Question To private land owners.
Wisconsin
So my girlfriend's grandmother owns 48 acres of timber in Toma WI. We live in Illinois and I was wondering if there's a way to get the resident fee for deer archery permits or what the process is. Any insight is helpful.
I know here in Illinois if your a landowner you can get tags for free. Not sure what the process is in WI as far as hunting license and tags.
Nothing is free in WI. You would have to buy a non resident tag for $160 which is cheap compared to some of the surrounding states.
Thanks dbl. what about a license I'm assuming I'd need a non resident?
Thanks dbl. what about a license I'm assuming I'd need a non resident?
not sure I understand this....because your girlfriends grandmother owns land in Wi you want a resident tag? Am I correct in this assumption?
Not that I want a resident tag. I'm wondering if the process is the same as here in Illinois. My girlfriends mother isn't a resident but owns the land. So I'm not sure if she gets resident fee or not.
Not that I want a resident tag. I'm wondering if the process is the same as here in Illinois. My girlfriends mother isn't a resident but owns the land. So I'm not sure if she gets resident fee or not.
Not that I want a resident tag. I'm wondering if the process is the same as here in Illinois. My girlfriends mother isn't a resident but owns the land. So I'm not sure if she gets resident fee or not.
You'd purchase an over the counter non-resident archery license. The tag is included. No special land owner license structure in Wisconsin.
Gotcha that answered my question, thanks stp2
got it bowhunter. I really wasn't sure where you were going with this..thats why I asked...sorry for the misunderstanding
No worries xtroutx. Thanks for the attempted assistance. ????
First time non residents get a good discount. $80
non-resident fees should be doubled to match what we see in the surrounding states.
JackPine, Minnesota tried that for bow hunters like 5 years ago. Price for a NR was the usual $120 (or whatever it was) or the price a Minnesota resident had to pay for a license in their state, whichever was more. That meant Iowa bow hunters had to pay the $400+ to archery hunt in MN. Well, as you can expect there was an uproar from the NR hunters and the businesses in MN and that law got withdrawn the following year.
In Kansas, the landowner can get cheap tags. He is allowed to give them to certain relatives. Maybe the original poster was asking if something like that exists for Wisconsin.
Funny that Iowa hunters would complain since they have a much higher NR fee than their surrounding states. Regardless, if you cross the state-line, you should pay double what the residents pay.
Great idea jackpine, i would love to pay $48 vs $163.
my apologies, double the current non-resident fee.
That is exactly what I was wondering @mad_angler. Is there such a thing in Wisconsin?
I believe dmap antlerless tags awarded to the property can be handed out But the hunter still needs a valid license. Not sure about ag tags.
If you want to come hunt our state, pay the whole fee. It's still cheap. If you can't afford our fee, don't hunt here.
Relax crusader dad. Just looking for more info. If everyone in your state is like you I wouldn't want to hunt it anyways.
I didn't mean to sound like an ass, sorry for that. Guess I woke up on the wrong side of the bed. When I read your op it sounded like you were just looking for a cheaper way to hunt here. The state depends on non res fees. I'm sorry if it offends you that in my humble opinion, I think any non res hunter should have to pay the full price of the liscense whether you own the land or not. Whether you have family here or not.
Wisconsin has a pretty good deal for non-residents.
I have a question for those advocating raising the prices, what do you hope to gain by that? Just looking for some insight into this thought process.
Just a quid pro quo sort of thing. Texas apparently charges $315.00. Wisconsin 165. Wisconsin has a LOT of public land how much does Texas have?
For starters fill up and expand all Warden positions. Budget cuts have hampered our DNR in many ways.
Elk - You make a good point, they could probably do some good with the money. Do you think if they doubled the price as suggested they would gain in revenue or there be enough non-residents that they would just not go? I read that in 2014 there were 27,800 non-resident deer licenses sold. Comes out to about 4.5 million dollars @ $160 per pop.
lame - Not sure what public hunting has to do with anything? I would be willing to bet that the best hunting Wisconsin and Texas both have to offer is on private land. If I am travelling a thousand miles to hunt deer, I would want it to be on the best land. But that is kind of off topic.
I was just curious if it was just to get back at the other states or to limit hunting pressure or what? I read the same things on a Texas hunting forum. Texas and Wisconsin are similar in that they don't discriminate against non-residents like other states do. For example, if you apply for a big horn sheep hunt I believe your odds as a non-resident are the same as a resident. New Mexico on the other hand gives most of their tags to the residents. Iowa is the same way with their deer.
Anyway, Wisconsin is a good deal for non-residents. I was not complaining.
So I'm just throwing something out here. If we raise non res fee to $250 we might lose 10% due to the cost increase. I think the number will actually be less than 10% loss. So if we take the 2014# - 10% that gives us 25,020. At $250 per liscense with less hunters we now have $6,255,000. An increase of $1,807,000. With less competition. That sounds like a no brainer to me. And it's far less than the double increase so we still have some room to go.
If we raise the price to $300 for non res and lose 20% if current non res costomers we end up with$ 6,672,000. An increase of over 2 mil with 20% less competition. Now, I know those lost hunters mean lost revenue for other places but if you spread a few thousand people over the whole state it's not much of a loss for any one proprietor.
As a nonresident hunter if raising the fees would make you all stop complaining about nonresident hunter I would be more than happy to pay the extra. I spend money on lots of food plots, habitat improvements, etc. every year. I will just need to cut back on some of the trees I plant each year. I can live with that. I hope the DNR uses the money wisely.
License sales hit a 40 year low without raising fees. I know many nr, they all hunt private land. Howmany here know an nr relative who will not hunt with extended family@$250-$350? The dnr knows the sweet spot to maximize revenue and keep nr family coming home for tradition. Frankly, $24 resident license which gives up to 4 tags is laughable. Try raising $24 up maybe the cost of a 6 pack of warm natty lite and watch the moaning.
Nov, I'm all for raising the R & NR fees. To what level? I don't know but not enough to deter people from hunting again R & NR.
Almost my whole hunting budget is eaten up by my own NR fees in other states and tag applications. I've got a small fortune in my 4 Iowa points I will use next year, always go to Michigan on a gun hunt and sometimes a bow hunt. Colorado elk each year. Co deer points (will take tag sometime) Sheep points and one sheep tag so far too, those are expensive! Not to mention a lot of Canada trips for moose, bear, caribou
So I don't understand when I hear people complain about Wi measly $160
Elk, many like us can stroke the check and yes build many points out west. It took me 27 years for my tule bull tag, i have 32 years in my bighorn tag, my odds are now 1/200. Like hrc and the dems they forget about the working man. They can raise the nr tag to $600 and it would not affect the residents hunt at all. Yes, $160 is nice and because of that i dropped another $3500 in the local economy for 20 days in november, not to mention taxes/services paid all year. They raise nr fees to iowa level and they will have a pr nitemare from residents whose relatives will stop coming home to hunt imo.
I'm driving past Iowa and IL. To hunt Missouri at the end of the month. License fees had much to do with my decision on where I'm hunting.
Liscense fee was a contributing factor for Collin and I when deciding where to go next year. ND is $272. I find that completely reasonable. It's high enough to keep out some of the trailer trash out and low enough to still be affordable. I can't see paying $500 for a deer liscense but if we raise $90 and get to the $250 per mark it shouldn't keep out anyone that wants to come here. That's only one extra shift for even the lowest earners. It still keeps us well below the average thus keeping our state desirable for those who want an affordable hunt. I have no issue at all with non res hunters coming here, in fact I want them to. But, I also want to see the state maximize its profits while thinning the influx just a little. Get rid of a bit of the riff raff so to speak.
November, if you can afford to drop $3500 here then I doubt a $90 increase would stop you.
I also would be willing to pay a little more for my res fee. I don't know what they charge exactly these days but I think it was around $30. That's very cheap. I'd be willing to go another ten bucks as long as they raise the non res fee at the same time. We all do what we can afford or what ours wives will give us permission for. For some, it's more than others and for those who say they can't afford a small increase I say, get a better job. Or, eat less McDonald's and put the $youll save in a jar. For most Americans, they'd have that $90 covered in two months.
I really don't have a dog in this fight so to speak but as a business owner it makes sense to try to trim the fat and maximize profits and that is the way I'm approaching this conversation.
If WI raises NR prices too much they would loose me as a NR hunter, I would permanently move to WI and become a resident real fast. Plan to do that some day anyway. I would still be able to deer hunt in MN for free as I have bought their lifetime archery and gun deer licenses many years ago and that still applies if I become a resident of another state.
Back to the subject, I don't think it is practical to compare the NR price in a state like WI with unlimited NR licenses to states that limit the number of NR licenses like Iowa does. Although Iowa prices are way too high after you add in the small game license and doe tag that are both required in order to get a deer license. Requiring a WI small game license before you can buy a deer license might be a way to increase revenue from deer season hunters, residents and nonresidents. That might not affect 'tourist' revenue quite as much. Same with all bow licenses, don't give away the small game privilege with the archery license.
Did anyone notice my post above that gives NR first time WI deer hunters a super price to get them hooked? That is a pretty darn good economics move to bring new NR hunters into the state.
Jeff, I dont believe a small game license is included in a deer license. Thats why I wont buy a turkey tag=$125 do to small game license requirement. FYI, as a NR you need to buy the $160 furbearer license to kill a coyote, even nr landowners. Thats also silly imo.
I am an IL resident and I own land in WI. In 2 yrs I will be retiring to my place in WI. I have owned my land for 17yrs and paid the $160/yr each and every year. Everyone has a perspective in this discussion. On one hand as a nonres hunter I think $160 is reasonable given the amount of public land WI has. It really is a great state and the amount of public land reflects the core culture that has made WI a hunter friendly place.
IL access sux, I live in N IL and we have darn little places to go. If I could have bought my land in the best of IL deer country I would pass. I have no interest in retiring here.
OK, now for another perspective. First I really don't feel that strong about this but since I own 40 acres of WI land, pay taxes on that land but don't live here to use any of the services the taxes pay for, maybe I should pay less than $160?? Now, I am not complaining. I think even with all the above $160 is still OK with me. I choose to not shoot a deer every year. I am not a "if its brown" guy. I choose to be selective and my neighbors and I try to practice QDM, so as I said there are years I eat tag soup. Ha.
Was it worth it? Even though I don't shoot a deer, the hunt and the chance to pass deer was for sure. However, I sure don't think raising the nonres fee would be fair to a guy like me. Just saying.
I know this is a touchie subject with some here and I am leaving myself wide open to critisizm. If you feel the urge remember, I am not complaining. Remember I too am a WI tax payer. Bill
November, I am pretty sure that small game (archery) is included with your WI archery deer license.
Gun small game is separate. Pretty sure anyway. I have not bothered with getting a WI small game license in many years so I could be wrong.
BF11, I agree a discount of some sort for people that pay a good amount in real estate taxes should be justified. Not sure if every member of the family should be eligible, maybe one person in the immediate family for every $xxxx dollars in taxes paid.
Property taxes are just one aspect of the total tax picture. Non residents don't pay WI income tax, if they had their primary residences in WI they would pay that much more in property tax, contribute more to sales tax, and they do not pay registration/vehicle tax which helps get them to their properties on our relatively nice highways.
bfisherman11-I was thinking about your observations (not calling 'em complaints). Yesterday it occurred to me that the residents pay taxes ALL YEAR LONG. Made a purchase in River Falls (paid taxes), bought gas (paid tax), lived here in my house (paid tax), bought a cup of coffee-I could go on but you get the point. If things really so south (cannot imagine such a scenario) the folks that live elsewhere can just walk away-we can't. Every state has things that makes a guy wonder. I can feel your pain but would another hundred or so really make that much difference? I kinda shake my head when I go into Illinois and drive on interstate freeways (built with Federal dollars) and have to pay tolls to do so. While I can consider your point of view I hope you'll consider the residents of Wi. Thanks
160.00 is very reasonable,,,,,, and no a nr property owner should not get a break.... I own land and cabin in the UP..... my base license just to allow me to hunt small game and buy a deer tag is 150.00 than I buy one deer tag, which is 20. so my total fee is 170.00,,,,,,,,,, I find that also fair,,,,,,
my friend lives in montana, the residents tags are dirt cheap, in fact according to him too cheap,,,,, because as the nr tags increase in costs, they are finding, hunters are not paying that fee, and so now wildlife and parks, is losing money, and thinking of raising resident tags just a little,,,,, just a thought
I will say again $160 is not a problem for me at all. Anyhow, won't be an issue in 2.5yrs. I will be a resident, well I guess that would be 3yrs if you need to live in the state 6mo.
Like I said, not complaining, was just another friendly perspective. You should hear the IL hunters on the IL Bowsite go on about any nonres hunter asking for help or even the mention of nonres hunters, I think they are wrong and have misplaced anger. I think even here nonres people are not 100% welcome but limited to a VERY, VERY small group. Not sure I get all that either. I like my place in WI and the hunting is OK, but it's not like I see so many deer or so few deer that I would resent another hunter coming into the state. Truly it is not an issue here on the WI site but last I saw on the IL site some were down right hostile to nonres. Readers digest over there is that since IL does not have a lot of public land they feel competition and some have lost private land access to outfitters. Maybe some of the WI resident hunters look at out of state land owners to be competing with them as well. I have not felt that from anyone here or my neighbors (friends) but the lust for deer hunting does things to folks. So when it gets brought up about increasing nonres fees I wonder what is that persons reason. Not starting anything here, just our WI site community exploring a topic from all sides. Where does the money need to go? If more wardens to catch poachers I would be for that. My neighbors tell me we have an issue with illegal road hunters in NE Crawford. That is troubling to say the least.
I have hunted out west and I am no expert but when I hunted in ND I saw more deer in one morning than I probably did my whole life hunting in IL/WI. Pay more? You bet and worth it. In Montana there are also tons of critters and with the BLM program and state land agree, bargain.
LC, IL residents don't get the toll road either, I recall when i was a kid the state said it was just temp. Well the corrupt politicians in IL found out they could take that money and use it elsewhere I guess. Won't ever go away now. Lots more I don't like about IL but I have spent most of my time in WI so I might be turned. LOL
Not trying to poke anyone, just slow at work and having a conversation with I hope friends.
Bill
Well bfisherman I am sure glad we're friendlier than FIBs 8^) I don't think anyone here views NRs as competition especially if they're landowners. As long as people are respectful even during disagreements or miscommunications we'll all be fine.
