Wyoming license fee hikes!

D

Desert Sandman

New member
Hunting & Fishing license fees to be raised for resident and non-residents alike!

Click Link to full story;

http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php...gr-gamefish.inc

My comments follow:

A five dollar increase for residents and a FIFTY dollar increase for non-residents. The 20% increase only applies to residents but my math shows a 23.81% for non-residents!
Where will it end?
Wyoming is going to find themselves in a similar situation as Colorado did last year when they raised their fees! Far fewer hunters, over crowding of animals resulting in heavy winter kill due to starvation!

MTSTCON; I know, here we go again! But this is getting to be just a bit much!
 
Sandman,
I am hearing you on this one. I keep reading in the news where they have held town hall meetings and G&F says everyone wants more services and don't mind an increase in licsense fees. I haven't heard that from anyone in the sports shops, on the street, or anyone I know. I wish they were conservation officers instead of tax collectors!!!
Greg
 
They're doing this at the same time that CWD poses a serious problem in the state? Or am I confusing it with a different state?
 
Now I'm really getting ticked-off! I just recieved an E-mail from some jerk with an e-mail address that must be phony because my reply to him came back as undeliverable, he claimed to be a Wyo. resident and was having the best time of his life rubbing my nose in it, concerning Non-residents fee increases.
I can deal with some low-life being an a-hole, but he kind of screwed up when he said I should have read about the state of Wyoming's Budget SURPLUS! Well I found it at the "Governor's page" link on the Wyoming Game and Fish web site. Seems the State of Wyoming is setting on a tiddy budget $urplus! Yet when you read what is written in the Casper, Wy. and Billings Montana newspapers, they say they need more funding! So they are getting the money through increases in hunting and fishing licenses. Now, if I were a resident & Tax payer of Wyoming, that would raise a few questions.
Your getting it as bad as the non-residents, just by a mis-direction play.
So to the anonomous letter writer, I say thank you. You haven't lessened my concern here but may have opened some eyes of your fellow residents, if you truly are from Wyoming. :eek:
 
I guess I'm not the only one not liking this situation. There's been a whole new wrinkle thrown in! Check out my posting in the "Members Clubhouse" /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

This has gotten alot more intense than I thought!
 
Just an update;
All Residents and Non-residents alike will be shelling out 20% More for hunting and fishing permits. I won't go into the dollar differences.
 
Sandman,
I don't know who your mystery e-mailer is but I am from Wyoming and agrre that the increases are BS. I am an outfitter here and will explain why things are the way they are here. We have some very vocal sportsan groups in the state, they hate non-residents and they really hate outfitters, which is you and me. They have a strong voice and an in with the game and fish somewhere, because they have defeated measures by the outfitters on every issue. They don't want to pay for anything, but want to reap the benifits. It is pretty unreal. Did you know that non-residents put forth 80% of the money taken in by the game and fish but only recieve 20% of the total licenses. They also hate the fact that most private land is now unaccessable to them. Mostly because of their own actions against private land owners. It's quite a game we play out here. I pay for the land I hunt on, both private and public. Outfitters must pay to use public lands, but private residents don't have to. If they just charged a few dollars to hunt on public land think of the revenue they would generate. Maybe then they wouldn't need to raise license fees. The other big issue in Wyoming is predator control. The ranchers have footed that bill for years but since there are less and less sheepmen and less and less predator control more big game is suffering. If the game and fish would put more into predator control we would have way more to hunt and could sell more licenses equaling more revenue. And again not raise fees.
 
Texas is planning on increasing their fees to, all about 20%. A resident hunting licence is going from $19.00 to $23.00, fishing costs the same. The super combo which includes all of the stamps except the Federal duck stamp, is going from $49.00 to $59.00. Non-resident hunting license is going from $250.00 to $300.00, while non-resident fishing is going from $30.00 to $50.00.

The cost of registering a boat every 2 years is also going up. (less than 16 ft) from $30.00 to $40.00(16-23 ft.) is going from $40.00 to $50, and 24+ is going from $50.00 t0 $70.00.

Not to mention that all of the timber company and other landowner lease prices are going up.
 
Cal;
Sorry for not replying to you sooner.
I am well aware of of your delema as an outfitter.
Your Special interest groups ie "Sportsmans Groups" you mentioned, also the "Good ol'Boy's & Commissioners", Rules, Regs, and fees imposed on you, then the cost of a "Bond" or Liability insurance especially if you run a string of horses. Just to mention a few! Those are many of the reasons one of my closest friends[Since the late 60's], a third generation Guide&Outfitter in Wyoming got out of the business.
Your 80%Pay-for-funding by Non-Residents of Wyo G&F and recieve 20% of the tags is real close. The 20% allotment for permits is dead-on-correct, the 80% may be a bit higher! I spent the best part of two days trying to sort out the demand index at the G&F web site, until I started to go cross-eyed, giving it my best attempt to be accurate.
The way they have it laid out with different forms or speadsheets for each species, would drive a "CPA" to drink! The Dollar amounts are truly mind-boggling!
My last estimate of the funding produced by Non-resident hunters fees alone was somewhere in the vacinity of $35,000,000.00, + or - a couple million! :eek:
Were you aware that there is an excess of 100,000 non-res applicants every year? At the $10.00 fee for processing each application , this brings in an excess of $1,000,000.00 of revenue alone!
How much is a residents application fee $3.00?
Why does a non-res have to pay 333% more just to apply? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif It doesn't cost any more to process or send notification of wether or not you were successful to a Resident or Non-resident. Postage is the same to send a letter across the street, state or the nation!
And NOW! To in an attempt to create more revenue and lessen the chances of Non-residents drwing a permit.
It seems Wyoming G&F would rather spend $95,000.00 on a "Consultant" for selling "Online" licenses than replace even one of the FOUR Game Wardens that retired this past year!
Wyoming has no problem selling every available Permit offered each year. With the exception of a few permits that have very limited access due to private property. With Wyoming not accepting Credit Card payments for Licenses how can they implement such a plan?
More mismanagment by Wyo G&F.

Link to page the story appears on below:

http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php...-wyo-digest.inc
 
Hello Sandman. I am a Wyoming resident and my e-mail address isn`t bogus.

First of all I am not against nonresidents or outfitters. The animals belong to the state not to the land owners (this has been decided by the US supreme court). Thus the right of the state to set licence prices for the privlege of hunting the animal, not the people that own the land, be it private or public property. Secondly, the budget surplus of the state cannot be used by the Fish and Game. By law the only revenue source for them is in licence purchases and a few other revenue streams. This is a good thing, the anti hunter doesn`t pay so this limits there input into wildlife management at the state level.

As for the outfitters of this state, they bring about most of the animosity that is directed there way. They have tried to limit my hunting to one region, much like the nonresident.But they can guide elk in the winds, deer and turkey in the black hills or any other place in the state that they can get the contract with land owners or acquire the forset lease to. They also have started asking for license`s to sell to people that hunt with them. These license`s will come from the resident allotments in limited quota areas since the nonresidents permit numbers are set by law. If you think that the price for a nonresident licence is high then try to by one from an outfitter that has one and knows that you want it.

We in Wyoming are spoiled. We live in a wonderful state with an abundance of wildlife and minerals to support us, and with this "booty" we fail to realize that we should pay our way. I believe that a resident gets to good a deal, but I don`t believe that the nonresident gets a raw one.

Thanks, Phil
 


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