Windlooker
Well-Known Member
The tags float but doesn’t specify whether NR landowner do or don’t qualify.
Not a great thing IMO. I dont even remember this bill being up for debate this year. (I remember it in past years).
hillrunner
PMA Member
Did this just come out of the blue? What's the reasoning for it?
It's going to reduce revenue obviously. I have only shot more than 1 buck in a season once in over 30 years of deer hunting. I always buy both statewide tags + my landowner tag so I can hunt different seasons. At most, I'll just buy one now.
It will also give landowners like me the option to hunt every single season. That will make an impact.
Example, early muzzy season looks pretty tempting some years when it lines up with a cold front, but I never buy that tag because I don't want to waste it if it's 80 degrees out. Now I can hunt it every year and if it's a bust I just go late season anyway? Same story with the regular gun season, I like to go late season muzzy but some years we get brutal weather during that 2nd gun season that I wish I could hunt. I guess now I just can?
How long before the rest of the state's hunters get sick and tired of the pandering to landowners and push for their own floating tag?
It's going to reduce revenue obviously. I have only shot more than 1 buck in a season once in over 30 years of deer hunting. I always buy both statewide tags + my landowner tag so I can hunt different seasons. At most, I'll just buy one now.
It will also give landowners like me the option to hunt every single season. That will make an impact.
Example, early muzzy season looks pretty tempting some years when it lines up with a cold front, but I never buy that tag because I don't want to waste it if it's 80 degrees out. Now I can hunt it every year and if it's a bust I just go late season anyway? Same story with the regular gun season, I like to go late season muzzy but some years we get brutal weather during that 2nd gun season that I wish I could hunt. I guess now I just can?
How long before the rest of the state's hunters get sick and tired of the pandering to landowners and push for their own floating tag?
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I hadn't even thought about early muzzy. This is not good!
When was this debated?!?!?!
YtailFreak
Active Member
At the surface it sounds nice, but its not good. It will definitely have a negative impact on age class/quality.
As a landowner who's really come to lose interest in this once beloved hobby, I think this is GREAT! I'll get my landowner tags as soon as they're available and hunt my home turf as much or as little as I want, any season I choose. IMO, this is the way that it always should have been for landowners. Outside of shotgun season, I probably won't even buy statewide or county specific tags anymore, unless I fill my landowner tags early and an incredible weather pattern rolls through.
Thinkin Rut
PMA Member
I get the cumulative effect, but with all the crap being thrown at Whitetail hunting lately, this ranks fairly low (IMO). I'm more concerned how it came in undetected and same with the seemingly late warning on the forest reserve program. What ever happened to Fishbonker...he would have been all over this!
This is the start of all tags floating like youth- I’ve been against it since it started (even for youth- yes I’m a bad guy) once it started for youth then everyone with kids say “how great it was to pick and choose”… now look what it will turn in to. If you want to hunt, you make the choices to hunt a season. End of story. That’s what makes it fun and a challenge. Just my opinion
I don't see this floating feature spreading to all tags, but I understand the slippery slope argument. I figured this group in general would be against this change, and I don't mind being the outlier. Youth and landowner tags should float, IMO, but I am against the transferring of any tags from one person to another.
Very concerning. Didn't hear a peep about this. Now they have a blueprint on how to get stuff pushed thru without resistance.
Thinkin Rut
PMA Member
I can't see them taking the additional revenue cut like that but I'm surprised they're taking the cut for the LO tags.