Defending Florida's Outdoor Heritage & Constitutional Freedoms
Florida LegacyFoundation
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★ Florida Constitution · Article I, Section 28

The Right to Hunt & Fish Is Now the Law of the Land.

In 2024, Floridians voted overwhelmingly to enshrine hunting and fishing in our Constitution. The Florida Legacy Foundation exists to defend that mandate — protecting sportsmen, landowners, and the Fourth Amendment against government overreach.

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A Florida 501(c)(4) social-welfare organization · Sportsmen · Landowners · Constitutional conservatives

67%Voted Yes on Amendment 2 (2024)
6.9MFlorida voters for the right
24thState to constitutionalize it
1stLine of defense for your rights
Who We Are

Standing Guard Over Florida's Sporting Heritage

Constitution

Defending your right to hunt and fish, and protecting outdoorsmen's First Amendment freedoms.

Property Rights

Your land is your land. We fight to keep the invisible line of private property respected.

Conservation

Abundant wildlife and robust freedom are not in conflict — sportsmen are the original conservationists.

Advocacy

Legislation, testimony, coalitions, and like-minded candidates — pressing the fight where it counts.

Putting on your camouflage shouldn't mean taking off your civil liberties.

— The Florida Legacy Foundation
On the Record

Had a run-in with FWC?

Three officers waiting at the ramp. A boat searched bow to stern with nothing found. An officer on your land with no warrant and no permission. Good encounters count too. If it happened to you, put it on the record. Every story is counted and carried to Tallahassee.

Share Your Story
On the Front Lines

Our Lobbying Efforts

From restoring warrant protections against FWC overreach to holding the line on the 2024 mandate, we are actively engaged in Tallahassee and in your county. See where the battles stand — and where we need you.

View Current Lobbying Efforts →

Join a Movement 6.9 Million Strong

Get action alerts, candidate scorecards, and the truth about what's happening to your rights in Tallahassee. No spam — just the fight.

Current Lobbying Efforts

Where the Fight Stands

The Florida Legacy Foundation tracks and champions the legislation that protects your right to hunt, fish, and hold private property. Here is where our priority efforts stand.

Top Priority

Closing the "Open Fields" Loophole

Under the century-old "open fields doctrine" (Hester v. United States, 1924; Oliver v. United States, 1984), courts hold that the Fourth Amendment stops at the yard around your home — leaving your fields, woods, and pastures open to warrantless entry. It's the exact loophole that lets FWC officers step onto your private land without a warrant, probable cause, or permission.

We've drafted legislation to close this loophole in Florida and put it directly in the hands of a state senator — and we're working to secure a sponsor for the upcoming session. Once it's filed, we intend to advocate hard to see it passed. The momentum is real: in 2025 the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled against warrantless searches of private land.

Status: Proposed legislation delivered to a state senator · Seeking a sponsor for the upcoming session
Won · Now Defending

Amendment 2 — Right to Hunt & Fish

Passed by 67% of Florida voters in 2024, Amendment 2 enshrined the right to hunt and fish in Article I, Section 28 of the Florida Constitution — making Florida the 24th state to do so.

Our job now is to ensure agencies and courts honor this mandate — and that it supersedes older legal theories like the "Public Trust Doctrine" used to erode sportsmen's access.

Status: Enshrined in the Constitution · Enforcement & defense ongoing
Vetoed 2025 · Fighting On

HB 1133 — Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission

Rep. Jason Shoaf's 2025 bill restructured the FWC with regional representation and set clear limits on when its officers may enter private property. It cleared the House 116–0 and the Senate 36–2.

Despite near-unanimous, bipartisan support, the bill was vetoed by the Governor on June 18, 2025. We are committed to seeing its protections enacted — the fight carried forward into HB 1249 in the 2026 session.

Status: Passed both chambers · vetoed by the Governor (2025)

If you're working in your garage with the door open, an officer can't walk up your driveway and demand receipts for your power tools. HB 1249 simply asks FWC officers to respect that same line.

— From "This Land Is Your Land," Florida Legacy Foundation
Our Approach

How We Move the Needle

Legislation

Drafting, sponsoring, and shepherding bills that protect sportsmen and landowners.

Testimony

Showing up in Tallahassee to put sportsmen's voices on the record in committee.

Coalitions

Uniting hunters, anglers, farmers, and property-rights allies into one voice.

Candidates

Identifying and supporting like-minded candidates who will defend the mandate.

Fund the Fight → Share Your Story
Florida Candidate Stances

Where They Stand on Your Rights

Elections have consequences for the outdoors. We track where Florida candidates and officeholders stand on the right to hunt and fish, private property, and reining in agency overreach — so you can vote your values.

FLF Champion · Grade A

Rep. Jason Shoaf

Sponsor of HB 1249 to restore warrant protections against FWC overreach on private land. A proven ally of Florida's sportsmen and landowners.

How We Grade

Grades reflect voting records, public statements, questionnaire responses, and sponsorship of pro-sportsmen legislation — from A (champion) through F (opponent), or "Not yet rated" until we've reviewed the race.

2026 Florida Candidate Directory

Candidates who qualified for the November 3, 2026 general election, from the Florida Division of Elections (qualifying closed June 12, 2026). Search and filter below — we add grades as we review each race.

CandidatePartyOfficeDistrictFLF Grade
This directory is growing. We're expanding it to cover every Florida race — check back as we add candidates across the ballot and publish our grades based on voting records and public statements. Data source: Florida Division of Elections.

How We Rate

Grades reflect voting records, public statements, questionnaire responses, and sponsorship of pro-sportsmen legislation.

Candidate Questionnaire

Edit Link your candidate survey here so campaigns can go on the record with Florida's sportsmen.

Get Involved

Volunteer, host a meet-and-greet, or help us reach sportsmen in your district before the next election.

Volunteer
Featured Editorial

This Land Is Your Land

THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND

As outdoorsmen, we respect the rules. We buy our licenses, we follow bag limits, and we teach our kids to be stewards of the land. But for too long in Florida, there has been a different set of rules for the government agents who police us…

The piece makes the constitutional case for HB 1249 — that a 67% mandate for the right to hunt and fish should not require sportsmen to surrender their Fourth Amendment protections. Warrantless "compliance checks" on private land treat law-abiding hunters differently from every other citizen.

Read the full editorial

Right now, Representative Jason Shoaf is sponsoring HB 1249, a bill that seeks to restore a basic constitutional right to Florida's sportsmen and landowners. The bill is simple. It amends state law to say that Florida Wildlife Commission (FWC) officers may enter private property "in the same manner and subject to the same requirements as a law enforcement officer." That's it.

Currently, an FWC officer operates under a different standard than any other law enforcement agent. Unlike a deputy, who needs a warrant to enter your property, an FWC officer can enter your private land (outside of your home) without a warrant, without probable cause, and without your permission, simply to "check" for compliance.

In 2024, a commanding 67% of Floridians voted to pass Amendment 2, enshrining the Right to Hunt and Fish in our Constitution. This undeniable mandate supersedes the legal theories of the past like the 'Public Trust Doctrine' and demands a higher standard of protection. HB 1249 resolves this conflict, proving that we do not have to sacrifice our Fourth Amendment rights just to go hunting.

Some claim that without warrantless access, wildlife can't be protected. But this insults the intelligence of our conservation officers. Our State Troopers catch drug traffickers without strip-searching every minivan. Our Sheriff's Deputies catch burglars without kicking in every front door. They do it through investigation, evidence, warrants, and good police work. We believe FWC officers are capable of doing the same.

The Florida Legacy Foundation is proud to stand with Representative Jason Shoaf. Join us in supporting this fight. Let's ensure that the legacy we leave our children includes both abundant wildlife and robust freedom — because putting on your camouflage shouldn't mean taking off your civil liberties.

Watch & Listen

The Podcast & Video Channel

Conversations with lawmakers, biologists, landowners, and sportsmen on the front lines of Florida's fight for the outdoors.

Coming Soon

Our Podcast & Channel Are On the Way

We're getting the studio ready. Follow us on social media so you don't miss the very first episode.

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Watch on YouTube

Embed your latest video here, or link out to your channel. Add your YouTube URL.

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Listen to the Podcast

Link your show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your host. Add your podcast URL.

Listen Now →

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About Us

The Florida Legacy Foundation

A 501(c)(4) social-welfare organization advocating for hunting and fishing rights across the Sunshine State.

Our Mission

We advocate for hunting and fishing rights in Florida through legislation, advocacy, support for like-minded candidates, and publishing the information sportsmen need to defend their heritage.

We believe abundant wildlife and robust freedom go hand in hand. Sportsmen are the original conservationists, and the license fees and stewardship of hunters and anglers have funded Florida's conservation for generations. Defending the right to hunt and fish is defending conservation.

What "501(c)(4)" Means

As a 501(c)(4) social-welfare organization, the Foundation is built to advocate. Unlike a charity, we can lobby without limit on issues that advance our mission and can engage in political activity — including educating voters and supporting candidates — within IRS rules.

Contributions to the Florida Legacy Foundation are not tax-deductible as charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes. This is standard for 501(c)(4) organizations and is what allows us to fight for you without limits.
On the Record

Had a Run-In With FWC? Put It on the Record.

Every sportsman in Florida has heard one of these stories. Most get told at the boat ramp, then forgotten. Share yours here, good or bad, and it becomes part of the record we carry to Tallahassee in the fight for warrant protections on private land. You never have to give your name.

Have an open citation or court case? Talk to your attorney before sharing details. Anything you write could be used in that case.

What kind of encounter was it?

Tell it the way you'd tell a friend: where you were, what the officers did, what they said, and how it ended. Good encounters matter as much as bad ones. Please leave out anything you wouldn't want read aloud in court.

Where did it happen?
Did they have a warrant or ask permission?

Don't trim or edit the original; the untouched file is what proves it's real. You can also send files after you submit, using your story code.

Can we share your story?

Want to stay anonymous? Skip your name and leave a Signal username or a throwaway email instead. Your story code also lets you follow up without ever giving a name.

#FilmEveryTime

Film Every Encounter, Good or Bad

A camera protects you in the moment and proves what happened afterward. Footage of a professional, respectful check matters as much as footage of a bad one, because real change comes from showing both.

Hit record before they reach youThen share it here, with or without your name.

Record openly

Recording officers doing their jobs in public is protected speech. Say "I'm recording" out loud so there's no question about privacy.

Start early, keep rolling

The first minute is the one that matters, and it's the one most people miss. Keep recording until the officers leave.

Mount it

A chest or console mount keeps your hands free and visible. On your land, a trail camera at the gate records who comes in when nobody is home.

Back it up automatically

Turn on cloud backup so your footage survives a lost, broken, or seized phone.

Keep the original

Trim a copy if you want to post it. Send us the untouched file; it's what proves the video is real.

Stay calm, state facts

Say the date, time, place, and number of officers. Don't argue or resist on camera. Filming someone else's stop? Step back 25 feet if an officer tells you to, and keep filming.

General information, not legal advice. FWC officers wear body cameras too; you can request that footage as a public record.

Stories on the Record

Good and bad, shared with permission. Officer names withheld.

Support the Foundation

Fund the Fight for Florida's Freedom

Every dollar goes to work in Tallahassee and in your county — defending your right to hunt, fish, and hold your land. Chip in today to protect the 2024 mandate and defend Florida's sportsmen.

Make a Donation

Any amount fuels the fight. Your gift powers our lobbying, legislative testimony, candidate work, and public education across the Sunshine State.

Donate Now

Your privacy is protected. As a 501(c)(4) social-welfare organization, the Florida Legacy Foundation is not required to publicly disclose its supporters, and under IRS Revenue Procedure 2018-38 and Treasury Regulations (T.D. 9898) it is not required to report the names or addresses of its donors to the IRS on Schedule B of its annual Form 990. Your support stays private.

Tax status: Contributions are not deductible as charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes. Funds may be used for lobbying and political activity in furtherance of our mission; certain election-related spending may be subject to separate disclosure under applicable campaign-finance law.