Colorado to double resident license fees

[saddlesore]

There is a bill working it's way thru the legislature and if past will double all license fees for residents. From fishing/small game all the way to elk.

It doesn't just hit residents though. All application fees for draw hunts will be $20 ,instead of $3

Also, park fees,camping fees, use fees anything coupled with COW is going to increase.

Two weeks to go in the current session

[CurlyTail]

Overdue. 50 bucks for an Elk Tag is a bit absurd when the market value is clearly over 500.

I will be very concerned however when they start to siphon off license money to support parks/recreation. And I predict it will happen eventually as it has in other states where Game and Fish merge with Parks and Recreation.

[Fridaythe13th]

More and more hunting is becoming a rich person sport. Although $50 for a elk is pretty cheap. What the price for a preference point $50?

[saddlesore]

Overdue. 50 bucks for an Elk Tag is a bit absurd when the market value is clearly over 500.

I don't know any states with a credible elk population that charges residents that $500

[saddlesore]

More and more hunting is becoming a rich person sport. Although $50 for a elk is pretty cheap. What the price for a preference point $50?

Plus that will add another $20 to apply for it and probably the Pref.Point cost will double as well

[cohunter14]

Here's a recent article regarding this: http://www.denverpost.com/2017/04/07/colorado-hunting-fishing-licence-cost-bill/

It doesn't double the cost of tags, but definitely increases them. But Jim, your worries are spot on and they are recognized here in the article where they talk about the need to maintain and repair more than 100 dams that the CPW manages.

[saddlesore]

Right from the CPW office.
Doug Vilsack, Dept. of Natural Resources <dnr_cpw.info@state.co.us>


This bill proposes to:

Phase in increased park fees and resident hunting and fishing license prices, generally by no more than 50 percent of current levels, and allow for adjusting prices to keep up with inflation.

Guaranteed they will go for as high as they can get and then set the inflation after that.
The 50% figured has been proposed for two years now and that is what CPW wants. Anyone who thinks they won' t push for that is drinking the CPW Kool-Aid, Basically they will almost double their income

Sets the fee for an annual senior fishing license at no more than one-half the price of annual resident fishing licenses.

But the annual fishing license is going up to substantially more than $20 so seniors will pay what the going rate is today.

So is the small game licenses and all youth tags

Increase application fees for limited hunting licenses allocated through a drawing to $20.
Deer/pronghorn are projected to be raised too +$40 add $20 to that for application.That is +$60

Create registration fees for motorized and non-motorized watercraft to help pay for the Aquatic Nuisance Species program.

[CurlyTail]

Thousands of non-residents gladly pay over 500 bucks to hunt elk in Colorado every year. This is to hunt on Federally owned public land.

I doubt that many Colorado residents will stop chasing Elk even with 100.00 permits. If they do - then more will be available to nonresidents at the 644.00 level. 100.00 is still 15.5% of the nonresident fee, and a bargain for the privilege of hunting elk. My Nebraska Elk permit this year was 150.00 if you like to compare with neighboring states.

You have to admit that the current 50.00, or 7% of the nonresident fee is absurdly low. Or perhaps the nonresident fee is absurdly high - you could talk me into that. Anyway, there is nothing cheap about Elk hunting. I would like to think that the money is going to a good cause - but I won't even go there!

Think of it as one Sitka long sleeved T-shirt(with hood) and you will feel better


OK, I am coming around - I feel a little bit bad that resident license fees are doubling, but not a lot bad. I wouldn't feel bad at all if I thought the money would be spent wisely to help Elk.

[Elkduds]

The last CO resident fee increase was in 2006. NR tags have and will increase in price every year, those have an automatic adjustment to keep up w cost of living increases. I have no problem w increased resident license fees, however I want the $ spent well on habitat and wildlife management. IMO, a better-funded wildlife management agency would be less dependent on politics and freer to use real science to manage wildlife/habitat. Can't have wildlife without quality habitat.

[Lefty]

I go back and forth on many of the fees. Placed higher sort of filters out the riff-raff. or the not so serious. However I think for many hunts I may not have the interest just because of the expense.
What would I be willing to pay for my hunts each year! I dont really know. But I may limit my self to waterfowl and one big game animal,

Here in Idaho
I purchase the Idaho Sportsman's package. I haven't hunted cougar at all the past two years, and all the fishing tags I do not use. I chase deer mostly to hunt with my daughter. I also buy a inexpensive wolf tag,.. Would I pay more for a wolf tag,... yes,.. But I wouldnt spend $100, $200, or $500 for a wolf tag. Would I trade a deer or elk tag that cost $500 ,.. yes. but that is currently available only to non-residents. But I wouldnt buy a separate wolf tag at that cost.

Overall I believe most states tend to charge 10 times the resident fee for most tags ( and for public lands thats another sore spot)

I pay $100, $200 maybe up to $300 for a resident archery elk,.. Deer maybe $75.00 Waterfowl,.. Most waterfowlers would cease to exist, but I might go to $700-$800,.. few would be hunting waterfowl , better than hunting a private refuge

Ive paid non resident fees in Oregon, Saskatchewan, ND,SD Iowa, Idaho, Utah Nebraska, Missouri, Florida, and Wyoming,,California,and Montana I thought all were fair at that time as a non-resident.

If you have a job, for most big game I believe the cost should be affordable(without excessive budgeting)

[cohunter14]

If you look at the bill itself from the link in the article, you'll see that they have a section that talks about the proposed costs for each license. "Issued licenses in amounts not to exceed the following amounts:" Here are some of those numbers:

Deer and Pronghorn: Increase from $30 to $45
Bear: Increase from $40 to $60
Elk: Increase from $45 to $67.50
Mountain Goat, Moose, and Sheep: Increase from $250 to $375
Small Game: Increase from $20 to $30
Annual Fishing License: Increase from $25 to $37.50

Also, senior fishing license: $18.75

Here is a link to the legislation: http://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2017A/bills/2017A_1321_01.pdf

[saddlesore]

I stand corrected the big game fees are to go up 50% not %100 percent, but you have to add the $20 application fee to that unless you buy OTC. Everything else holds.

It is absurd to say increase will filter out the slobs and not serious . WHAT AN ELITIST STATEMENT. Some of us go for the enjoyment and don't necessarily want to kill ourselves just to tag an elk.Then there is the parent who wants to take 2--3 of his kids hunting and can barely afford a tag for himself. When we should be doing every thing we can to help youngsters get stared.

Or the senior hunter like myself who hasn't had a raise in 15 years.I guess I must be a slob hunter or not serious about elk hunting.

[js80138]

I read HB 1321 and there are two areas that I caught my attention regarding the benefits of the fee increase.

21 (III) Increasing big game populations through habitat
22 improvement programs;
23 (IV) Preventing the listing of state trust species under the federal
24 "Endangered Species Act of 1973", 16 U.S.C. sec. 1531 et seq., as
25 amended, through species distribution and abundance monitoring, disease
26 prevention, and partnerships with private landowners;

What I am most concerned with is the slight of hand introduction of wolves. If anyone can help convince me that this isn't the case please do so but this seems to open the door wide open.

[cohunter14]

I stand corrected the big game fees are to go up 50% not %100 percent, but you have to add the $20 application fee to that unless you buy OTC. Everything else holds.

Yes, and you also have an increase from $10 to $15 for a Habitat Stamp.

The other thing to keep in mind is that this bill allows for the license fees to increase every year with the Consumer Price Index. That means all of these licenses will continue to increase every year. Combine that with the added fees and multiple tags and things add up real quick.

[saddlesore]

Figure out how much those20 + point trophy areas will cost in draw fees.

To tell you how strapped they are,I was at Home Depot today and a CPW guy pulls up in a humongus Ford Super Duty. loaded. This is probably a $60,000 truck and that isn't counting all the add ons for CPW. I can't think of any reason that truck that big and all tricked out is needed

Stop at the office at the Sinton RD office in Colo. Springs and you only see new trucks. The number of people employed there is astounding.They bring in over $100 Million a year in license sales,( per their web site) Most of it is employee's salaries