WY NR Tag Price Increase Bill 60 Dead
General Topic
Senate file 60, which would increase non-resident fees, fails in the Wyoming senate.
In a decisive 20-10 vote, the Wyoming Senate voted to kill the Senate File 60 bill that would have increased non-resident fees for deer, elk and antelope in the “special draw” by nearly double. The bill also had a last-minute amendment which would have also increased the costs of sheep, moose, goat and grizzly tags for non-resident hunters.
After reading between the lines it looks like there was much debate on the floor regarding this bill, which surprisingly revolved around the origin of the bill not necessarily the merits of the bill itself. Some senators were skeptical that this bill could hold up to Wyoming constitutionality because it was a revenue generating and taxation bill which would need to originate from the state House instead of the Senate according to the Wyoming State Constitution.
Although done for right now, there is still a slim possibility that this bill becomes a phoenix and rises from the ashes, this time in the state House instead of the Senate.
Senator Larry Hicks of Baggs, Wyoming stated the fact that there are “three times as many non-residents applying for tags each year than there are tags available” and that these proposed fee increases would bring Wyoming’s tag fees “more inline” with the “fair market” value in other competing states throughout the West as the reasoning for the bill.
We will keep you posted if this bill resurfaces in the Wyoming State House of Representatives. Until then, the price hike is dead on the mountain.
It has already resurfaced in the House. HB0200
Pimps need money. New high-end trucks. Fees will go up more than inflation for non-residents in WY. They have for the 20 years I use to apply there. On the other hand, resident fees, not so much because they can vote in WY elections.
By their logic, just raise it to $5000 a tag. There is a good chance they sell them.
Was it always on the table that this Senate vote would occur a few days before the NR app deadline? A lot have expressed intent to apply/burn points this year, just in case it passed.
I used to hunt Idaho quite a bit. I remember when they jacked the non resident tag to some of the highest in the nation. They interviewed the head of game & fish & asked how he could justify the increases. His response was “because we can”. I haven’t hunted there since. Interesting part was the non resident deer tags used to sell out right away. After the increases they didn’t for quite a number of years. Same thing in Wisconsin haven’t hunted there since they more than doubled the non resident deer tags. There is a limit for some of us.
Live in Wisconsin and have hunted the west for 40 years. All western tags have got to gagging price point for working man. Strange that Basil thinks Wisconsin deer tags are excessive when we are by far one of the lowest nonresident prices in the country. I pay about $500 to archery deer hunt Illinois or Iowa. Wisconsin does welcome nonresident and has great deer hunting
I understand that Wisconsin is a bargain compared to some other states. The point was when tags more than doubled, Wisconsin or any other state, it seems to be a message that they don’t want my revenue.
Jakemike, Colorado's nonresident tag prices are virtually the same as they were in the 80's, adjusted for inflation. What has changed is the requirement to buy a "qualifying license" to apply for a LE tag. But that's an "entry fee" to play the game. That is partly balanced out by eliminating the upfront license fee requirement, which really screwed the PP/WP system up.
If working people were truly being priced out, there wouldn't be exponentially more hunters wanting to hunt western states than there are available tags. If anything, the license prices are too cheap in some cases, based upon the Willingness-To-Pay models.
Wyoming needs to weigh the situation. If they make it too hard for us non-residents to draw or too expensive for us to purchase we will move there. They must pick their poison... I'm one of those people considering it and the tighter they make things the more it would benefit me to move there
^^^Hahahahahahahahahaha! Funniest Bowsite post of the year so far!
Basil, are you serious? A Wisconsin non-resident deer license is $160 which in my opinion is too cheap. Also, antlerless tags are widely available at very reasonable prices. I live about an hour from the Twin Cities Metro area and we have no shortage of Minnesota nonresident hunters in my area.
Dead serious. In the 80’s the price doubled & I haven’t even considered coming back
bet your income has MORE than double since the 80's. at least I hope it has. if not, sorry for the post.
It more than doubled that year. Income since then is irrelevant. I find it strange so many want to justify high tag prices.
How much is a nonresident elk tag in Wisconsin?
Warning to anyone who gets into the adjusted for inflation talk. this is how most of us get duped into believing something other than the truth
Warning to anyone who gets into the adjusted for inflation talk. this is how most of us get duped into believing something other than the truth
"Warning to anyone who gets into the adjusted for inflation talk. this is how most of us get duped into believing something other than the truth" Ok, please explain the "truth".
"Income since then is irrelevant." How so? Income is relevant to everything bought or sold.
$160 today was worth $55 in 1985. That is the "truth".
I find it strange that so many have no concept of inflation-adjusted pricing over time, or the willingness-to-pay threshold.
Wouldn't that be backwards Lou? Maybe I just interpreted your statement wrong?
MichaelArnette there are probably more of us than they know. I know several myself.
WY has no willingness to pay threshold. Look at the number of people who have bought $150 sheep points for the last 5 years. Those points won't be beneficial in their lifetime unless the current bonus point legislation goes thru. E/D/A apps have increased every year since the draw started, neither the economy nor price increases have made a difference.
Bob, exactly. They haven't had to test the threshold, and neither has CO (or any of the other Western states.
It's my belief that no state government, nor any US government from local to national, for that matter, should be in the business of making money at expense of US citizens. They should be doing everything in their power to provide the essential services that are required in the most efficient and cost-effective way possible.
Game and fish departments across the nation survive without the influx of millions of dollars that a few Western states enjoy due to NR revenue.
Jaq I said the price of my tag doubled from one year to the next in the 80’s. I won’t go back. So any increases since then are irrelevant to me.
Basil, understood. That's your choice to make, and I'm sure they miss you. Good hunting, wherever you decide to spend your money.
Ike, you shouldn't use "government" and "most efficient and cost effective way possible" in the same paragraph. My wife retired from a career as a project manager for the USDA. The stories...
Awi was around 16k in 1985, Awi in 2022 57k.
I hear ya Basil, but at $160 for a nonresident deer license in Wisconsin it's a bargain compared to most states. That being said, since wolves have decimated the deer population in about a third of the state, we now have full inclusion of crossbows during archery season and legal baiting in parts of the state, I certainly wouldn't try to talk anybody into hunting public land in Wisconsin. And none of those were a factor back in the 80's the last time you bought a license.
You’ll see in an earlier post I said it was a bargain compared to other states. The principle of the price doubling one year is what stuck in my craw.
HB200 passed out of TRW today, 7-2. This has some steam behind it.
If they cant Fk NR's one way, they will find another I guess.
So HB200 is the same as Bill 60? Or are there any revisions?
Travel, Recreation, Wildlife, and Cultural Resources committee
Do people buying sheep/moose points in Wyoming seriously know how worthless their points are...especially now? On their website they state the following which is realistically FALSE.
"Preference points are a way to improve your odds of eventually drawing a license in a hard-to-draw hunt area. You can apply for preference points for:"
"Game and fish departments across the nation survive without the influx of millions of dollars that a few Western states enjoy due to NR revenue."
idyllwildarcher really really really good point
Just read Wyoming newspaper article that license price increase for nonresident being revived in state house. They take a new twist and make it like special license increase is for the common guy so he can apply for regular license without an increase. Long story short affluent hunters will get increased draw odds and regular license draw will be much harder as so many will go that way. I don't want to hear you should just pony up more money if you want to hunt. This is pure manipulation. Hell, why don't they just put tags up for auction so the richer guys can hunt all the time
