Paul, Minn., some 63 percent of Wyoming residents supported the proposed - and now defeated - legislation to increase license fees for hunters and anglers. Thagard and her organization point to a new poll that suggests most Wyomingites are in favor of increasing hunting and fishing license fees to help the state’s Game and Fish department deal with increasing budget and wildlife management pressures. According to polling results by DFM Research of St. … Sportsmen have united in Wyoming to speak to this issue.”Ī prominent oil and gas producer in Wyoming, Encana, even joined the Wyoming Sportsmen’s Alliance’s chorus for “sufficient” monetary support (possibly including increased fees) of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, saying that prudent and measurable wildlife habitat monitoring and conservation is key to the approval of continued oil and gas development in the state. ![]() “We’re all sitting down at the table together to work on this jointly, because this matters to all of us. Thagard said the budget cuts and fierce opposition to license fee increases - a valuable revenue driver for the department - were the driving force behind the formation of the Wyoming Sportsmen’s Alliance in 2013 to invest in a department responsible for maintaining wildlife resources that are under increasing pressure. The cuts, in addition to pending cuts for 2015 and beyond, may seriously hamstring the amount of in-the-field enforcement and biology research, potentially diminishing Wyoming’s wildlife resource, which sportsmen argue is at the core of Wyoming’s $2.9 billion annual tourism and travel industry, according to Thagard. Wyoming lawmakers imposed $6.6 million in combined cuts to the Game and Fish Department’s 20 budgets - without the offset of a license fee increase - resulting in the closure of public lands access and youth recruitment programs, and resulting in a smaller staff. “Before you go to the trough for more money, you need to make sure you’re being as efficient as you can.” It’s that they’re very entrenched about the way they do things,” Wyoming Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife executive director Bob Wharff told WyoFile. “It’s not that we think they’re not accountable. That group has also vehemently opposed proposals for license fee increases during the past two years, insisting that a fee increase cannot be justified until the Game and Fish department clearly states its priorities, its goals, and conducts a thorough cost-benefit analysis of all its programs. By doing so, it could help free up $5 million to $7 million in the portion of the Game and Fish budget that is supported by license fees.Ī draft of SF 45 in the interim also included shifting the cost of elk feeding grounds to the General Fund, but that portion was stripped before introduction to the Senate - a move that was pushed by the Wyoming Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife organization. The bill would shift some or all of the cost of the department’s grizzly bear management program and the cost of health insurance increases for department employees to the state’s General Fund. … We need sustainable support of Wyoming’s wildlife resource.”Īnother bill, Senate File 45, “Game and fish department-general fund budget requests,” passed introduction in the Senate on Monday. “But, from my perspective, this is just the beginning of the discussion. “I’m disappointed,” said Catherine Thagard, coordinator for the Wyoming Sportsmen’s Alliance. It failed to get the votes needed for introduction, with a vote of 26 ayes and 32 nays. House Bill 31 would have increased Wyoming Game and Fish license fees (exempting youth licenses) by 10 percent - potentially the first license fee increase in four years. ![]() (Mark Gocke – click to enlarge) Game and Fish license fee increase defeatedĪfter a year of organizing and lobbying, a new coalition of sportsmen groups saw one of its key pieces of legislation defeated on the first day of the Wyoming Legislature’s 2014 budget session, which commenced on Monday. Our work is made possible by dedicated members like you who invest in our reporting - thank you! Elk are gathered on a feeding ground in Wyoming. We appreciate you being a member of the WyoFile community.
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