Oregon activists have submitted over 120,000 signatures for Initiative Petition 28 — the so-called "PEACE Act" — which would criminalize hunting, fishing, ranching, and slaughtering animals for food. If this thing lands on the November 2026 ballot and passes, the only legal way to kill an animal in the state of Oregon would be in self-defense against an immediate attack. Your butcher? Criminal. Your Thanksgiving turkey? Evidence.
Because nothing says "progress" like arresting a rancher for raising cattle.
The initiative would amend Chapter 167 of the Oregon Revised Statutes to strip out the exemptions that currently allow normal human activities like farming, fishing, pest control, and livestock management. De-horning, branding, castration, artificial insemination — all criminalized under the new language. The campaign, run by chief petitioner David Michelson and his organization "End Animal Cruelty," has been collecting signatures since 2024 and crossed the threshold of 117,173 verified signatures needed to make the ballot. The Oregon Secretary of State's office still has to verify those signatures, with a July 2 deadline looming, but the fact that we're even having this conversation tells you everything you need to know about Oregon.
The campaign's own statement is a masterpiece of delusional vegan poetry. They claim their initiative "would extend the same legal protections our companion animals currently have to those other animals." Translation: your golden retriever and a feedlot steer are morally identical, and if you disagree, you belong in jail.
Andy Walgamott of Northwest Sportsman Magazine wasn't having it. He said, "Initiative Petition 28 cloaks itself as an anti-animal cruelty campaign, but in reality it would essentially criminalize hunting." That's putting it mildly, Andy. It would criminalize dinner.
Now here's where it gets really fun. Animal agriculture contributes $4 billion to Oregon's economy and employs over 30,000 people. Hunting and fishing alone generate $1.9 billion in annual revenue. So naturally, the geniuses behind IP 28 want to torch all of that.
To soften the blow of destroying an entire sector of the state's economy, the initiative proposes a "Humane Transition Fund" and a "Transitional Oversight Council" that would hand out grants for "food assistance" and "job retraining programs." Because when you criminalize a rancher's entire livelihood, the least you can do is offer him a pamphlet about learning to code.
Marie Neumiller, western states' policy team manager for the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation, pointed out the sheer insanity of the self-defense-only exception. She noted that under IP 28, "if a coyote ran by, nipped a kid in the heel and kept running, his parent wouldn't be able to do anything, even if that coyote kept coming back and harassing people." The only legal option? Wait until the animal is actively mauling you. Comforting.
Neumiller also noted that signature collectors have been at it since 2024, meaning some signers "could have moved out of Oregon and are no longer registered voters." So there's a sliver of hope that the verification process weeds out enough dead weight to kill this thing before it reaches the ballot.
Amy Patrick of the Oregon Hunters Association called it a "bad idea all the way around, and it has not been properly thought through." She added bluntly: "Economically, it would gut Oregon." Hunting and fishing, she noted, "are usually in our top economic industries." But sure, let's replace all of that with tofu subsidies and government retraining seminars.
The campaign has raised $304,818.28 in total contributions, with the Craigslist Charitable Fund chipping in the biggest single donation at $30,000. David Michelson himself donated $28,110, followed by Owen Gunden and Postnov Leonid at $25,000 each. Not exactly grassroots populism — more like a handful of wealthy ideologues trying to impose their dietary preferences on an entire state through criminal law.
Here's the kicker: 25 states already have right-to-hunt and fish provisions written into their constitutions, a tradition dating back to Vermont in 1777. Oregon isn't one of them. Which means there's no constitutional backstop if voters have a collective moment of insanity in November.
As Louder With Crowder reported, this is the logical endpoint of letting animal-rights activists write legislation. They started with fur coats. Then factory farms. Now they're coming for your fishing rod, your backyard smoker, and your right to eat a steak without a criminal record.
Oregon: where plastic straws are banned, homeless camps are protected, and soon your hamburger might land you in handcuffs. What a time to be alive.
