Note: Sadly, this bill has passed. Please see the comment at the end.
To help Utah’s coyotes, please ask Utah representatives to vote “No” on Senate Bill 245, the “Mule Deer Protection Act.” This bill would allocate $750,000 so that a $50 bounty can be paid to hunters and trappers for each coyote killed. The previous bounty was $20.
The bounty is being increased in order to “protect mule deer.” Senate Bill 245 will come up for a vote in the Utah House “in the next 36 hours” according to the website of Wild Earth Guardians. It has already been passed in the Utah Senate.
Very few coyotes kill mule deer; they generally kill much smaller prey. So this will cause great suffering to the coyotes, without helping the mule deer. The reason for “protecting the mule deer” is so that there will be more deer available for hunters to kill.
Killing any innocent animals and placing a bounty on the head of a wild animal who has a natural right to life is wrong. But in any case, this bill will help no one—neither humans nor animals.
If you are a Utah resident, please take action at the site of Wild Earth Guardians:
https://secure3.convio.net/wg/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=489
Whether or not you are a Utah resident, you can send a polite email to Rep. Michael Noel, asking him to vote against Senate Bill 245.
You can contact other Utah State representatives here.
http://le.utah.gov/house2/representatives.jsp
Thank you!
Photo: © Kengriffith / Dreamstime.com
Art, animals, and the earth 
Sadly for the coyotes, this bill has passed. Thanks to all those who opposed it. Speaking out on behalf of animals is always right and is never a wasted effort.