Montana Proposed bill to raise Non resident base hunting fees over 500%

[Erict]

I really don't care if residents get free licenses, but as a NR take offense when the prices go up and there is no reasonable explanation nor does it seem easy to get accurate data from FWP. Can someone refresh my memory?

1. Have split seasons for NR, or everybody, ever been considered, like Colorado (Rifle 1, Rifle 2)?
2. Why not just add a fee for ALL Block Management Access (BMA) users (private land)?
3. What exactly is the hangup with mandatory "harvest" reporting like many other states have? We've had it for years here in NY and while there is still only about a 50% reporting rate, it's cheap to administer and provides additional verification for population trends.

 

[tdhanses]

Same here. I'm 4x on whatever we have for licenses, permits, and drawings. If they start charging more to residents, you will see residents killing more game. If it costs them $100 for the tag, they will kill every 2 point, raghorn, doe, and cow that is legal. Nothing will get a pass. If you think resident hunters are dicks to nonresident hunters now, just wait until those tags go up. When residents quit traveling in-state to hunt and you nonresident hunters have to float the entire tourism bill for some of these small towns, just wait to see the prices of your lodging and food. Your desire for "equity" will cost everyone.

Jay

A minority may act like that but I doubt most in MT will, many would be ok to pay even double what they do today.

 

[Snowwolfe]

Resources belong to the state and its residents. I have zero issues with any state charging non residents what they want to.

 

[rogerdoger]

Honestly I am a bit confused as how each resident of each state pays more or less in taxes for our federal land management, are we not all taxed on the same federal tax brackets? Most of the wildlife management on those said lands is by each state not the federal government. This where Montana has decided to get a bulk of its funding from the NR, and I understand how it can be frustrating to have no say in how the system is managed, but since you are not a resident you have no vote in this state. If you would like more involvement in the management of the land get involved in those organizations. If you want more involvement in wildlife management get involved in those organizations, does not have to be donations. Sending letters to congress, donate time etc. If you do not belong to any organization or help in any way it does nothing more for land management than your neighbor that doesn’t hunt or fish.

As for NR tags, it as simple as supply and demand. When you have a governor whose main background is in business you bet he’s going to look at any potential source into create revenue. They will continue to raise prices as long as there are takers. This will then cater to the rich non residents and the thousands that own their third or fourth home in Montana.

Many NR are correct in saying that most residents would blow a gasket if the price increased, it’s sad because they are in the end lowering the quality of wildlife for the future.

 

[Wapiti66]

Same here. I'm 4x on whatever we have for licenses, permits, and drawings. If they start charging more to residents, you will see residents killing more game. If it costs them $100 for the tag, they will kill every 2 point, raghorn, doe, and cow that is legal. Nothing will get a pass. If you think resident hunters are dicks to nonresident hunters now, just wait until those tags go up. When residents quit traveling in-state to hunt and you nonresident hunters have to float the entire tourism bill for some of these small towns, just wait to see the prices of your lodging and food. Your desire for "equity" will cost everyone.

Jay

So it’s up to NRs to fund your local tourism economy and your F&G dept to make sure your restaurants, hotels, and tags are affordable for you? if you have to pay any more than the pathetic price for your resident tags it’s a shoot em all approach and it’s all the fault of NRs. Same old song and dance, western states mismanagement is the fault of NRs, who have 0 say in any of their decisions….but are expected to pay the bill.
You- “I didn’t want to shoot that forky but this $40 tag can’t be wasted since them damn NRs are only willing to pay $1200, and since I’m a res my cheeseburger should only cost $3 also. I hate these whiny NRs, don’t they know it’s their obligation to fund our F&G and make sure our tourism industry thrives for my sake”

 

[wind gypsy]

A minority may act like that but I doubt most in MT will, many would be ok to pay even double what they do today.

Which is.. Drumroll... $40 for an elk and $32 for a deer. [GASP!]

 

[406huntermt]

Which is.. Drumroll... $40 for an elk and $32 for a deer. [GASP!]

Your life must be awful… all you do is bitch about something that you cant control and that you will never be able to change! If you don’t like it don’t hunt here, it’s a pretty simple concept! Someone will fill your spot you won’t be missed.

 

[wind gypsy]

Your life must be awful… all you do is bitch about something that you cant control and that you will never be able to change! If you don’t like it don’t hunt here, it’s a pretty simple concept! Someone will fill your spot you won’t be missed.

I just found it interesting that when one mentions doubling resident fees it sounds drastic but after doubling the fees would still be among the lowest in the west. Sorry if pointing that out hurts your feelings. Again, i dont care what MT residents pay beyond what it signifies in how much the avg resident hunter values their wildlife and the management they expect.

Ive spent a lot of days hunting in MT over the last decade and I'm grateful for those opportunities and thus have followed your wildlife issues pretty closely. Sorry for being engaged. I'm sure you guys would be better off with fewer folks who care and more who expect unencumbered opportunity for peanuts.

I'll continue to hunt there when the juice is worth the squeeze compared to other opportunities.

 

[406huntermt]

I just found it interesting that when one mentions doubling resident fees it sounds drastic but after doubling the fees would still be among the lowest in the west. Sorry if pointing that out hurts your feelings. Again, i dont care what MT residents pay beyond what it signifies in how much the avg resident hunter values their wildlife and the management they expect.

Ive spent a lot of days hunting in MT over the last decade and I'm grateful for those opportunities and thus have followed your wildlife issues pretty closely. Sorry for being engaged. I'm sure you guys would be better off with fewer folks who care and more who expect unencumbered opportunity for peanuts.

I'll continue to hunt there when the juice is worth the squeeze compared to other opportunities.

I’d gladly pay more for my tags, but the juice hasn’t been worth the squeeze in Montana for the last 10 years! By the looks of it, it isn’t getting better any time soon either! What really sucks is my kids 10 and 5 will never experience the hunting I had when I was a kid… it’s only going to get worse for them with the ridiculous overcrowding on public lands and everyone shooting everything that moves because they paid for a tag that cost them 800 bucks so got to go home with something right! People from western Montana are just as bad up here in the north/northeast part of the state! Barely see any locals out and about any more due to the juice not being worth the squeeze! Good luck in your endeavors and happy hunting this year!

 

[tdhanses]

I’d gladly pay more for my tags, but the juice hasn’t been worth the squeeze in Montana for the last 10 years! By the looks of it, it isn’t getting better any time soon either! What really sucks is my kids 10 and 5 will never experience the hunting I had when I was a kid… it’s only going to get worse for them with the ridiculous overcrowding on public lands and everyone shooting everything that moves because they paid for a tag that cost them 800 bucks so got to go home with something right! People from western Montana are just as bad up here in the north/northeast part of the state! Barely see any locals out and about any more due to the juice not being worth the squeeze! Good luck in your endeavors and happy hunting this year!

My dad said the same thing, fact is as the population grows and people move more to rural areas this is what happens. We probably have way more people willing to travel to hunt then any other time in history.

Eventually something will happen but I doubt any of us like it, resident or not.

 

[ThunderJack49]

Are there any montana residents, on here, who would not pay 382$ for deer/elk if the trade off was drastically reduced out of state hunters?

75% reduction in NR tags.

Children, disabled and those below poverty line would still pay the same as now.

 

[lyingflatlander]

Didn’t I just get laughed at on a different thread that hunting is getting to be a rich mans sport? Don’t agree with me? Wait…
And thank you social influencers, keep getting your 8 tags in 5 states…

 

[tdhanses]

Are there any montana residents, on here, who would not pay 382$ for deer/elk if the trade off was drastically reduced out of state hunters?

75% reduction in NR tags.

Children, disabled and those below poverty line would still pay the same as now.

I bet most would if it was posed to them in that manner.

The problem I see is the same problem my dad complained about back in the 90’s, to many out of staters moving in, be interesting to look at the resident hunters that once were non residents in the past 15yrs and what the percentage is, might be small but might not be as well.

 

[fatlander]

Montana really sucks. No one should apply this year, that’ll really show them.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ThunderJack49]

I bet most would if it was posed to them in that manner.

The problem I see is the same problem my dad complained about back in the 90’s, to many out of staters moving in, be interesting to look at the resident hunters that once were non residents in the past 15yrs and what the percentage is, might be small but might not be as well.

Montanas population growing is obviously an issue and so is the states rather lackluster approach to wildlife management.
My work around for that is to just have less people hunting, and less animals taken. That always turns into a money conversation which always turns into the resident vs NR thing. And the OTC vs LE conversation.
I'm just explaining my thought process for a few issues that keep coming up on this thread.

 

[tdhanses]

Montanas population growing is obviously an issue and so is the states rather lackluster approach to wildlife management.
My work around for that is to just have less people hunting, and less animals taken. That always turns into a money conversation which always turns into the resident vs NR thing. And the OTC vs LE conversation.
I'm just explaining my thought process for a few issues that keep coming up on this thread.

Yeah it’s a hard thing when reducing resident options/opportunities comes into question, but the resident population has grown a bunch over the last 30 years.

The reality is if resident fees increased substantially, i don’t mean anywhere close to where nonresident fees are you would have residents drop out but that’s also heading more and more towards a European model doing that.

I also think residents would agree to paying more before any tag reductions or an ability to get a tag.

Like WY, MT really doesn’t allow a ton of nonresidents to obtain a tag compared to say CO.