And the Hits just keep on coming....WY now.

[TOGIE]

So for those who feel this will lead to less support for public land hunting or public land in general, what do you mean exactly? I'm not saying you're wrong just help me understand, I've never lived in a non-rocky mountain state. I already support public land ownership and recreation (and engage in it) in lots of states that I'll never hunt in.

i think it's a fair question.

i kinda find the argument that raising prices and limiting NR opportunity will ultimately lead to a loss of public lands advocates and the land transfer crowd ultimately winning their game a red herring.

i mean even if it did lead to hunters quitting hunting and no longer caring about public lands those numbers will still pale in comparison to the many other user groups out there besides hunters with massive numbers and massive money fighting for public lands

edit: that said, I don't think that means we should say "well who cares if we lose a few hunters" .... for whatever reason we may lose them

 

[rwc101]

I would say they share their share tax revenue with WY.....

Which States Rely the Most on Federal Aid?

Montana, Wyoming, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Arizona rely the most on federal aid. Meanwhile, Hawaii, Virginia, Kansas, Utah, and Minnesota rely the least.

taxfoundation.org

Double eyeroll.

 

[ChrisB]

i only half agree with you.

i think colorado needs to reign it in a little at the least.

we have excellent hunting overall in this state. honestly really good. but i still look at much of the colorado experience and find that things are a little out of control and we need to do a little more to work on a better balance between opportunity and quality. and one of the first places to look there is OTC opportunity, both R and NR; also the insanely generous NR allocation you find in the A LOT of limited deer and elk units. i want a quality experience in my state and I personally think a lot of work can be done on that front.

if it's gonna get really hard to tags in the highest quality state in the lower 48, can we please focus on higher quality where I live?

and while we don't want to be the harbingers of horrific west wide point creep if we drastically cut NR elk opportunity, at the same time, as a coloradan my NR opportunity is getting wrecked every where i look, why should I (coloradans) be the only ones to sacrifice their home state (R) opportunity/quality for the NRs?

I would hope each state can do what they want to do and not just do something because thats what the other states are doing. In that I hope CO can stick to what they have been doing. The state is a treasure for many out of state hunters. Can't we keep just one of them, is that asking to much? I hope not. Why even have state borders if they all just do what the the others are doing. Not every unit or state needs to be a trophy unit or state. Some units or states are more about opportunity and that has great value. Just being out there even if the odds of filling a tag are lower sure beats not going at all. Wisconsin deer hunting huge opportunity. No limit on deer tags resident or non. Wisconsin shoots younger bucks on average then any other state. They could change that and make it more like Iowa but why? Yes it's great to see bigger bucks but to give up the opportunity for so many who just want to get a deer and put some meat in the freezer is it worth it?

 

[Trial153]

Double eyeroll.

follow the money. It sure doesnt leave WY

 

[thomas89]

So for those who feel this will lead to less support for public land hunting or public land in general, what do you mean exactly? I'm not saying you're wrong just help me understand, I've never lived in a non-rocky mountain state. I already support public land ownership and recreation (and engage in it) in lots of states that I'll never hunt in.

One example would be, I’d quit with the RMEF dues for sure. Why bother for essentially a once/twice in a life time average elk tag? Doubt I’d be the only one, and then RMEF is losing easements, etc etc. Not just RMEF though, I bet a whole host of organizations would see a plummet in dues. If residents are being selfish, us non-residents can be the same. Crummy as it is.

 

[Falcon75]

1. Eyeroll
2. I'd rather have clam chowder.

I take chowder and wllw1313 marmot spots so I can use my required non resident small game license in Colorado to buy an elk point. I hope none of the big guys with shows catch on to this and ruin it like AZ deer as of late.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

I would say they share their share tax revenue with WY.....

Which States Rely the Most on Federal Aid?

Montana, Wyoming, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Arizona rely the most on federal aid. Meanwhile, Hawaii, Virginia, Kansas, Utah, and Minnesota rely the least.

taxfoundation.org

Yeah... so sorry about this MT, ID, AK and WY but you guys need to figure out how to train your own doctors.

We are taking all the one's we trained back. Have fun building and funding a medical school from scratch.

and PS we aren't accepting your medical students any more, the WWAMI program just doesn't work for us anymore.

 

[rwc101]

follow the money. It sure doesnt leave WY

Spare me. It leaves in droves to corporations who leave the state up a creek as soon as they can. Powering the rest of the nation along the way.

Comparing recreational hunting opportunities offered to vaccines and tax revenue in a federated republic is silly.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

Spare me. It leaves in droves to corporations who leave the state up a creek as soon as they can. Powering the rest of the nation along the way.

Comparing recreational hunting opportunities offered to vaccines and tax revenue in a federated republic is silly.

The point is we are all actually better off when we work together. We all would be poorer if the US were a bunch of small nation states.

People who hunt as their vacation should pay more and shouldn't get to do it as often as residents, but there is a balance.

Collectively I think the rocky states are forgetting.

 

[Trial153]

Spare me. It leaves in droves to corporations who leave the state up a creek as soon as they can. Powering the rest of the nation along the way.

Comparing recreational hunting opportunities offered to vaccines and tax revenue in a federated republic is silly.

In otherwords your almost totally dependent on the rest of the country for your jobs and industry. Got it.

 

[Dougfirtree]

Not like this.

Wyoming Game and Fish Department - 2018 License Fee Changes

wgfd.wyo.gov

They went up about $120.00 for an elk tag in 2018. Are you thinking this bill represents bigger increases than that? Was that in the info, I didn't see it. Yikes, I wonder if they'll let the Type 1 and 2 fees diverge from the type 4 and keep those lower?

 

[TOGIE]

I would hope each state can do what they want to do and not just do something because thats what the other states are doing. In that I hope CO can stick to what they have been doing. The state is a treasure for many out of state hunters. Can't we keep just one of them, is that asking to much? I hope not. Why even have state borders if they all just do what the the others are doing. Not every unit or state needs to be a trophy unit or state. Some units or states are more about opportunity and that has great value. Just being out there even if the odds of filling a tag are lower sure beats not going at all. Wisconsin deer hunting huge opportunity. No limit on deer tags resident or non. Wisconsin shoots younger bucks on average then any other state. They could change that and make it more like Iowa but why? Yes it's great to see bigger bucks but to give up the opportunity for so many who just want to get a deer and put some meat in the freezer is it worth it?

i get that. I do.

but think about it this way: my odds of drawing a tag as a resident in colorado ON AVERAGE, GENERALLY, are no better than yours when you look at a lot of limited deer and elk units. When my ability to get tags in other states that i love to hunt drops precipitously year after year for the benefit of residents in those states that GENERALLY have no trouble getting those tags, why can't i have a leg up in my own state?

here's the key: there should be a benefit to being a resident of a state when it comes to hunting OTHER than simply price IMO. I don't see much benefit to living in colorado besides the price difference for a tag and proximity to the animals, especially when you compare the benefits of being a resident in other western states.

edit: and i'll add, while i respect wyoming residents to do what they will with their wildlife. it does suck. from my perspective wyoming residents have no trouble getting enormous amounts of excellent tags at an excellent price that much of the country would die for. is it really that bad? are you guys really getting slighted that much? but again i respect your decisions.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

i get that. I do.

but think about it this way: my odds of drawing a tag as a resident in colorado ON AVERAGE, GENERALLY, are no better than yours when you look at a lot of limited deer and elk units. When my ability to get tags in other states that i love to hunt drops precipitously year after year for the benefit of residents in those states that GENERALLY have no trouble getting those tags, why can't i have a hand up in my own state?

here's the key: there should be a benefit to being a resident of a state when it comes to hunting OTHER than simply price IMO. I don't see much benefit to living in colorado besides the price difference for a tag, especially when you compare the benefits of being a resident in other states.

I think that's actually a positive of CO, I don't mind chatting up a bunch of dudes from Arkansas at the trail head. Glad they are getting a chance to elk hunt.

 

[rwc101]

They went up about $120.00 for an elk tag in 2018. Are you thinking this bill represents bigger increases than that? Was that in the info, I didn't see it. Yikes, I wonder if they'll let the Type 1 and 2 fees diverge from the type 4 and keep those lower?

Yeah, an elk tag with be over $1,000 for NR.

 

[rwc101]

In otherwords your almost totally dependent on the rest of the country for your jobs and industry. Got it.

I get it. It sucks to see opportunity diminish, and emotions run high. I've already written to Senator Hicks opposing the bill. Will send a similar letter to the co-sponsors after work. Deep down, you know how ridiculous it is to compare wildlife, a resource held in trust by the states for its citizens, to vaccines or federal tax revenue. We're all dependent on other areas of the country for jobs and industry. Wyoming has resources that nobody else in the country can offer. Have a better day.

 

[D_Walt]

What price for a NR wyo elk tag is the line for common man can afford and only wealthy can afford? Personally, I feel its significantly higher than what's proposed in this bill.

I don’t think the increase in price is such a big deal so much as the general trend towards reduced opportunities is a troubling situation for NR’s. If a couple hundred bucks makes or breaks someones weeklong hunting trip that they have been planning for over a year that person probably shouldn’t be going in the first place.

 

[Deleted member 16014]

IMO resident opportunity is the surface of this. WY's budget is in tough shape with not a lot of hope. I know lots of states think they're budget is rough, but really, it's not good; and we have a statute requiring the governor to submit a balanced one. I think this bill will have support from most residents due to the opportunity part (and no red flags like set asides this time), but the legislators are largely going to vote "yes" because of the slam dunk revenue increase. The more I think about this the more I think it's going to go. Could be wrong.

Edited to add: I'm speaking generally about the state budget, I know it's not 1:1 because of the G&F funding model.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

I don’t think the increase in price is such a big deal so much as the general trend towards reduced opportunities is a troubling situation for NR’s. If a couple hundred bucks makes or breaks someones weeklong hunting trip that they have been planning for over a year that person probably shouldn’t be going in the first place.

My preferences would be that all western states figure out a ratio they like R v NR for cost. 10x, 20x, whatever, then just tie both to the CPI and stop doing this.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

IMO resident opportunity is the surface of this. WY's budget is in tough shape with not a lot of hope. I know lots of states think they're budget is rough, but really, it's not good; and we have a statute requiring the governor to submit a balanced one. I think this bill will have support from most residents due to the opportunity part (and no red flags like set asides this time), but the legislators are largely going to vote "yes" because of the slam dunk revenue increase. The more I think about this the more I think it's going to go. Could be wrong.

Great point, I assume a pretty decent portion of the budget is excise taxes on minerals correct (Coal/OG)?

 

[ccc23454]

Even at $1100 its still one of best costing oppurtunity tags avaliable. Much like MT WY has long seasons that can be hunted with bow/gun. So is a $1100 tag good for 6+weeks really more expensive than a $800 NM 5-day tag? Somewhat of a perspective issue