Not On My Watch!

[ScottR]

http://blog.eastmans.com/not-on-my-watch/

We may have had discussion on this before, but here is a post I think everyone around here would like to read. Especially the Non-Residents who have been putting in for Wyoming.

 

[ElkTrout]

Wow! Definitely will have to keep my eyes on that situation. Thanks for sharing! Myself and I am sure many others here have invested a lot into the points. I was finally starting to feel like I would be in the running for a few of the areas I had my eye on. It will be interesting to see how this transpires!

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

After burning my elk and antelope points, I still have max deer point and will use them in 2015. After that it will probably antelope only I apply for points to hunt. Sad, sad situation as I have hunted Wyoming since 1980 and love the state. When I retired 15 years ago it was where I wanted to retire to, but my wife liked Colorado better.

I agree with "Not on my watch" 100% and will do what I can to help.

 

[In God We Trust]

If they think they have a budget shortfall now they are looking for a budget disaster if they do this. Where will they make up the lost revenue from non resident tags? I guess residents will be asked to make up the difference by paying a lot more for their tags. I understand as a resident of Colorado the frustration of tags going to non residents but they help pay the bills by paying 500+ dollars for tags! I can see a 70/30 or 75/25 split as reasonable but 90/10 is B.S, myself and I am sure others would quit sending them over $100.00 per year for preference points. I do not apply in AZ or NM anymore for the same reason. Good luck with that.

 

[hoshour]

Somebody has absolutely no financial idea of what they are doing. Nonresidents pay either $326 (regular draw) or $566 (special draw) for deer licenses vs. the resident deer tag cost of $43. I think nonresidents buy something around 30% of the deer tags.

So if they cut nonresident tags to 10% they will lose 2/3 of the people who are consistently paying 7 1/2 to 13 times as much per tag as the residents pay.

How long could you stay in business by intentionally saying so long to 2/3 of your most wildly profitable customers?

 

[WapitiBob]

It's coming back next year, minus Elk, Deer, and Antelope, allegedly.

 

[AT Hiker]

I was talking to an outfitter friend of mine today at the NWTF convention in Nashville and he told me it was shot down. We then talked about all the loss jons that would happen if this bill in fact ever goes through.

The small towns that rely on NR, the outfitters, ranchers, meat packers, taxidermist, etc. I know some people have beef with outfitters but at the end of the day they are hard working folk just like us, at least the ones I know. Trust me, Im all about public land hunting, but those of us that have more money than time that outfitter really makes our life much easier and to see them and the other people at jeopardy over selfishness is nonsense to me.

Its not a perfect world, but we can all work together.

 

[Ikeepitcold]

Wow I'm not sure what to say about that! Maybe disappointing?

 

[WapitiBob]

Until Hicks gets voted out this and other Bills of the same type will continue to flow thru the Legislature.

 

[Elkoholic307]

I don't get it. G&F is broke but they're trying to lower the NR tag allotment? What's their angle?

 

[AT Hiker]

I don't get it. G&F is broke but they're trying to lower the NR tag allotment? What's their angle?

From my understanding it is a handful of residents and that Hicks dude trying to push this. I really dont think G&F has much to do with this thought process, I could be wrong though.

 

[Elkoholic307]

Oh okay, that would make more sense.

 

[Fink]

I don't get it. G&F is broke but they're trying to lower the NR tag allotment? What's their angle?

It seems to me that it has less to do with being broke, and more to do with trying to pass what more of your constituents want. Wyoming has some of the more liberal NR tag allotments in the Western states.. As a non resident, it's great for me, but I'd be seriously pissed if as a resident, NR's had better odds of drawing a sheep or moose tag than I did.

To me, it seems fair to reduce the NR allotment of sheep, goat and moose tags, but continue with the existing amount of deer, elk and antelope tags available for NR's. Of course, it's not fair to fleece the dudes that have been buying $100 points for the last 15 years either.

 

[WapitiBob]

NR are funding the WY Game dept. plain and simple. Portland has more people than that whole state.
WY can't pass a measly 10% fee increase and Hicks is trying to cut off the major funding mechanism. If you guys think SFW isn't loving these funding issues so they can show a Utah solution you have your head in the sand.

 

[Fink]

NR are funding the WY Game dept. plain and simple. Portland has more people than that whole state.
WY can't pass a measly 10% fee increase and Hicks is trying to cut off the major funding mechanism. If you guys think SFW isn't loving these funding issues so they can show a Utah solution you have your head in the sand.

Absolutely agree. SFW to the rescue!!! We'll solve your budget issues. Give us all your tags, we'll sell them to the highest bidder, and keep a huge chunk of the proceeds!

 

[Topgun 30-06]

307---G&F has nothing to do with this! This is strictly a few residents that got with their Legislators to put in this Bill for a NR cap of 10% and another to make a PP system for residents. If that Bill ever passed to limit all the tags to a 10% NR cap, there had better be a guaranteed alternative funding method in place or the residents better be ready to pay at least what the NRs are for their tags because we're probably talking about at least a 10 million dollar deficit it would cause when NR fees pay 80% of the G&F budget. A cut to 10% would be over 50% of what the cap is now. Many Wyoming residents obviously don't know how good they have it when they can buy 10 or 12 tags for different animals at less cost than one NR tag we pay for! I'm sure SFW is chomping at the bit to get at Wyoming and a reliable Wyoming source has told me that a certain SFW higher up is the one who was the main person behind getting this 10% cap Bill introduced in the first place!

 

[HuskyMusky]

Honestly part of me wonders why we set aside any tags for res vs. non-res, vs just having 1 draw, non-res already pay 10X or more than residents. Part of me says just let the luck of the draw determine who gets the tag, esp when we're already paying 10x or more.

If there are 1 million WY residents who apply for tags, and 100k non-res, naturally then non-res would on average get about 10% of the tags, so it would be interesting to see how many res hunt/apply for tags and how many non-res.

on a side note, if $$ is the only important thing to WY, then why not make everyone pay non-res prices and see what happens? I'm being a bit facetious obviously but if that were the case, way more non-residents would get tags, revenue would be through the roof as well.

If residents were required to pay non-res prices, I wonder if even 10% of residents would apply from the year previous?

not trying to start any arguments here, in general though I would say residents certainly could pay a bit more than they do in most states and non-res could use a bit of a discount. But I guess until then all one can do is play in the system we have and deal with it, as I do.

 

[In God We Trust]

HuskyMusky, We have tags allotted for residents and non residents so the people that live in a state get most of the tags as they should. I see nothing wrong with 80/20, as I stated 90/10 is ridiculous. If you want the same shot as a guy that lives in Wyoming or Colorado then move to Wyoming or Colorado. I go back and hunt Iowa when I can draw a tag, I don't expect to have the same access to good deer tags as Iowa residents. As a resident and non resident hunter I disagree with you 100%. The reason residents don't have to pay as much is because guys and their KIDS that don't have the coin to pay non resident tag fees can still hunt in their home state.

 

[Musket Man]

Im all for giving residents more tags then nonresidents but if some of these state wildlife agencies having budget problems would give nonresidents a few more tags it would help their situation alot.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

Im all for giving residents more tags then nonresidents but if some of these state wildlife agencies having budget problems would give nonresidents a few more tags it would help their situation alot.

***Giving more tags to alleviate a budget problem is not the way a game agency should do business and that is why Wyoming is now in deep dodo because they relied way too much on NR tags to fund the agency over a long period of time. Now with tag cuts made the last few years because of declining deer herds everywhere, as well as antelope in some areas due to the drought, they are in a budget deficit without making some severe cuts.