Michigan United Conservation Clubs outlines priorities: hunter safety, managed land strategy, solar siting concerns

Amy Trotter, chief executive officer of the Michigan United Conservation Clubs (MUCC), and Justin Tomei, policy and government affairs manager, presented the organization’s programs and 2025–26 legislative priorities to the House Committee on Natural Resources and Tourism.

Trotter described MUCC as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit focused on uniting citizens to “conserve, protect and enhance Michigan’s natural resources and our outdoor heritage.” She said MUCC operates a youth camp in the Waterloo Recreation Area and has run programs that served more than 59,000 campers since the 1940s. Tomei described MUCC’s “on-the-ground” habitat program as volunteer-driven, typically small-scale projects on public land funded in part by DNR wildlife grants and private donations.

On policy, Tomei summarized MUCC’s rules-based internal process: policy proposals are vetted by a 40-member conservation policy board, then submitted to an annual convention where membership votes; items that require MUCC to engage in Lansing need a two-thirds vote of membership to become an organizational position. He said MUCC’s top legislative priorities include adding hunter safety in schools, modernizing commercial fishing statutes, defending the Natural Resources Commission’s authority under “Proposal G,” and pursuing long-term conservation funding.

Tomei and Trotter discussed license fees and DNR funding. MUCC supports exploring updated funding models for the DNR; the organization said it understands “the need for there to be new funding sources for the department” and is open to considering license-fee changes combined with other funding mechanisms.

On solar siting, MUCC emphasized a “brownfields first” approach and said it does not support cutting down forests to make way for solar. Tomei said MUCC engaged in the Gaylord solar siting discussion earlier in the year and stressed that siting decisions must consider fish and wildlife. He and Trotter also asked for greater transparency and public criteria for any DNR solar lease process, urging public disclosure of parcels considered and scoring used to evaluate them.

The committee asked MUCC about deer-management options, aquatic invasive species control and Camp Grayling. On deer policy, MUCC representatives said membership has debated earn-a-buck and combo-tag ideas; an “earn a second buck” proposal failed at the recent convention by a narrow margin. MUCC said it supports regulatory or incentive approaches to encourage doe harvest in areas with deer overpopulation and that membership is often sharply divided on deer regulations.

Trotter said MUCC was an early statewide conservation organization to oppose the 2022 Camp Grayling expansion, citing public-land access concerns. The group also supports filling the State Park Endowment Fund to its constitutional cap if available federal funds can be used and endorses the DNR’s managed land strategy pending legislative endorsement.

Trotter and Tomei invited committee members to MUCC events, said MUCC distributes Tracks Magazine to schools and offices, and highlighted outreach such as the Michigan Out of Doors podcast and a biweekly newsletter. They said MUCC has a small Lansing staff of about 10 full-time employees and leverages seasonal staff for its youth camp.

Committee members asked follow-up questions about license fees, the organization’s stance on renewable energy, partnerships with conservation districts, and the organization’s process for producing policy positions.