Montana bill would guarantee non residents a certain % of tags

CRC

Old Mossy Horns
Bill would guarantee nonresident hunters 10% of elk, deer, antelope, mountain lion or black bear tags
A bill to increase the number of some hunting licenses for nonresidents would add $147,000 in annual revenue for Fish, Wildlife and Parks, as well as pump money into the coffers of businesses servicing those out-of-staters, proponents argued during a Tuesday hearing.

“I don’t think the fiscal note reflects the true impact,” said by Rep. Kerry White, R-Bozeman, who sponsored House Bill 568.

http://billingsgazette.com/lifestyl...cle_a9d4d130-8ffa-5581-8425-95e8e0b5a98d.html
 

Buxndiverdux

Old Mossy Horns
I can see both sides. Residents feel like they deserve the bulk of the tags. I don't think a guaranteed 10% for Nonresidents is to much to ask. The federal lands belong to all US Citizens.
 

nccatfisher

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
I can see both sides. Residents feel like they deserve the bulk of the tags. I don't think a guaranteed 10% for Nonresidents is to much to ask. The federal lands belong to all US Citizens.
No it isn't, because they pay a premium for the ones they get.
 
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GregC

Six Pointer
Montana is stupid - took two years of applying before my Dad and I finally got tags and the guy that took us out there from NC he didn't get a tag. We go out there and there are dead deer all over the roads. Killed two bucks and both of them were Aphrodite deer from all the in-breeding. They have all these animals and dole out tags like there are four deer left in the state. I don't get it.
 

genesis27:3

Old Mossy Horns
Aw well. I'll just keep applying for one of the other 90% of the tags and send them close to $900 for said tag. If I don't like it, I'll simply move to Montana and buy it for less than $50 and get a chance for the remainder resident tags
 

sky hawk

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Montana is stupid - took two years of applying before my Dad and I finally got tags and the guy that took us out there from NC he didn't get a tag. We go out there and there are dead deer all over the roads. Killed two bucks and both of them were Aphrodite deer from all the in-breeding. They have all these animals and dole out tags like there are four deer left in the state. I don't get it.

All of you should have applied as a party. And yes, it does seem a little silly that they have all these animals and only let hunters take a small fraction each year. Then the numbers build up to incredible levels, and disease hits them and kills them off. Think Milk River in the late '90's. I don't fully understand why they do that. I think they are hedging against disease and harsh winters.

Whatever their reasoning, they still have maintained a desirable hunting destination. I've already sent them my money this year, and the tag prices are probably the highest in the nation.
 

Blackwater

Twelve Pointer
Whatever their reasoning, they still have maintained a desirable hunting destination. I've already sent them my money this year, and the tag prices are probably the highest in the nation.

Wyoming just passed a bill which just might put them in the running for the most expensive N/R tags. I haven't compared prices yet but it is about a 20% increase while they only bumped up the Resident tags by a couple of bucks. I'm afraid Wyoming has seen the last of my money.
 

badlandbucks

Ten Pointer
I don't understand this reasoning. Currently, Montana is already required to issue 17,000 nonresident elk tags. for years there have been 1-2,000 left over than can be bought OTC. There has always historically been a surplus of nonresident deer/elk combo tags that can be bought OTC. Only in the last couple years have deer only tags sold out. issuing a set percentage will only decrease non resident opportunity in the general units, while maybe slightly increasing odds in the limited draw areas.
 

badlandbucks

Ten Pointer
I can see both sides. Residents feel like they deserve the bulk of the tags. I don't think a guaranteed 10% for Nonresidents is to much to ask. The federal lands belong to all US Citizens.

This bill isn't related to the land...it's the wildlife that resides on it. That is a totally separate issue. The power to manage the wildlife was given to the individual states via the constitution. IE Federal lands in different states are managed differently based on what each state decides. Look at every western state...all have very different methods of allocating tags. some make more sense than others, but they are designed that way to balance opportunity with quality. Just like it is NC's decision to set bag limits on deer and nonresident license cost. I'm not saying I agree with the way some states do it, but the hunting opportunity in each state is managed by the state itself, and not the federal government.
 

nhn2a

Ten Pointer
I don't understand this reasoning. Currently, Montana is already required to issue 17,000 nonresident elk tags. for years there have been 1-2,000 left over than can be bought OTC. There has always historically been a surplus of nonresident deer/elk combo tags that can be bought OTC. Only in the last couple years have deer only tags sold out. issuing a set percentage will only decrease non resident opportunity in the general units, while maybe slightly increasing odds in the limited draw areas.

I'm just speculating but I've heard the amount of leftover tags in Montana has been decreasing each year and they thought in the near future, the OTC tags would disappear because of demand. This may be an attempt to get ahead of that and free up some more tags to keep the NR revenue coming in.
 

genesis27:3

Old Mossy Horns
I'm curious to see how many, or if there are any, leftover tags there are this year after the new P&Y record elk was killed in MT this past year.
 

badlandbucks

Ten Pointer
I'm curious to see how many, or if there are any, leftover tags there are this year after the new P&Y record elk was killed in MT this past year.

If folks do their research it shouldn't change much. That bull was killed in a limited entry area. Big difference in hunting a general area and a limited entry area as far as trophy quality.
 

sky hawk

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Only in the last couple years have deer only tags sold out.

Not true...unless you're only comparing the last 6 years.

I'm just speculating but I've heard the amount of leftover tags in Montana has been decreasing each year and they thought in the near future, the OTC tags would disappear because of demand. This may be an attempt to get ahead of that and free up some more tags to keep the NR revenue coming in.

This is likely the case, but just to clarify - there have not always been leftover tags. The last major tag quota/cost shift for NR deer tags was in 2011. The cost of the deer combo tag went up, and the cost of the landowner sponsored tag went up a lot - around $200 (from $324-$526, now it's $602, same as the general). They also shifted the number of tags given to LO sponsored, and NR general deer combo. Before that change, there were not always leftover tags. We used to put in for LO sponsored tags because it was a distinct advantage of getting drawn, and it was considerably cheaper. After the change, it negated the advantages.

I had a conversation with the MTFWP a couple of weeks ago on this, specifically about the NR Deer Combination License drawing statistics. I asked him why the stats are listed for all of the limited entry permits and not the general license and he said that was because it has been 100% draw for the last 6 years. I know for a fact that it was not 100% before that because I know people who didn't draw a general tag. He also said the interest had increased this year, and for the first time in 6 years, there likely would not be 100% draw.

Currently there are 4,600 NR general deer tags given. I don't know how that compares as a percentage of the total number of deer tags in the state. Based on the article, I guess that's less than 10% at the moment?
 

25contender

Twelve Pointer
I don't understand this reasoning. Currently, Montana is already required to issue 17,000 nonresident elk tags. for years there have been 1-2,000 left over than can be bought OTC. There has always historically been a surplus of nonresident deer/elk combo tags that can be bought OTC. Only in the last couple years have deer only tags sold out. issuing a set percentage will only decrease non resident opportunity in the general units, while maybe slightly increasing odds in the limited draw areas.

This has not always been true. I have hunted Montana since the 80s and there was a 10-15year stretch where I was only drawn every two years and had to buy a point for a general elk tag. The left overs one really became reality over the past ten years. Now general deer tags were easier to draw.
 
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