https://www.takebackyourelk.com/


Link to the program regarding elk license distribution.

https://www.abqjournal.com/opi...11-bf08c6ff732b.html


OPINION: It's time to take back our elk and ensure fair hunting opportunities
By Jesse Deubel / New Mexico Wildlife Federation Feb 25, 2024

In a state known for its rugged landscapes and abundant wildlife, New Mexico’s elk management system stands out for all the wrong reasons.

The recent release of the second Take Back Your Elk report sheds light on the persistent issues plaguing the system and underscores the urgent need for reform.

One glaring problem highlighted by the report is the disproportionate allocation of elk licenses, favoring those with deep pockets over ordinary residents. New Mexico’s Elk Private Land Use System (EPLUS) allocates a significant portion of licenses directly to landowners, with a staggering 75% of these licenses ending up in the hands of nonresident hunters. This not only raises concerns about fairness but also undermines the principle of equal access to our state’s natural resources.


Moreover, the state’s unique “outfitter set-aside” law further exacerbates the inequities by reserving 10% of public draw licenses for hunters who can afford to hire outfitters. This system essentially tilts the playing field in favor of wealthy hunters, leaving many residents at a disadvantage in the pursuit of their hunting opportunities.

The lack of transparency and accountability within the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish only compounds the problem. Despite calls for greater transparency from legislators and conservation groups, the department has failed to provide public reports on license distribution. Meanwhile, the department continues to benefit from selling elk licenses to nonresidents at higher fees, further perpetuating the inequities in the system.

It’s clear that New Mexico’s elk management system is in dire need of reform. The coalition behind the Take Back Your Elk report is calling on all New Mexicans to urge their state legislators to support necessary changes in state law:


Prioritize resident hunting opportunity and undertake wholesale reform of the state’s elk management system.

Ensure that 100% of public land elk hunting opportunities are distributed through the public draw system, guaranteeing equal access for all.

Repeal the “outfitter set-aside” provision that unfairly advantages hunters with financial means.

These reforms are not just about ensuring fairness; they are about upholding the fundamental principle that our wildlife belongs to all the people of New Mexico, not just a privileged few. It’s time to take back our elk and ensure that hunting opportunities are accessible to all residents, regardless of their socioeconomic status.

For more information, report details and to join the call for reform, visit TakeBackYourElk.com. Together, we can create a more equitable and sustainable future for elk management in New Mexico.

Jesse Deubel is the executive director of the New Mexico Wildlife Federation.

Can't disagree. I lived for five years on the western edge of Unit 34. There was a constant drumbeat of complaints against the skewed allocation system, just as Mr. Deubel describes it. If wealthy hunters want to buy a trophy, let the Mescaleros profit from it.

This is something, every western state deals with…voices of big landowners wanting more tags in the name of “ protecting their lands “ while they lock up every piece of public land within their reach ( corner crossing is just one )

Lots of politics in this. Not sure about the elk management.
I hunt in NM a lot. I hunt private land and buy landowner tags. I have never tried to draw but I see the issue.
Each state is unique. In Texas, right next to NM, we have no closed elk season. We hunt them whenever and wherever, but have to pay the piper and landowner.
Makes no sense.

Seeing the prices paid at the various conventions does not help much other than puts a lot of money "out there" in the name of conservation.

Wish I had the answer....

Sheep hunting became complete and unabated obsession and so expensive that one sheep hunt will pay for all the trespassing fees for decades or lifetime

Jess Duebel is a paid employee of the NM Wildlife Federation, or as I refer to them, the Sportsmen Against Wildlife. This group fails to recognize that providing a financial incentive to landowners means more elk for everyone. Take the incentive away and watch the ranchers turn their water off when they don't have livestock in the pasture. And no more mineral or salt for the benefit of the wildlife either. I get it. I haven't drawn a tag for many years. But, don't hammer the rancher enduring a very tough economic period. This is just one group that is out to get the rancher off his land.
I wonder how come the Sportsmen Against Wildlife aren't raising a ruckus about the wolves that are decimating the elk herds in SW NM???????

Coming to common ground can be tough
You got ranchers, outfitters, resident hunters and nonresident hunters, state officials, state and federal land and mess with access… oh boy…

One of the problems in NM is ranchers locking public access gates to public land they lease - land you don't have to cross private property to get to. My friend, who guided for 40+ years and has wound down, calls the game warden every time he finds a gate that isn't supposed to locked.

quote:

Originally posted by Austin Hunter:
One of the problems in NM is ranchers locking public access gates to public land they lease - land you don't have to cross private property to get to. My friend, who guided for 40+ years and has wound down, calls the game warden every time he finds a gate that isn't supposed to locked.

Happens in other states also.

I have had ranchers try and kick me off public lands.

The GPS mapping has helped a lot in this area.

One rancher shut up really fast when I showed him the GPS.

His only statement was I don't carry one of those.

We were a good mile from any of his property.

I told him to buy one so he could better manage his.

I have Elk hunted in NM for the last 9 years. I try to draw for the tag (only twice) and back it up with a landowner tag. Which is the only way you can hunt NM every year. If remember that New Mexico allocates 6% tags to Non-Residents and then 10% to the Outfitter Pool, You could have residents also use an outfitter (no idea what that is) but possible. That's 84% going to residents. For the unit I hunt there are 1,165 tags Non-Residents competing with Residents can draw is 1,165 tags all the seasons. There are three seasons with 754 tags total Residents only can draw (cow tags). For the Non-Residents the last three tears draw odds are 4,5,6% Archery and 4,4,5% for Rifle. To the Landowner Tags, in the Unit I hunt a few years ago I called NMGF before they did the extensive audit to identify a lot of fraud with Landowner tags i.e. people getting tags on ground they hadn't owned for some time and so on. At the time, there were 185 Bull, 93 Archery and 196 Cow tags.
The premise of a Landowner Tag is to compensate the Landowner for the competition wildlife does to forage on his land. So if I'm a Landowner and whether a Resident or Non-Resident contacts me wouldn't you sell to the highest offer? Does anyone think that if it was shutoff to Non-Resident Purchase that there wouldn't be similar competition in state? A lot of this drive up in prices is because of several hunting services that have financialized/brokered this process.
The hunting world has changed because of this and I don't like it at all. They make moderate changes in Colorado a few years ago to stem this.

This is a nativist faction trying to totally close the door to Non-Residents appealing to emotion and uninformed people responding.
I've seen this backbiting in other states nothing. The North Dakotan's would blame the Minnesotan's for taking their game and the Minnesotan's would blame the Dakotan's for taking their fish.

quote:

Originally posted by RAR60:
I have Elk hunted in NM for the last 9 years. I try to draw for the tag (only twice) and back it up with a landowner tag. Which is the only way you can hunt NM every year. If remember that New Mexico allocates 6% tags to Non-Residents and then 10% to the Outfitter Pool, You could have residents also use an outfitter (no idea what that is) but possible. That's 84% going to residents. For the unit I hunt there are 1,165 tags Non-Residents competing with Residents can draw is 1,165 tags all the seasons. There are three seasons with 754 tags total Residents only can draw (cow tags). For the Non-Residents the last three tears draw odds are 4,5,6% Archery and 4,4,5% for Rifle. To the Landowner Tags, in the Unit I hunt a few years ago I called NMGF before they did the extensive audit to identify a lot of fraud with Landowner tags i.e. people getting tags on ground they hadn't owned for some time and so on. At the time, there were 185 Bull, 93 Archery and 196 Cow tags.
The premise of a Landowner Tag is to compensate the Landowner for the competition wildlife does to forage on his land. So if I'm a Landowner and whether a Resident or Non-Resident contacts me wouldn't you sell to the highest offer? Does anyone think that if it was shutoff to Non-Resident Purchase that there wouldn't be similar competition in state? A lot of this drive up in prices is because of several hunting services that have financialized/brokered this process.
The hunting world has changed because of this and I don't like it at all. They make moderate changes in Colorado a few years ago to stem this.

This is a nativist faction trying to totally close the door to Non-Residents appealing to emotion and uninformed people responding.
I've seen this backbiting in other states nothing. The North Dakotan's would blame the Minnesotan's for taking their game and the Minnesotan's would blame the Dakotan's for taking their fish.

You're right - landowners sell tags to highest bidder, resident or non-resident. The flaw in the logic of the article states is that all the non-resident buyers are wealthy!

I will tell you I have seen landowner tags in NM go crazy the last few years.

The irony of all this is that one of the loudest critics against landowner tags in NM tried to buy a landowner tag from me in 2015