Re: Anything new concerning USO?

12 September 2004, 14:29

Go take a laxative, then do your own search to find out where their bookings/camps are as they are in your state, not mine. F'n keyboard blowhard.

Dungbeetle

14 September 2004, 10:30

Outdoor Writer

Quote:

What Sportsmen and State F&G's need to be doing is getting their fat-a*sed lawyers up off of it and start reviewing their rules and making changes accordingly to mitigate some of these costly legal challenges.

NEWS RELEASE
For immediate release September 13, 2004

Commission prepares to take action on
alternatives to 10-percent nonresident hunting cap

PHOENIX - The Arizona Game and Fish Commission will be poised to take action on nine different alternatives for maintaining resident hunting opportunity at its regularly scheduled meeting, Friday, Sept. 17 in Safford, Arizona.
The meeting will begin with an executive session at 7 a.m., with the public session starting immediately after the executive session but no later than 9 a.m., at the Manor House Conference Center, 415 East Highway 70, Safford.

The alternatives were developed in response to a recent U.S. District Court ruling that declared unconstitutional the state's 10-percent cap on nonresident permits for certain big game species. They were chosen by the commission from a larger group of options considered at its August meeting, at which time the commission directed the Game and Fish Department to begin collecting public input and developing rule and statutory language to be considered at the September meeting.

The department has received extensive public comment, both from a series of meetings held throughout the state, Aug. 18-27, and from an on-line survey that was e-mailed and posted on its web site.

The alternatives before the public and the commission are:

Award additional bonus points for continuous support. Also referred to as "loyalty points," these points would be awarded to people who have been applying for big game hunts or buying licenses consecutively for a designated period of time, for example, for five years.

Award a conservation bonus point to individuals who participate in wildlife work projects. There are several variations of this proposal.

Modify the Internet application process, or do away with the online application process altogether.

Require all big game drawing applicants to purchase a hunting license.

Increase the bonus point pass percentage from 10 percent to 20 percent, which would mean setting aside 20 percent of big game permits for individuals with the most bonus points.

Create a nonresident set-aside based on capped percentages and conduct a separate nonresident draw for these tags.

Increase license and permit fees, which would require legislation.

Increase the draw application fees. This would require legislation.

Create commercial and recreational (noncommercial) big game tags, with 90 percent of the tags designated as recreational (not allowing the sale of parts), available only to residents, and 10 percent as commercial (allowing the sale of parts), available equally to residents and nonresidents.

The commission may vote to take action on, or to provide the department with further direction on, each of the alternatives. Those that are approved and require rulemaking will then move into the formal rulemaking process, where additional public comment will be accepted prior to development of a final rule package to be submitted to the commission at its December meeting in Phoenix.
Rulemaking for the changes is on a fast track so the department can implement the changes by April of next year, when the commission adopts big game hunt orders for the 2005-06 hunting season.

To view the commission meeting agenda, go to the commission meeting agenda page at azgfd.com.

14 September 2004, 10:44

coues

Here is an email I just received from Knight Rifles.

Dear Knight Rifles Customer,

Thank you for taking the time to share your opinion with Knight Rifles on our affiliation with United States Outfitter and the non-resident drawing situation in Arizona.

Please be aware that we are currently withdrawing our sponsorship with United States Outfitters. Knight Rifles has not funded the current situation at any time.

Knight Rifles has a rich tradition of helping the outdoor hunting and conservation groups, to help insure the future for hunting and shooting sports.

Thank you again and have a great season,

Tony Knight

Something New at any rate.
Coues
Derrick Stone

14 September 2004, 12:55

Dungbeetle

Tony,

Now THAT is action and 'gettin up off of it'. Assuming some of this is/becomes a "go", do you reckon USO and others might be grandfathered in any way under the court ruling that favored them?

I know that's a speculative question but if they and others are grandfathered and they can slip under the wire on it, we'll probably see the heat turned up on other states with more suits filed in a shorter time frame. Hopefully, those states are in a full reveiew at the moment, to get ahead of the curve.

On Muskrat's comments about this coming to a state near you real soon, might want to look around and see what Real Tree and other businesses (Buckmasters, too, I think) are doing with their real estate arms. Lots of southern, southeastern and midwest properties are coming under their banner. I have no problem with the legality of that as it is all above board and is apparently serving a need but the small guy is gonna feel the pinch more and more as time marches forward unless he can afford the high dollar cost of the better leases.

The baby boomers are charging and the prices and conditions of access and hunting are reflecting it. Supply and demand. I dont see USO or any others going broke anytime soon, sponsors or not.

Dungbeetle