OCSC MUCC Update | June 2026

This month’s update will focus on three items, commercial netting bills, deer regs, and MUCC. Michigan House Bills 5801 and 5802 are intended to change commercial fishing regulations to allow substantial take of what currently are only game species. If passed, a new industry will be created that will allow netting of massive quantities of walleye, perch, lake trout, and other species. Today, those fish are caught by anglers that contribute $4 Billion a year to Michigan’s economy. The current annual value of Michigan’s commercial fishing industry is about $4 Million per year. You read that right. The current value of recreational fishing in Michigan is 1000 times greater than the commercial fishing industry. Yet, legislators are willing to gamble on the future health of the Great Lakes while benefitting very few people. If this bill is passed, there is a high possibility of impacting the quality of our cherished Great Lakes fisheries, thus impacting overall fishery health, daily limits, and the livelihoods of many supported by recreational fishing. There is also a high likelihood of a challenge to the tribal consent decree associated with fishing in the Great Lakes. The DNR is opposed to this bill. We also must oppose this bill.

Updates to deer regulations occurred at the May 13 th meeting of the Natural Resources Commission and they are substantial. Muzzleloader season is now called the December Firearms Deer season in the Lower. Any legal firearm can be used anywhere in the state (no more shotgun / straight-walled cartridge zone). No more January antlerless hunt; all deer hunting will end January 1 st . Those changes
and some others will all occur this year. The change that really hit the headlines is that starting in 2027, hunters will be limited to one buck and that buck must have at least 3 points on one side. The primary purpose of this change is to help better balance the buck to doe ratio in Michigan’s deer herd. Another interesting change is a pilot program for hunters in the southern part of the lower to “earn a second
buck” tag by first shooting a doe. The primary purpose here is to encourage more hunters to take does. I support these changes.

And finally . . .
MUCC is no more. As expected when I wrote my column and spoke at last month’s general membership meeting, the board of Michigan United Conservation Clubs voted unanimously for dissolution. Thus ends a 90 year legacy that may never be equaled. This will be my final column with the title “OCSC MUCC Update”. Please provide feedback if you would like to continue to receive conservation updates. As my final tribute to MUCC, I would appreciate if you glance over the club names on the following pages and imagine that an organization once existed that represented the best intentions of all those clubs, all those people, and all those issues. Farewell, MUCC.

Kind regards,
Dave Budnick
OCSC Member
(248) 978-3454
davebudnick@comcast.net
davebudnick.com