Montana Legislature effecting hunting in bad way

[Deadfall]

There are a couple bills in legislature right now that are going to effect public land DIY in a bad way. SB275: dealing with outfitter requirements. Section 6, re defines what is acceptable for rental service, ie. drop camps. Now the only thing you can not do is help someone chase game. Which means that anyone can essentially become a outfitter, anywhere they want. A person could by all rights set up a camp and shuttle people in and out. Do so anywhere they wish. Yes, there is the number of camping days limit, however, fish and game very seldom enforces that. Even if fish and game would enforce it, just move camp and start over. It's disgusting. Also the bill would drop the board from 7 to 5. getting rid of the sportsman posts. Also disgusting. Ever hear licensed outfitters refer to un licensed as scabs? Well there's a reason for that, all this bill does is increase the likely hood of seeing big camps pop up, full of "friends" whose faces change every week.

Also HB 505, for anyone on here who has not been following the conservation forum, I would suggest jumping over there and checking out the thread about this bill. It's disturbing and we need some help contacting legislators to voice concerns.

SB275 is almost through, think its to late for further action on that one. HB505 is still in committee.

 

[Trumpkin The Dwarf]

Good grief... they just don't stop!

 

[bsnedeker]

Well, I guess I'll be on the outside of this one too! I hate the proposed changes to the makeup of the board...dropping the size and essentially making it all outfitters (one "business owner" vs. 4 outfitters) is outrageous.

I have zero problem with reducing government regulations that allow people to take people up into the mountains and set up camps. Could it result in more and bigger camps in the back country? I suppose it could, but I doubt it and if it does I don't really care. I'll use those camps to my advantage and hunt around them just like I do with them today. Take those drop camps WAAAAY back in, I'll be killing elk 1-2 miles from the road.

The icing on the cake is using the term "scabs" to describe these people. That just shows you the mindset of these outfitters...they want their businesses protected by having the government put a bunch of regulations about who can do what in the woods. They want to be treated like unions, but of course they don't want to actually have a union because then they would have to pay their guides a better wage so they aren't reliant on tips to survive.

 

[Deadfall]

A hack is a hack. No matter the trade. I'm a construction guy. See it all the time in my trade. Guys charging money for service then doing half ass work and giving us who take pride in what we do, a bad name.
The licensed guys pay a good deal of money that goes back to the resource. Unlicensed guts pay nothing. It's the exact same thing as the proposed 10 landowner elk tags. People profiting off a public resource but not giving bavk to resource.

I guided through the 2020 season. 15 years all told. Wages are good for the market/trade.

 

[bsnedeker]

You bring up a good point regarding profiting on public land without giving anything back. An amendment to this bill that requires them to pay an access fee or something like that could be a good compromise (while they are at it they can scrub that garbage about the changes to the board!). Something that doesn't require going through some governmental licensing process...pay your fee for the year, you are good to go on public lands.

As far as "hacks" giving the industry a bad name...oh well, price of doing business in my opinion. There are hacks in every industry in the world, should the government be the ones deciding who can and can't do business in a given field simply to protect the reputations of the ones that offer quality goods and services? I don't think so personally. I think the quality of your service/goods should speak for itself and set you apart from the hacks. There are plenty of places for people to publicly review businesses they work with. It's up the consumer to do their due diligence before handing over their money.

 

[Antarctica]

Not much love from me for outfitters getting choice licenses on federal land that I pay taxes for. How about they just make all licenses go into one pot, and after you get one, you can either DIY or hire an outfitter. The good outfitters bubble to the top, the others go out business. And if I want to hire my buddy's buddy who happens to know a hell of a lot more than some kid that just got on a horse for the first time, but his uncle has 'been in the biz' for 40 years, I can do so?

Kinda like I think I outta be able to throw a boat in the colorado river and run it if I want to - not get raped by some business because they got a law passed to prevent me from doing so. Free country and all that shit.

Now I bet this thread will pick up some traction...

 

[Deadfall]

Hope everyone goes to conservstion forum and looks up the montana hunting taking a dive thread