah and North Dakota.

Full Story | View Map of HHP Projects

Industry News

FREEDOM GROUP ANNOUNCES NEW CEO . . . George Kollitides has been appointed acting chief executive officer and executive chairman of the board for Freedom Group, Inc. (FGI). Kollitides, an avid hunter, shooter and firearms enthusiast, sits on three NRA Committees, is a trustee of NRA Foundation and is a director of the New York State Rifle & Pistol Association. He is a past director of the Safari Club International Connecticut Chapter. Kollitides was previously a managing director of Cerberus Capital Management, where he was the architect of FGI and its lead director. Kollitides stated, "I am ecstatic to join the FGI team, where we have the greatest employees and a 200-year history of 100 percent American made."
SMITH & WESSON SALES UP 24 PERCENT IN THIRD QUARTER . . . Smith & Wesson Holding Corp. reported Thursday that third-quarter sales were up 24 percent compared to the same period last year. The company said the increase was "driven by strong sales of M&P handguns, M&P sporting rifles and all Smith & Wesson personal protection and concealed carry pistols." Net income was $5.4 million, or 8 cents per share, compared with a net loss of $2.7 million, or 5 cents per share, for the third quarter last year.
SIG SAUER ANNOUNCES EXPANSION PLANS . . . New Hampshire-based gun maker SIG Sauer has announced plans to expand the company's domestic production capabilities through the acquisition of a new facility in Newington, N.H. The new campus will be home to the company's corporate and manufacturing areas. The state-of-the-art property will provide SIG Sauer with three times the usable work space of its current Exeter, N.H., headquarters. Read more.

NSSF PROMOTES SHOT SHOW AT IWA . . . The NSSF Board of Directors has made increasing international buyer attendance at the SHOT Show a priority in order to build sales opportunities for exhibitors and international retailers. After exhibiting for the first time last year at the IWA & Outdoor Classics Show in Nuremberg, Germany, the SHOT Show saw international attendance increase by 20 percent. Last week, IWA attendees again made their way to the SHOT Show booth to learn about opportunities at the 2013 SHOT Show. Read more in the SHOT Show Blog.

Melissa Schilling

NSSF PROMOTES SCHILLING . . . Melissa Schilling has been promoted to director of recruitment and retention. She will continue her involvement in NSSF programs that encourage newcomers to try hunting and target shooting and that encourage mentoring by experienced sportsmen and women. Read more.

Government Relations

SENATE APPROVES FUNDING TO IMPROVE LAND ACCESS FOR SPORTSMEN . . . Bipartisan approval last week of an amendment reauthorizing the $1.4 billion Land and Water Conservation Fund will expand funding for conservation and improve access to public lands for sportsmen and women. The ammendment, introduced by Senators Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) and Mary Landrieu (D-La.), includes a measure to dedicate 1.5 percent of LWFC funds to securing public access to existing public lands. If passed in the House, the provision would double current funding levels for the program to $700 million for each of the next two years and reauthorize it until 2022 at $1.4 billion total. Read the NSSF release.
ATF BULLETIN ON FFL APPLICATION SERVICES . . . ATF last Friday said it has "become aware of web-based companies which guarantee the issuance of a Federal firearms license (FFL) if a prospective applicant purchases the company’s application packet and advice about how to obtain a FFL. Anyone considering applying for a FFL should be aware that the fees paid for such consulting services and materials are not required, endorsed, or received by ATF." ATF added that each application is reviewed on its merits and that issuance of an FFL is not guaranteed. Read full bulletin.
GROUSELAND RIFLE NAMED OFFICIAL INDIANA STATE GUN . . . "Add the Grouseland Rifle to the list of official state emblems such as the cardinal, peony and Wabash River," the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette reports. Lawmakers passed legislation to make the rifle the official state firearm. The bill now heads to Gov. Mitch Daniels. Indiana becomes the third state -- joining Utah and Arizona -- to have an official state gun.
NSSF CONGRESSIONAL FLY-IN APRIL 18-19 . . . Officials from NSSF and executives from the Foundation's Voting Member companies will travel to Washington, D.C., April 18-19 to meet with key lawmakers and help advance the industry's federal legislative priorities. Participation in the Fly-In is a Voting Member benefit. All Voting Members are strongly encouraged to attend this key government relations effort. This year's Fly-In will be held at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill. If you are interested in attending and receiving additional details as they become available, please contact mswarts@nssf.org.
MICROSTAMPING IN NEW YORK SENATE CODES COMMITTEE TUESDAY . . . For the fourth year in a row, anti-gun legislators from New York City have introduced firearms microstamping legislation (S. 675B) that would result in banning firearms in the Empire State. This bill is scheduled to be heard Tuesday in the Senate Codes Committee. Also of concern, the Assembly democrats have submitted microstamping into the state budget. NSSF is maintaining an active presence in New York to ensure this legislation is defeated.

News of Note

SANETTI SPEECH AT NORTH AMERICAN CONFERENCE . . . NSSF President and CEO Steve Sanetti will address attendees at the North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference on the importance of partnerships in the 75-year history of the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program. Cooperation between sportsmen, industry, wildlife agencies and conservation organizations has led to many WSFR successes. The conference opens today in Atlanta and will run through March 17. The Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation has developed a proclamation praising this partnership known as the "American System of Conservation Funding"; its first signer is Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe, vice-chair of the Governors Sportsmen's Caucus.
POMA MEMBER BEREAVEMENT FUND . . . The Professional Outdoor Media Association reports that member Bob Shell and his wife Mary lost two sons and two grandchildren in a fire, which may have started in an ammunition reloading supplies room. Anyone who would like to assist the Shells in this difficult time may send a donation by check or money order to Bob & Mary Shell Bereavement Fund, Wells Fargo Bank, 2112 South Ellsworth Road, Mesa AZ 85209. Include account number 1661947489 on check or money order.

NSSF Research

NSSF REPORT ADDRESSES COMPETITION TO HUNTING AND TARGET SHOOTING . . . "Understanding Activities that Compete with Hunting and Target Shooting" is a continuation from NSSF's 2009 research on hunter churn rates. NSSF will incorporate results from this report to assist wildlife, hunting and target-shooting conservation groups and state department of natural resources in implementing highly effective recruitment and retention programs. Click here to access the executive summary of this report. Additional research materials available at www.nssf.org/research. NSSF members may access more in depth research by logging in at www.nssf.org/members and clicking NSSF Industry Research. If you don't remember your member ID or password, please contact Samantha Hughes, NSSF member services coordinator, by email at shughes@nssf.org or by calling 203-426-1320.
WHAT'S TRENDING? AMMUNITION . . . Federal, Remington, Winchester, Hornady and Wolf ammo were the most mentioned ammunition brands online over the past month, according to data pulled by NSSF and social-media monitoring service Radian6. Click here to see how mentions of each brand fluctuated week to week. The chart data source from Radian6 tracked 50 top ammunition manufacturers with a weekly sample of approximately 350 online public mentions. All comments counted toward totals without regard to expressed sentiment. Mentions come from a variety of social-media sites, including forums, forum replies, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, blogs and others.

Jobs

FIREARMS INDUSTRY JOBS . . . Visit www.nssf.org/jobs for current employment opportunities in the shooting, hunting and outdoor industry. Employers: Log in to post a job opening.

NSSF's Mission

"To promote, protect and preserve hunting and the shooting sports."

Click here to visit the NSSF website and see how we accomplish this mission.

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COPYRIGHT © 2012 by National Shooting Sports Foundation, Inc. Permission is granted for broadcast, publication, retransmission to e-mail lists, Web sites or any other copying or storage, in any medium, online or not, if 1) the text is forwarded in its entirety, including this paragraph, and 2) no fee is charged. "Bullet Points®," "National Shooting Sports Foundation®," "NSSF®," and all other trade names, trademarks, service marks, logos and images of the National Shooting Sports Foundation appearing in this publication are the sole property of the Foundation and may not be used without the Foundation's prior express written permission. All other trade names, trademarks, service marks, logos and images appearing in this publication are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

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