Senate Committee backs 9-year-old’s push to make hunting the official state sport

Originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org on March 4, 2026

By Ryan Suppe and Kevin Richert, IdahoEdNews:

BOSIE, Idaho — Betty Grandy showed up prepared Wednesday morning.

She had data. She had a case study from a neighboring state. She’d already bounced her proposal off Gov. Brad Little.

Betty also had backup: her parents, a younger sister, her grandfather.

Minutes later, Betty had the Senate State Affairs Committee on her side. Equally persuaded and charmed, the committee unanimously endorsed the Twin Falls homeschooled fourth grader’s bill designating hunting as Idaho’s state sport.

Grandy, 9, told lawmakers that Idaho already has a host of state symbols. But no state sport — unlike other states, like Wyoming, which honors rodeo.

But when Betty polled readers of the Grandy Gazette, a newspaper she shares with family and friends, she found support for a different sport. “Hunting was a clear winner.”

Making her subscribers’ case, Betty said a state designation would honor hunting’s place in Idaho’s heritage. And, she said, it would ensure that future fourth graders learn about the role hunting plays in the state.

After presenting the evidence, Betty did what every savvy lobbyist learns to do. She employed some people skills. “I’m grateful you are willing to consider an idea from a kid,” she said.

“You might be the best public speaker in this room,” said Sen. Ben Adams, R-Nampa.

“Good luck following that,” said Rep. Grayson Stone, R-Twin Falls, as the bill’s Senate sponsor, Meridian Republican Treg Bernt, prepared to close the presentation.

But by then, the committee’s mind was clearly made up.

“Sen. Bernt, sit down,” said Sen. Mark Harris, R-Soda Springs, wryly.

The hunting bill now goes to the Senate floor for a final vote. It passed the House unanimously on Feb. 23.