CO sportsmen about to get the screws put to them again

[Oak]

Looks like the new Colorado governor and the legislature is about to make sportsmen foot the bill for state parks in Colorado. I would suggest writing letters to your representatives early and often on this one.

Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper is proposing to combine two major state agencies dealing with outdoor recreation as an efficiency move.​

The agencies are the Colorado Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation, which oversees state parks and recreation areas, and the Colorado Division of Wildlife, which administers hunting, fishing and wildlife conservation programs.​

Both agencies are under the state’s Department of Natural Resources. The new agency would be called the Division of Parks, Wildlife and Outdoor Recreation (CDPW).​

According to Hickenlooper’s staff, “early estimates” are that the consolidation would allow a reduction of about 25 state positions through attrition. There would also be savings through reduction of fleet vehicles and other equipment.​

Officials did not have a precise estimate of cost savings from the move.​

“We committed on our first day in office to making government more efficient, effective and elegant,” Hickenlooper said in a statement Tuesday. “This proposed change in the Department of Natural Resources would do all of those things and continues our work with the legislature to more efficiently provide state services in these difficult budget times.”​

The change would need legislative approval. Enabling legislation is being sponsored by State Sens Gail Schwartz, D-Snowmass Village, and Mary Hodge, D-Brighton, as well as state Reps. Rep. Jerry Sonnenberg, R-Sterling, and Rep. Cheri Gerou, R-Evergreen.​

Under the proposal, the state’s existing Colorado State Parks Board and the Colorado Wildlife Commission would be combined into a single body to oversee the unified agency.​

The merger will help officials save money and continue what they regard as critical programs, Hickenlooper aides said.​

Hickenlooper and Mike King, executive director of the Department of Natural Resources, will detail their plans at a special joint meeting of the two boards scheduled for 10 a.m. to noon MST Thursday at the Division of Wildlife’s Hunter Education Building, 6060 Broadway, Denver.​

 

[jlmatthew]

Makes sense to me, the DOW can raise money better than Bernie Madoff.

Look how they're advertising so hard trying to sell more Elk tags just to make more cash that they dont need. $120+ million dollar budget, larger than New Mexico & Utah's combined and yet they need more!

 

[Oak]

So which parts of the budget would you like them to trim? Be specific...no generalizations.

The DOW is an enterprise agency...they receive no money from the general fund. So how do you suppose this proposal will cut the state budget? It will take money from the DOW, which is currently off limits to the legislature, and use it to pay for state parks. I personally don't want my license dollars to pay for cleaning the crappers at the local state park, but maybe other hunters don't feel that way?

 

[Big Fin]

If Montana is any example, this is a bad precedent for your DOW, unless you like license dollars going for other purposes. MT combined Parks into the F&G department, due to the same issues. Guess who subsidizes who?

 

[stillkickin]

Based on our Michigan example of combining and uncombining agencies with the DNR, you will hear a boom slightly before the hissing sound of the alleged savings evaporating.

 

[jlmatthew]

So which parts of the budget would you like them to trim? Be specific...no generalizations.

The DOW is an enterprise agency...they receive no money from the general fund. So how do you suppose this proposal will cut the state budget? It will take money from the DOW, which is currently off limits to the legislature, and use it to pay for state parks. I personally don't want my license dollars to pay for cleaning the crappers at the local state park, but maybe other hunters don't feel that way?

My first post was made with sarcasm, not sure about a merger, but here are some things I'd liked changed

First I would have them quit they're advertising campaign, we're crowded enough!!!

Than I would eliminate:
$400,000 for improving Landowner relations
$1,600,000 game damage. (Why, deer and elk are native to the land)
$615,940 Watchable Wildlife
$187,000 for public attitude research
$454,700 "Canadian" lynx management
$54,579 Wolf management

Make fishing pay its own way. Its being subsidized by hunting revenue. Fishing recieves an average of $18,000,000 annually while Hunting programs recieved $14,000,000 and "game damage payments" and "Improving landowner relations" is included in that amount, so hunting is really only getting $12,000,000

All that money and Deer & Elk get under $3,000,000

Our Big Game seasons are way too short & crowded and its because the DOW is all about money. How do Wyoming and Montana do it with so much less money?

 

[JohnCushman]

Colorado has to find some way to pay for their elk hunting commercials

 

[Oak]

My first post was made with sarcasm, not sure about a merger, but here are some things I'd liked changed

First I would have them quit they're advertising campaign, we're crowded enough!!!

Than I would eliminate:
$400,000 for improving Landowner relations
$1,600,000 game damage. (Why, deer and elk are native to the land)
$615,940 Watchable Wildlife
$187,000 for public attitude research
$454,700 "Canadian" lynx management
$54,579 Wolf management

Make fishing pay its own way. Its being subsidized by hunting revenue. Fishing recieves an average of $18,000,000 annually while Hunting programs recieved $14,000,000 and "game damage payments" and "Improving landowner relations" is included in that amount, so hunting is really only getting $12,000,000

All that money and Deer & Elk get under $3,000,000

Our Big Game seasons are way too short & crowded and its because the DOW is all about money. How do Wyoming and Montana do it with so much less money?

So it sounds like you have an issue with about 3% of DOW expenditures. And here I thought you had real concerns. I'm not going to look up all of your budget numbers, unless you want to provide a link.

The DOW has just as much responsibility to manage non-game species (wolves, Canada lynx, watchable wildlife) as they do the species you like to hunt.

In FY 2009-2010, there were 288,000 licensed hunters and 687,000 licensed anglers in Colorado. Fishing opportunities cost more to provide than hunting opportunities, due to the costs associated with fish propagation. The CDOW also receives more Dingell-Johnson funds for fish management than they do Pittman-Robertson funds (excluding those designated for hunter education) for hunting management.

I do agree with you to a degree about game damage payments, but that is a huge topic in itself.

The DOW needs to advertise for more hunters....they've got to pay someone to clean the crappers at the state parks soon.

 

[jlmatthew]

I dont have a link but I can send you the detailed budget reports I recieved from the DOW if you PM me.

I do think the DOW is way too bloated and more concerned about money than anything. They wont consider anything without it being "Revenue Nuetral" at a minimum.

If other Western State wildlife agencies are operating on far less, I'm willing to bet we can too. Like I said, our DOW budget is larger than NM & UT combined and both are similar land area's.

This year with they're advertising campaign and New Mexico limiting Nonresidents further, I have a feeling its going to be a record pumpkin patch harvest for the DOW this fall

 

[Devil Diver Down]

I don't have a dog in this fight but it seems to me that NM and Utah also provide a lot less in the way of opportunity to the sportsman, at least from an out-of-stater's perspective. I know you probably don't want your state catering to outsiders but we do foot a large percentage of the bill.

Revenue neutral projects seem like a damned responsible way to address issues. Maybe the drunken sailors in DC and various state capitols could learn a thing or two by adopting a similar policy. I realize not every worthwhile project will have a revenue source, but this will be a time of difficult decisions moving forward.

BTW, totally agree with "game damage" payments. WTH? The wildlife should be much better trained than to eat ranch flora

Good luck with paying for them crappers! Maybe the state should invest in commercials to generate interest in crapping in the state parks...

 

[Oak]

Hickenlooper and Mike King, executive director of the Department of Natural Resources, will talk about the proposal and the creation of a transition team at a joint meeting on Thursday of the Colorado State Parks Board and the Colorado Wildlife Commission. The meeting is scheduled from 10 a.m. to noon at the Division of Wildlife’s Hunter Education Building, 6060 Broadway, Denver.

This meeting can be heard live by clicking the "Listen to the live audio" link at the bottom of the following page. The regular wildlife commission meeting is currently airing.

http://wildlife.state.co.us/WildlifeCommission/

 

[Oak]

Well, according to CDOW Director Remington, Representative Sonnenberg and Senator Schwartz, this is a done deal. All said that it will pass in the legislature. Remington said that on July 1 they will be a combined entity.

 

[JohnCushman]

and now the CO DOW has an ad on hunt talk....lol

 

[elk_hunter]

Yep, they have an ad, but it's an advertisement to get hunters to come to a state that provides ample opportunities for anyone who doesn't draw a tag someplace to do an OTC hunt. Amazing opportunity to OTC in CO. I love it actually because if I strike out in other states or I have an opening in my schedule, I can shoot over to CO and get a tag outside of a draw and go hunt. Awesome!

The information in this thread chaps our asses, but the powers-that-be in many states are doing similar stupid crap (check out the other hot threads on MT, wolves, etc.). We have to continue to fight, be vocal and remember their choices at election time and call them on it.