So outdoorsmen are in decline I hear. And revenues are down.
And fees are maybe going up (they tend to).
Add a couple more notions to the mix….
*United we stand.
And: *it’s a global economy (well, intra-state activity is really common).
This brings me to an idea: What if more states/regions banded together for reciprocal licenses? Hunting/fishing, whatever might work.
If we’re going to pay more maybe we should at least theoretically get more for the buck (even though most people might not do outdoor sports out of state).
Also: do outdoorsmen of neighboring states really have different interests or the same interests by and large?
Are all states in user/revenue decline? Well, some brainstorming might be order…here goes…
Say that deer licenses are $20 for residents in each state. The DNR’s might want to bump fees to $40…What if they announced that the 2007 license was $40 and also now called a “Great Lakes Region” or even a “US license” where for that $40 you could hunt anywhere… Would people grouse so much about the price boost?
It’s a three-part problem:
1. How best to sell more licenses? (Of all kinds.) –No: it’s really just how to get more revenue…
2. How to get more people outdoors?
3. How to manage/track the resources?
What if there was a national hunting or fishing license? A “one license does all” option?
I see the need for management, but maybe it could be done more on the back-end rather than the front-end: right now it seems like I’m buying licenses for this and that in all kinds of complex arrangements. Seasons are complex, too. Yet the DNR doesn’t really have adequate feedback whether their carefully counted tags/permits for each county/unit are being FILLED? Aren’t they more interested in knowing if I actually shot the doe that I got the permit for? What if there were points to be earned for website feedback or for inspection check-in? What if instead of me going to them and buying a huge variety of licenses and permits, I could buy one license (or, heck, even just pay it in my state/fed taxes) then somehow get credit for giving feedback? Instead of a penalty approach, we could incentivize it, as they say. Use pull instead of push.
If our license sales (or DNR revenues) are declining, it seems that we could perhaps reverse the trend by greatly simplifying licensing and seasons as well. The DN might be greatly pleased/relieved if a lot of folks simply bought an “all-rounder” license each year even “just in case.” (Right now the whole set-up seems likely to weed out anyone but a die-hard committed outdoorsman! It’s like you need an investment plan to work out all the fees.)
Then there’s park/camp fees on various levels. I suppose it’s just like a toll-booth system of some kind. And I suppose the answer is: Do they net more revenue via the toll-booth approach or a universal approach. Heck, you could go all the way back to taxpayer funding, I suppose. 🙂
