BROWN COUNTY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Hunting and fishing in Wisconsin is now more expensive for out-of-state visitors.
The DNR announcing an increase in license fees, for non-residents, is being enacted.
Whether it’s fishing a Wisconsin waterway or hunting its woods, those sports attract tens of thousands of people, from out-of-state, to Wisconsin each year. If fact, the DNR says on a yearly basis it sells about $360,000 hunting and fishing licenses to non-residents.
And now, because of a provision in the state budget, signed by Governor Evers last week, it will now cost those visitors more to hunt and fish in Wisconsin.
The fee increase went into effect on Tuesday.
“The legislature set the fee increases in the latest biennial budget, so the department is complying with the statute and updating our prices for our customers,” says Tim Gary, budget and policy analyst with the WI DNR.
The increase in fees ranges from an additional five dollars for a one-day fishing license which now costs out-of-staters $15 to an extra $40 to hunt a deer. That license is now $200.
The DNR is projecting the fee increase will bring an additional $2.3 million into the state each year. And while it’s the first fee increase since 2005, the DNR doesn’t believe it will have a negative impact on the number of people from out-of-state who come to Wisconsin to hunt and fish.
According to Gray, “Wisconsin is going to remain a destination for people to come and have quality outdoor recreation experience pursuing fish and game.”
Zach Stadler, owner of Live Action Guide Service agrees.
He leads both fishing and duck hunting trips in and around Green Bay. About 50% of his clients are from out-of-state and even other countries.
Stadler says people from out-of-state come to Wisconsin to fish and hunt because of the opportunity it provides, “We are probably one of the best, if not the best fishery in the world here with the Bay. And most people don’t realize it, just being in their backyard, but it is incredible. The size of the fish that we catch here and all that.”
Even with the price increase, the new fees non-residents will have to pay are still less expensive than similar activities in other states.
According to Stadler, “I go out west to Colorado. It costs me almost $800 to get an elk tag where in Wisconsin people can get a deer tag for a lot cheaper than that.”
Stadler doesn’t believe the increase in fees will significantly reduce the number of non-residents who come to Wisconsin to fish and hunt. But if it does, he says that’s just more game for others.
The revenue from the additional fees will be reinvested back into Wisconsin’s fish and wildlife habitat management.
Hunting and fishing licenses can be purchased online, at any DNR Service Center or from an authorized sales agent location.
