Michigan Licences Doubling in price across the board

[Niteowl]

Our License fees are more than doubling on Deer Tags from $30 for the combo to $75...Fishing are going from $15 for the standard license to $25,then you add your different species stamps for additional fees. The seniors are now only getting a 20% discount instead of a fixed price, our young and first time hunters are gonna pay also,almost the same as the senior hunters. The DNR says its because of at the current rate we are losing hunters and fisherman in the state,that by the year 2010 our resources will be $45,000,000 in the red. I just don't see where this is going to do any good,the seniors are on a fixed income,they cannot afford $60 for a license,specially with the way our deer numbers are down in the state,contrary to what the DNR and Insurance companies say. Your every day hunter will now take a chance on hunting without a license,and if he gets lucky enough to harvest one,he will rush out to buy a license. I will continue to buy mine,but I work full time and have very little chance of losing my income due to pull outs or cut backs....but what about all my neighbors and others that only work about 8 months out of the year because of layoffs,or the other 200 workers locally who lost their jobs because the company went to Canada? It seems to me that we voted on something a couple years ago about keeping "other" hands out of our natural resources fund. Thats why the fund now is depleted. I just think its a load of hog slop.....Thank You GOV. JENNIFER GRANHOLM!!!!

[Rocky Raab]

Just remember, all who voted Democrat to teach Bush and the Republicans a lesson. Well, this is what you got.

[multibeard]

Rocky

We already had a Democratic Governor (female Canadian born to boot) before last falls election. Of course she won by a land side over her opponent. You have to remember that Detroit (auto industry/ labor union/democrat) runs this state.

As far as how bad the increases in license fees will actually be we will have to wait and see. The legislature is the one that has to pass the new fees. Most licenses are supposed go on sale on March 1. I doubt that the legislature can get ans increase passed by that time. If they don't I doubt that we will see any increases before next year. Just don't hold me too that statement.

The new fees are only a recommended change. I know that if the legislature passes the recommended changes I will buy fewer licenses and give up something like trout fishing that I may do once or twice a year as the fee will go from 15 bucks to 30. That is what I would pay for just a warm water license if the recommendations go through.

[BILLY D.]

Amen to Rockys reply.

This is just another attempt to price the average guy out of the market and stop hinting and fishing as we know it.

Hey, if Joe Six Pack can't afford to hunt he doesn't NEED those guns anymore so lets get them out of the countryside and off the streets.

Meanwhile Richie Rich can afford his canned and guided hunts. But they have an answer to that also, it's called registration and taxation. Can't happen here? Say bet. Look at Europe. Lots? of hunters and firearms owners. Now check what economic class they are in. Buy the way in the future all hunts will be guided. It will be on set aside basis, lands usually leased to the guides.

But thats ok, if you make less than $80K a year you need to be getting an education so you can make more money to buy cheap Chinese crap to improve your quality of life.

But we will have the sporting journals to remind us of times past, fishing, hunting and times spent in the outdoors. Isn't life grand? Like I told my kids years ago, board up your butts. And I'm glad I'm old cause I don't have to put up with this crap much longer.

Sorry for a less than stellar post but it's just the way I feel.

Best wishes, Bill

[wrenchman]

I was reading that the nrc wont be getting what they want, but they will be getting a increase of about 4%.
there is lots of screaming over what they want. they are on crack for even asking for double the rate we have now.

[Rocky Raab]

Whether past, present or future, if you elect liberals, the result is higher taxes, higher fees, more laws, more welfare and more crime.

But to balance that off, you also get fewer businesses to hire anyone, fewer chances to waste your money on hunting, fewer choices of supposedly dangerous products like guns to buy, and less of any part of your life not governed by a benevolent bureaucracy.

[Ol` Joe]

Much as I`d like to blame the Dem Governor it`s the NRC that is asking for the increase and the state legislature that set licence fees. Here`s a artical on it.

http://www.michiganoutdoornews.com/a...news/news3.txt

[drummer]

LOL at hunters complaining any time they have to give something back. One of these days, when there are nine billion people on earth, you're going to want a place to hunt and some game that isn't going to be in a pen.And there won't be any. But it will be somebody else's fault.

[Dan Morris]

Gonna go with Rocky on this one. I haven't seen Colorado new data yet.......probably gonna be about the same.
Dan

[gd357]

The biggest problems with Michigan IMHO are Detroit, and Flint with a few other areas. Take away those spots, and you've got a state that is a resoundingly republican demographic that can't out-vote the major cities. If nonresident licenses go up by that margin, they've lost another out-of-state hunter that was already paying way too much for deer tags.

gd

[Niteowl]

GD, go the DNR home page www.michigan.gov/dnr...they are "suggesting" out of state hunters fees will go up to a minium of $130 for a deer tag. I see us going down really fast and really hard. The amount of residual income for food,lodging,ammo,entertainment,ect will drop considerably from this hike. Its no wonder why our young people are leaving this state by the droves. Right now 2 out of 3 young people are leaving for other permanent places. Its not just the hunting / fishing fees going up,its the fact that our Jobs are leaving left and right. Yamaha Guitars in Grand Rapids just announced yesterday that 120 people will lose their jobs because they are moving to Canada!...I say if our American companies move out of the country,the import taxes should be so high that they can not afford to sell their product back to the USA. And "WE" can thank this Illustrious Democrap Govenor that our people so willingly re-voted another 4 years....she will tax and cut us into total insolvency.

[gd357]

Niteowl,

last fall nonresident fees were $138 for a single buck permit, and $100 for a doe tag. We were able to use block permits for several of the farms we hunt, but you still have to have a nonresident tag in order to use block permits. After looking at the proposal, they are wanting to raise the rates on the buck permits to $165. In Virginia, for example, I can get 4 deer tags, 3 turkey tags, and a bear permit with a nonresident hunting license(required) for the cost of one deer permit in Michigan. I'm losing incentive really quick to keep hunting our usual spots. To make matter worse, deer numbers are down significantly because they've had several early doe seasons in the county we hunt, and decimated the population(it needed thinned out, but they may have went a bit too far). I never thought I'd go up there, and come home empty-handed, but I did that this past fall. If I'm gonna spend that kind of money on tags, I'd better be able to put some meat in the freezer.

gd

[Rocky Raab]

One of the hidden results of very high tag prices is illegal killing - especially for out-of-staters.

When you have to really pay through the nose for a tag, the thought process is "I'm gonna get SOMETHING for all that money, no matter what." Nonresidents in particular may be tempted to shoot the first animal he sees, legal or not. Then throw it in the trunk and scoot for the state line and home.

[drummer]

More people+Fewer hunters+Less land+ rising fuel and mainetenence costs = ?

Using the illegal kill argument cuts both way. If there were fewer poachers, your license costs wouldn't be so high. People are responsible for their actions and passing the blame onto somebody else doesn't get it done. Hopefully the fine is much more expensive than the license though. In time we will have to do a more thorough job of weeding out the dead beets.

It costs about $70 to fill up your truck and 4 wheeler, but the license breaks you? Unfortunately the entitlement attitude of the hunting communtiy is similar to that of the inner city.

Look, with overpopulation and urban development, the pie is getting smaller. In order to preserve hunting for future generations, we are all going to have to work a little harder and make more sacrifices, be it license increases, or volunteering time and money to conservation groups.

Right now in my state, we are working on a "place to hunt program" (that is, those of us who want to give back to the sport and the wildlife; probably the minority.)

It offers tax breaks to landowners who allow walk in hunting, and smaller tax breaks to those that agree not to develop their land.Unfortunately, the program will probably fall apart because some "hunter" will disrespect the land in some way. Our COs are stretched out thinner than piss on a hot rock.In order to try to prevent that, we are going to need more conservation officers. How is that going to be feasible? A license increase. Guess who's going to complain? If more money becomes earmarked for land acquisistion, I will support a license increase.

Somebody has to pay for this. To my knowledge, only Arkansas and Missouri receive a portion of the state sales tax. Most wildilfe agencies do not want other sources of revenue; be it taxes or nonhunting WMA access permits, becuase when somebody pays $$$, they want a say in policy making. In this way the hunters have a better degree of control.And despite large urban areas, Michigan is a hunting state.

Also, you will recieve 3 dollars from the feds for every one dollar Michigan generates thanks to the Pittman Robertson act.That money goes straight to wildlife management and education.

Think about it.

[BILLY D.]

Originally posted by drummer
LOL at hunters complaining any time they have to give something back. One of these days, when there are nine billion people on earth, you're going to want a place to hunt and some game that isn't going to be in a pen.And there won't be any. But it will be somebody else's fault.

HUH!

Drummer please 'splain to me how I can give back what I never had? I don't own any land per se, don't own any deer, antelope or such.

Is this like the gun buy back programs? If it is, I don't recall buying any firearms from any city dept. or any other group. I got all mine in sporting goods stores or from friends. How can somebody buy back what they didn't sell to you?

For your edification the latest population forecast models forcast a world population of 9 Billion sometime between 2045 and 2050.

Best wishes, Bill