Forty some states are experiencing financial difficulties with their Fish and Game Departments due to the fact that the number of hunters and fishermen in those states is either decreasing or remaining stable, but the price of everything else is going up. The law in Idaho states that we're to manage all the wildlife for all the people; but only a small percent of people actually fund the Department. About 20 to 25% of the people in the state buy a hunting or a fishing license. Fish and Game here is totally financed by sportsmen's dollars, either directly or indirectly. There are no state tax dollars. Now there are a couple of good models in the U.S. that we should take a look at. One's Missouri that started it and Arkansas just followed up with it. They've established a small percent of the state's tax dollars that automatically goes to their fish and game departments. One tenth of one percent. which would enable the department to have a more stable financial source and would allow the people who don't hunt and fish to have some input and some ability to help support the department that manages their wildlife. The downside is that sportsmen are concerned about the influence of those who don't hunt and fish in the decision making process of the fish and game dept. We are the largest hook and bullet club in the state, let's face it. That's what we do, that's what the law mandates us to do, is to create a surplus of wildlife for the citizens of this state to harvest. That's right in the law. So it's become a paradox. But at some point we in Idaho need to sit down and find a more stable funding source for the Department because sportsmen cannot continue to bear the cost and expect the Department to do a good job in managing all the wildlife in this state. There's just not enough money.
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