October Board and Policy Meeting Update
On October 4, 2022, Idaho Sportsmen held their monthly board and policy meeting to hear from agencies and discuss upcoming policy efforts for the 2023 Legislative Session. A great turnout with many of our affiliates. The group held a roundtable with great conversation on federal, regional, and state policy.
Jess Byrne, Director of the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), gave an update on the legislative proposals DEQ has submitted to the Governor's Office - two proposal ideas are likely to move forward. DEQ would like to be able to accept funding from the private industry to pay for staff or resources to have the Department oversee these tasks. Their second change is to update water treatment standards, per the federal case against DEQ, based on these standards. The negligence standards were too low for DEQ, based on the federal court's decision, so these will need to be updated to reflect the court's wishes.
Mike Edmundson, Director of the Office to the Species Conservation, gave an update on the species that may interest sportsmen. Grouse is currently not listed under their species conservation list, but the Office tends to treat them as if they were on the endangered list. Governor Little Signed Executive Order 2022-03 to complete an Idaho Sage-grouse Management Plan to increase data and update to meet mitigation goals. During the spring-summer 2023, the Office will continue to do public outreach, which Director Edmundson noted would be a perfect time for him to discuss the updates of this plan to Idaho Sportsmen to receive stakeholder input.
Another species on the conservation list is the grizzly bear due to the lack of population in certain zones in Idaho. Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG) and the Governor's Office filed a dispute with the National Fish and Wildlife Services to enlist the grizzly bear. Director of IDFG, Ed Schriever, will be the chair of the Grizzly Bear Decision Committee, which will start in December 2022.
Tim Frost, Deputy Administrator of the Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses (DOPL), gave an overview of the Outfitters and Guides rulemaking aimed at being business-friendly while navigating the goal of keeping these resources alive. The hunting and fishing community had asked these conversations include how the impacts of how the maximum outfitters and guides on bodies of water will impact resources. He stated that Idaho Sportsmen had done a fantastic job threading the needle of keeping resources thriving while supporting outfitters and guide licenses.
Idaho Sportsmen and the Idaho Sportsmen Legislative Caucus co-hosted the 2nd Annual Clay Buster Bonanza Event on September 23, where nearly 50 members, agency staff, congressional staff, state legislators, candidates, and industry partners participated. The purpose of this event is to align with National Hunting and Fishing Day on September 24, 2022. Governor Little signed a proclamation declaring it National Hunting and Fishing Day in Idaho on September 24. We are grateful for our numerous sponsors that made this event possible.
Idaho Fish & Game gave an update at the meeting regarding non-resident full-time student licenses to receive a discounted fee. This group would be allowed to purchase their fishing licenses at a residential license price while being an Idaho student at an accredited institution; the goal is to start with fishing licenses for this group and expand in the future. The change in licensing fees will allow for an opportunity to recruit out-of-state youth to the sportsmen community who may stay in our great state after graduation. Thus, giving a population who is underrepresented in the sportsmen community an opportunity to learn about sportsmen activities and have the education needed when voting on related issues. IDFG has been more supportive of taking a staggered approach and adding other licenses in the future.
Idaho Natural Resources Interim Committee Update
On Thursday, October 6, 2022, the Idaho Natural Resources Interim Committee met to hear updates from natural resource agencies. The Committee heard updates on water resources, water development projects, and other water-related issues. Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG) and Idaho Department of Lands (IDL) Directors also updated the meeting regarding their respective agencies.
Director of IDFG, Ed Schriever, gave an update on the lifetime certificate and license programs. Many have discovered a potential issue when granting privileges to lifetime license holders who are no longer residents of Idaho, predominately impacting controlled hunts. Non-residents with lifetime certificate holders have been taking opportunities away from residents, especially since no more than 10% of tags issued are non-resident. Non-resident lifetime license holders will pay the fee of a non-resident tag but are in the resident pool for controlled hunts.
An update on wolf management followed; Director Schriever discussed the population management of wolves by allowing a year rounds private land seasons and expanding the methods of take through SB 1211-2021. Although the harvest levels have generally increased, there is a high variation of harvest levels on a year-to-year basis. The expanded methods due to the bill only impacted harvest levels minimally. The population estimate tests are currently being run, and results will be available at the beginning of the new year. Wildlife Service has been working with IDFG to take wolves in areas where a potential livestock conflict may exist. They have also been focusing on taking reproductively mature female wolves to prevent future efforts needed
The Wolf Deprivation Control Board (WDCB) approved IDFG to develop a cooperative agreement to reimburse costs associated with harvesting wolves during open trapping and hunting seasons. The agreement prioritizes reimbursement in GMUS with a history of chronic livestock depredation and secondary priority where elk populations are below management objectives. IDFG allocated $300,000, a third of which will go to the WDCB annual to control wolves in the Lolo Zone to aid in the recovery of the elk population. The Commission for the WDBC requested the other two-thirds to enter into an agreement with the Foundation for Wildlife Management that reimburses individuals' costs associated with the harvest of wolves.
The highest priority remains the units with chronic livestock depredation issues, which had a 40% increase in wolf harvests by hunters and trappers. The 5-year average in elk units remained consistent, while in units not prioritized by IDFG, there was a net decrease of 34% in wolf harvests. In 2021, about 50,000 Idaho hunters and trappers purchased at least one wolf tag, and hunters and trappers killed nearly 400 wolves. Consistency and retention of highly skilled individuals engaging in wolf management is essential, thus why the reimbursement program will continue to be so crucial.
Director of the IDL, Dustin Miller, gave a wildfire update stating the 2022 fire season was milder compared to the 2021 fire season. In 2022, about 4600 acres between 285 under IDL protection burned. The number of total acres burned across the state was 410,000, mainly across National Forests. The total cost for suppression charged to the Emergency Fire Suppression Account was more than $22 million; $7.4 million is reimbursable to IDL for assisting other agencies on fires in other jurisdictions. Compared to 2021, firefighters battled 391 fires with over 142,000 acres burned; this cost the state more than $65 million in 2021. Thanks to the 2022 Legislature, the state was able to make heavy investments in wildland firefighter pay to assist with the fire season.
IDL has plans to bring legislation to address the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund and regulatory functions, which would give IDL the resources to reclaim the work on the mines. The thought is to make a $10 fee to be added per federal mining claim in Idaho annually, equating to approximately $400,000 annually to fund these projects.
The next Idaho Sportsmen meeting is on November 1, 2022, at 6:30 PM.