Wyoming HB 00600: Dang those "grass-gobbling elk"

[Undomesticated]

Surely they are also pushing to pay 150% (minimum) market value for the forage on BLM and USFS grazing allotments, right?

 

[sneaky]

It's Wyoming, does this surprise you?

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[jmez]

WY ranchers want transferable land owner tags.

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[squid-freshprints]

My property is so big I cant keep the elk off...(this is a problem you complain out loud about? and expect government help for?)

 

[jmez]

Properties need to be big in WY. Stocking rates for grazing are pretty high in most of the west and profit per animal unit is low. The only way to make it work is numbers. A lot of ranchers are asset rich and cash poor.

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[fatlander]

Properties need to be big in WY. Stocking rates for grazing are pretty high in most of the west and profit per animal unit is low. The only way to make it work is numbers. A lot of ranchers are asset rich and cash poor.

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Sell elk hunts.


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[manitou1]

Got this from Gary Fralick, Wyo Bio. Did a search and couldnt find it. If it's up somewhere else, PM so I can pull this one so all the discussion stays in one place:

https://cowboystatedaily.com/2024/0...rs-for-grass-gobbling-elk-could-break-budget/

HB0060: Excess wildlife population damage amendments.

Another significant bill that we are following is HB0060: Excess wildlife population damage amendments. This bill brought by the Joint Agriculture, State and Public Lands & Water Resources Interim Committee is an amendment to current statutes relating to damage claims. It proposes to include Elk specific damage to forage and grass as eligible for reimbursement at a rate of 150% of fair market value.

Wyoming Wildlife Federation is against this bill as it is written and will be asking representatives to reduce the reimbursement rate to match fair market value to better align with existing statutes. HB0060 has been referred to the House Appropriations Committee and will be discussed today, Tuesday, February 20th in the evening. You can tune in here.

@realunlucky

Imagine if Missouri, Alabama, Iowa, etc reimbursed their farmers for what whitetail, rabbits, turkey, ducks, geese eat.
This is another rancher welfare handout.
Why you ask?
Because from the governor on down, the politicians in Wyoming are all ranchers.

 

[manitou1]

Surely they are also pushing to pay 150% (minimum) market value for the forage on BLM and USFS grazing allotments, right?

Yeah, it costs ranchers $8 a year to graze a cow on public.
Yup... that is eight dollars per year.

 

[jmez]

Imagine if Missouri, Alabama, Iowa, etc reimbursed their farmers for what whitetail, rabbits, turkey, ducks, geese eat.
This is another rancher welfare handout.
Why you ask?
Because from the governor on down, the politicians in Wyoming are all ranchers.

Those states don't need to do that. Those are farming states, not ranching. They have the farm lobby. Farms subsidies and ranch subsidies are completely different.

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[MuleyFever]

‘Unrestricted hunting’ out, market value in, as elk damage payments bill advances - WyoFile

Lawmakers reduce rancher compensation for wildlife-eaten grass from 150% to 100%, but shoot down guaranteed access for public hunters.

wyofile.com

 

[wind gypsy]

Could get along with this bill as soon as ranchers pay an equal % for value of grass eaten by livestock on public lands.

 

[drdrop]

The dangerous thing about this bill is that it mandates these payments come out of the Game and Fish budget instead of the general fund. Estimates by G&F indicated this could easily run into the millions of dollars per year.

The sponsors/ag lobby of this bill want to "teach Game and Fish a lesson for letting the elk herd get to where it's at" to paraphrase an ag lobbyist. Hunter and angler dollars unexpectedly going to fund this program could be devastating to the agency's budget. G&F has a 5 year plan to manage these elk. Let's give the experts their space to do that. HB60 is no better than ballot box biology! Politicians shouldn't mandate how to manage wildlife.

This bill needs killed. Tell the Rec Committee how this is a bad deal for G&F before noon Friday.


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[Dos Perros]

If G&F has to fund this I would bet it puts their Pittman-Robertson dollars at risk.

 

[Dos Perros]

Wyoming residents to non-residents: those are our elk!!!

Wyoming residents to the state: those are your elk!!!

 

[RMM]

Since when was this not the case? Many ranchers and farmers would shoot on site any elk, deer, antelope etc they found on their property. Then they discovered they had a value so tresspass fees became a thing and leases and more outfitters/guides. Now a lot of these guys can double dip. Charge hunters, while not allowing enough to cut back the population on their ranch...deny access to people who would happily shoot a few elk, then charge the government (taxpayer) for having too many elk on their place.

I know a bunch of good ranchers that like the wildlife around, take care of their land, and let people hunt. They get too many elk or deer on their place. They let people come and kill some does or cows.

This is exactly what I saw this year in Wyoming. One of the biggest landowners in the unit was complaining that there were too many elk and they were damaging his ranch. The unit used to be a 10+ point unit. Wyoming changed it to a general unit and now the public land, which only has one access point, is being hammered. The landowner will not allow people to cross a small piece of his private to access big chunks of public. He conveniently is also an outfitter and can now sell way more hunts because there are way more eligible tag holders.

 

[MallardSX2]

WY ranchers want transferable land owner BULL ELK tags.

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FIFY

 

[jmez]

Guess WY will just have to raise tag prices again.

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[drdrop]

The bill was killed by Senator Hicks but this problem isn't going away. https://wyofile.com/senate-leader-kills-compensation-program-for-elk-eaten-grass/

 

[Travis Hobbs]

It’s becoming a problem in multiple states in areas with lots of private land. I’m glad to see this bill die and hope they come up with a solution.

 

[Bull_n_heat]

It’s becoming a problem in multiple states in areas with lots of private land. I’m glad to see this bill die and hope they come up with a solution.

I'll probably get thrown out of the state for saying it but ... To be honest, I'd love to see more nonresident opportunity to have a crack at these burgeoning herds. I'm sure one of the main challenges lies in access to private land, but I'd say let the out of staters at least take a crack at it