With less than 60 Pumas thought to exist in Nebraska, the Nebraska Legislature passed a bill allowing the Fish & Game Unit to allow an annual hunt of 4 of the animals..............So wrong to be killing a recovering population that researchers know so little about........How is it that filmakers make millions of $$ with pro environmental themed movies like AVATAR and THE LORAX and yet we still have narrow-minded/reactionary laws regarding killing our wildlife----Please tell me where the disconnect is--------So parents take their kids to see humane stories about wild creatures and places and then those parents turn around during the work week and say SCREW WHAT WE SAW ON SATURDAY, let's "RIP UP PARADISE AND PUT IN A PARKING LOT!"-----I am all for balancing the budget and making a buck,,,,,,,,,,but geez, are we so f___ing greedy and short-viewed that we have no regard for the next generations qualitiy of life on our planet?

Neb. lawmakers approve mountain lion hunting bill

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska lawmakers passed a bill Wednesday that would allow for mountain lion hunting and create a state program that lets hunters donate deer meat to the hungry.

The proposals mixed into one bill won final approval, 49-0.

Ellsworth Sen. LeRoy Louden introduced the mountain lion hunting bill in response to increased sightings in Nebraska. Current state law only allows people to kill mountain lions if they are threatening humans or livestock.

State officials say the mountain lion population is increasing, although the number of lions is estimated at fewer than 60 statewide. If the population continues to grow, Game and Parks could create a limited hunting season that would likely allow up to four lions to be taken per year.

The animals are native to Nebraska but were eradicated by settlers in the late 1800s. In recent years, biologists have confirmed a small population or about 20 breeding mountain lions in far northwest Nebraska. Nebraska officials have confirmed more than 50 sightings outside of the Pine Ridge, including some as far east as South Sioux City and Omaha.

Under the bill, Nebraska residents would pay $25 for a chance to win a mountain lion hunting permit in a random drawing. Nonresidents would be able to get a permit through an auction.

That measure was combined with a deer meat donation proposal by Lincoln Sen. Tony Fulton. It would require the state Game and Parks Commission to create a program that allows hunters to donate money and deer meat to the Hunters Helping the Hungry Cash Fund.

Hunters would be asked to give part of their permit fees to the fund. That money, and other donations, would reimburse meat processors who would get the meat ready for consumption.

The bill has drawn support from ranchers, sportsmen, meat processors and a homeless shelter director who would benefit from the donation program. Iowa, Kansas, South Dakota and Colorado all have meat donation programs.

The bill is LB928