Guest speakers Sen. Jon Tester and Steve Doherty, chairman of the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission, will discuss hunting and fishing as a tradition in Montana.
More than 50 percent of Big Sky residents hunt or fish - the highest per-capita in the nation - and spend nearly $600 million each year on their sports, according to the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation.
Aldrich said public access and the commercialization of hunting are crucial issues for resident sportsmen.
“The opportunity to hunt and fish is an important part of our heritage,” he said. “It's a way of life here.”
That way of life is changing as more landowners, both newcomers and native, close their land to public-access hunting and fishing, while leasing their property to outfitters or individuals for private hunting, said Land Tawney of the National Wildlife Federation.
That doesn't sit well with everyday hunters who can't or don't want to pay large fees to hunt public wildlife, he said.
Hunters want the FWP to consider a range of possibilities to improve public-hunter access, from imposing higher taxes on private land leased for hunting to prohibiting any private fees for hunting.
One way the FWP encourages public-hunter access is the state's block management program. The program, which started in 1985, pays landowners a fee to open their gates so sportsmen can hunt for free. The program is funded by nonresident and resident license fees.
For the 2007 hunting season, about 1,250 landowners enrolled about
8 million acres in the block management program.
Under the program, landowners can get a complimentary sportsman's license, limited liability protection, livestock loss reimbursement and up to $12,000 to offset potential public hunting impacts. The FWP also provides signs, maps, permission books and, on some BMAs, staff to patrol and assist hunters.
“Montana's wildlife is the property of people and the FWP is the keeper of that public trust,” Aldrich said.
Aldrich said the state's current hunting system - a combination of lottery and over-the-counter licenses - encourages landowners in some districts to lease their property to out-of-state trophy hunters and shut out resident hunters. Nonresidents are guaranteed at least 10 percent of permits.
The FWP last week finalized regulations for Montana's 2008-2009 hunting seasons.
The agency expanded the youth pheasant season, limited archery permits for elk hunters in the Missouri Breaks and adopted a wolf hunting season.
Federal wildlife managers recently removed gray wolves in the Northern Rockies from the endangered species list, although environmental groups plan to file a lawsuit against that decision.
The commission voted to keep traditional hunting season opening dates rather than change to fixed dates for opening and closing.
Montana's hunting and fishing opportunities are funded through license fees and federal excise taxes on firearms and fishing equipment, which helps the FWP to manage scores of fish and game species.
The Hellgate Hunters and Anglers' meeting is open to the public. Tickets are $20. More information is available at 542-3144.
Hunt 'em up
Hellgate Hunters and Anglers meet for their annual dinner and fundraiser Saturday, beginning at 5 p.m., in Heritage Hall at Fort Missoula. Tickets are $20. Doors open at 5, followed by remarks from Sen. Jon Tester at 6, wild-game appetizers at 7, and a Q&A with FWP Commission chairman Steve Doherty at 8:30 p.m. For more information, call 542-3144.
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