Hunting & Fishing Good News for non-residents hunting in Wyoming

[Ankeny]

In 2015 hunters and fishermen injected $27.6 million into the local economy in Carbon County alone with $19.9 million coming from hunters. If you take the USFWS National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation from 2011 and adjust it to 2015 dollars, the average spent by residents was $90.91 per day, and the average spent per day by non-residents was $579.82. So, if a non-resident came here for one week, a resident would have to spend over six weeks hunting to bring the same amount to the table. Then there is the issue of just the license fees. According to the Wyoming Game and Fish, currently (2018-2019) non-residents get 20 per cent of the hunting licenses, but they also account for 80% of the total license fee funding.

SF 0094 also known as the 90/10 bill was a bill introduced this year to allocate 10% of licenses to non-residents, and 90 percent of licenses to residents. The bill would have potentially raised some non-resident license fees by as much as 47%. The bill was soundly defeated upon introduction and got nowhere. Leading the opposition was the Wyoming Outfitters and Guides Association. I hate to think what would happen if a couple of hundred outfitters had to close their doors. The WYOGA had unwavering support in opposing the bill from goHunt, Wyoming Stock Growers, Wyoming Business Alliance, Wyoming Lodging and Restaurant Association, and the Wyoming Wildlife Federation. I am one of the many resident hunters who also opposed the bill.

 

[Jbail1]

Good information!

Can you tell me why they changed the non-resident elk draw date to May this year? Makes it exceptionally inconvenient for those of us who have to plan our schedules 6-12 months in advance.

 

[FjallJager]

Not sure why they did that. They claim it has something to do with cutting cost. To me it looks more like they did it to make money.

 

[Ankeny]

As a resident hunter, my party has already applied. Years ago I wouldn't even be able to apply for another couple of months. License fees are treated similar to a municipal enterprise account. The longer they hold onto the application fees, the more money they make for that account. In turn, they can keep license fees lower. There is also something about reducing costs of the drawing process by narrowing the gap between the non-resident draw and the resident draw. I don't know how that could make a difference, but I am ignorant on that issue.

As a Wyoming resident, I think it is time for the G&F to take a closer look at doing a little more belt tightening. I don't want a reduction in necessary services, and the last thing Wyoming needs is another person standing in the unemployment line. However, crap like an exotic bird biologist in Wyoming just escapes my feeble mind.