Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

legislation is being discussed to allow bowhunting during all the firearms seasons.

1. So in effect, it will now cost non-residents $400 plus $28.25 for a five day license plus $5.50 habitat stamp. Annual license is $50. Thats either $433.75 to hunt five days or $455 to hunt all season for one buck and one antlerless. What a shame to have to pay that much to hunt deer.

2. Quota increasing from 20,000 to 25,000 non-resident hunters. I have nothing against nr hunters but all this may do is increase the already rampant amount of outfitters popping up all over Illinois and increase crowding of public land. I say may because from what I am told 20,000 non-resident permits is about all that is applied for anyway.

3. Allowing bowhunting during all firearm season.....while it sounds good I am against it as is the Illinois bowhunting organizations and in the last poll taken of bowhunters, the majority were against it. Also there is talk of making bowhunters who already purchased bow permits to make them purchase permits to use during the gun season only.....more $$$ paid out to the state. My personal argument is this.......soon the firearm seasons would be extended, thus allowing even more firearm hunters and bowhunters in the woods at the same time. That means more crowding during firearms season. We bowhunters already have approximately 107 days in the woods, do we need more?

I think most hunters will acknowledge why the changes? Because its a way to increase money for state coffers, and don't be fooled into thinking the extra monies will go back toward wildlife, the DNR, or anything to help increase hunting opportunities. Most likely it will be siphoned off into the general fund.

All in all I see it as helping only the outfitters, local chamber of commerces, and state coffers. What our illustrious governor and liberal state senators are doing is taking advantage of both non-resident and resident hunters by making these changes.

Edit: thought I would let this sit here for a couple of days before moving it to the Midwest forum.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

This is the first I have heard of this.Does this look like it will be passed this year?And your right conservation will see none of the money as usual.
Buck Flagojevich and crew!!!!

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

If I'm spending that kind of $$$$, I'm just going to ante up and head out west to hunt something I CAN'T hunt here in OHIO. Mule deer, antelope, elk, anything but whitey's I can hunt right here in my backyard. $455 is less than $50 more than I paid for my elk tag 2 yrs. ago.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

MECHDOC.......the price increase for non-resident hunters is already in force on the DNR website. The legislation to allow bowhunters to hunt during all firearm season is pending to the best of my knowledge.

OHbowhntr.........I agree and understand where you are coming from. Personally I too would rather pay a slightly higher fee and hunt elk. I can go hunt my home state of Indiana for around $180 total unless Indiana makes it reciprocal.

I hope the changes come back and bites the state of Illinois. We have gone to being one of the best managed deer hunting states to one of the worst within the last 10 years.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

These price increases are getting crazy.
I think other states need to fight back, say your from Ill and you want to hunt pheasants in SD. Guess what it will cost you $455. If your from Wy and want to hunt the same pheasants it will cost you $618 "new elk tag price"
If you want to hunt geese and ducks in the dakotas and your from Ill, yep payup $455. Or turkeys in florida $455, antelope in Montana $455, and so on. I think some states already do this with same game like deer price to deer price. But why end there, if you have something they want charge them what they charge you.
Another thing states should do is only allow you to hunt that other state for 7 days total, for anything.
I think this would make folks think twice about buying up or leasing hunting property in other states that they don't live in. I'm getting sick of this pay to play/hunt attitude, I feel sorry for the youg folks. It's crap like this that is going to ruin hunting. Hunting used to be a tool to control game populations, now some game and fish depts think it mainly to make big $$$.[:@][:@]

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

OUCH!!!

I'll get one NR Landowner Tag for about 1/2 of that I think. Then if I want another bow tag, I'll be paying that to hunt on my own land.[:'(] Doesn't quite seem right/fair. But then nobody ever accused the GOVERNMENT of being fair.[:@]

I may have to lease my ground to an outfitter just to afford to hunt there.:)

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

EXACTLY! I've been saying this exact same thing for YEARS!!

Illinois has just gone plain crazy, and it's beyond ridiculous. It's truly a shame how it's trying to rape and pillage sportsmen who wish to enjoy God's creation.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

It won't cost you that much if you get caught hunting in PA without a license.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

Why would I hunt in a state that dosnt even allow CCW.:D.....j/k.;)..thats craaaaazeeee,for 415.00 bucks I can get a Muly and Antelope tag in North Dakota...

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

That's our governor for ya! A couple years ago he missappropriated funds from the habitat stamps for other purposes (budget) so come dove season no sunflowers had been planted on the public lands around me. This money was supposed to go to habitat improvements instead it goes to his general budget. What a piece of work that guy is!

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

Who's the big pushers in this garbage? Goverment, Big Outfitters? More then likely! Hunting is getting to be a rich mans sport more and more every year, heck it already is as far as that goes! What a joke!!!

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

Looks like last year was my first and last Illionois hunt.

Wasn't really that impressed anyway.

Hunt worked out to like $1,000 a day.

It is cheaper to go to Africa.

IMHO

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

I agree with couger on this one!! As a NR I love Illinois and I would pay what ever they ask, but they just keep uping the numbers of tags and now number of days. They are going to destroy a great thing if they don't watch what they are doing and Illinois will just be another Michigan soon!!! Walt

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

Yep, they stopped planting sunflowers on the public land near me a few years ago. Used to be a good dove hunting area.

One other thing that has always griped me, don't know how it is in other states but in order to hunt spring turkeys you have to draw for a turkey permit per season or week. For instance you have to apply for a specific week for the first permit......$15 resident. That permit is only good for that time period which is anywhere from 5-7 days long depending upon which time period you draw. To hunt other weeks you must pay, apply for and draw another week and another permit...more money.[:-]

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

Actually Andy, these price increases were approved back in prospectively back in 2003 if I remember correctly. There was an article in Deer & Deer Hunting or one of those magazines regarding this "graduated" that had an endpoint of an IL NR Deer tag costing around $500. I vowed right then and there NEVER to buy a NR IL deer tag.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

It's truly a shame how it's trying to rape and pillage.

That's what our state specializes in.....We are masters at finding new areas to perfect our craft!

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

Hunting,Ammo,Guns...Yep #1 at it...

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

FYI For those Ill. bow hunters going to minn. Minn. charges out of state hunters the same as their state charges Minn. hunters to hunt there. So this will effect some resident Il. bow hunters too. Also economics is driven by supply and demand so we are the ones in power. All we have to do is put the bows away for one year and I bet we could change the license fees and guide fees in a hurry. It would happen so fast that you wouldnt even miss a season. Just hold out like the pro sports players do and watch how fast things will change.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

I'm gonna have to find another job if I want to come hunt with any of you IL boys... well wait I probably couldn't talk in any of those guys into letting me in their camp since I snored so loud the last time I was there.[&:][&:][&:]

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

I'm all for increased fees, out west they charge 10-15X what a resident pays, I forget what a res tag costs me, $35? I'd pay more and that's a buck n doe tag. Doesn't sound outrageous to me, if you go out west to hunt a muley etc....or a whitetail in other states itll cost you. Maybe IL should consider a doe only tag....for non-res if they want to come here just to harvest a deer. If you're trophy hunting anywhere, I don't think hunters care if the tag is 350, 375, 400. It's not like were talking about meat hunters coming here to harvest a buck/doe, they'd hunt their own state if for meat, and so we're talking trophy bucks, and we're not comparing a $35 tag to a $400 tag. I'd like to see a limit to how much more a non res pays than a res in all states. 15X a res tag is outrageous, narrow the gap I say, if a res pays $25 and non rest pays $450, I think 10X a res tag should be the max allowed.

And yes for what reason would a bowhunter hunt during the gun seasons? Is this for non-res options? non-res would prefer a gun as well I'd assume, I hope IL doesn't start getting whacky. We've had very well established seasons for 40 years or something. Just my thoughts, but I'd like to see a "earn a 2nd buck tag by harvesting a doe put in place" maybe a muzzleloader season before the shotgun seasons or earlier than late season only when some buck shave lost bone already. I think that would be a great start. I think IL has one of the fairest programs for non res, every non res gets a tag, not the same for many other whitetail states, um hum, Iowa?

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

What's CCW?

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

NR's can buy an ILdoe only tag for $15.50. Same price a resident pays.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

Minnesota charges 141.00 for a Non Resident Archery Deer License, thats either sex. Thats pretty cheap compared to some states.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

I agree, fair is fair. If I want to go to montana trout fishing, I get rapped on the lic. So montana res. should pay the same to come to Illinois to go salmon fishing in lake Michigan. Thats the way it should be, But I also think the respectable scweeky clean govener Rod Bago**** needs to get a reallity check. Ya know when hunters come from other states to hunt, they spend more money than just a game tag.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

Dude, if you're in Ohio. . .is there really any reason to go hunt whitetail anywhere else? :eek:

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

Like maybe Iowa or Kansas? But I think he was referring to hunting other animals.

BTW Josh, that may be the sweetest avatar I've ever seen.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

NR tags in NE are $178 and antlerless only NR tags are $28.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

I stand corrected! Did they do that in 2006? I believe the person selling licenses told me this. I cant find my 2006 minn. regs. book. Sorry for the misinformation.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

The Illinois legislation continue's to amaze me. After practically destryoying the state's DNR a few years back.. it continue's to function without any care whatsoever towards the common good one of it's greatest natural resource the whitetail deer and equally as important the deer hunter in game management and overall health of that herd.

Until someone shows that a state biologist (with adequate recognition) could back these bills I will not back them.. any of them. And in fact I question the very thought of having bowhunters in the woods with gun hunters period. What would this do to help the herd?

The state's record of taking money from the sale of license's for both hunting and fishing and illegaly using it for "other" purposes is proof enough of this state's inept ability to not only run the natural resources of the state but also to simply balance a state budget that has long been in need of over-haul.

Our last few governor's have all been accused and federally investigated for crimes.. Roddo Blagojevich is simply NEXT in line to serve in prison.

This guy (Blagojevich) and most of this entire state of Illinois' legislation are not fit to walk my dog.

Upping the NR tags another 5,000 released will have no effect other than making those in govt. richer. Or spending the outdoorsman dollar where it is not allocated for anyway.

I laugh at the state in which I live. It will likely always have giant deer.. but will never have a leader in it's executive and legislative branches with enough brain's on how to properly help it's own wildlife mgmt. by properly hiring the right individual's to make these important decision's. Instead it has chosen to destroy these positions by firing and cutting their positions and "inventing" their own plans for the Illinois wildlife.

[:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@]

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

I think the Eastern states tend to be a deal compare to out west. Mostly all we have are whitetails, out west they have it all, so one state not only gets your deer tag fees, your elk, moose, goat, sheep. One of the reason I support increased/fair tag fees, is to take that money and put it towards habiat/hunting etc....so its a surprise that here in IL it doesn't all goto those purposes. I hope someone takes over and gets it right.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

Very good and valid points, duke...

As someone who makes their real living in medical sales with 70% of my territory in Southern Illinois, I've seen first-hand how inept the Illinois government -- and specifically Blagojevich -- has been in withholding monies promised to hospitals for reimbursement of medicare and medicaid for what I can only guess is his more personal pet projects. It's effected a large percentage of my smaller hospitals to the point that patient care has suffered.

It's almost unthinkable to fathom how Illinois' government is bent on robbing ready resources to the point of affecting vastly different resources ranging from healthcare to sportsmen's wallets to satisfy its own greed.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

Don't even get me started on the state's disposition of medicare and medicaid.[:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@]

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

I've talked to the local GW here and actually very little of the money goes into doing anything to improve habitat or hunting. Illinois is making some Big mistakes and they will be the ones to pay down the road. Iowa has one of the best NR permit plans going. Yeah it's hard to get a tag, but when you do you will get a quality hunt.

I payed $178 for an over the counter Deer tag in NE for 07, and $86 for a NR Turkey tag. They will be the same in 08. I'd hate to think I had to pay $400 plus for the deer tag. MO. NR Turkey tag of $175 is high enough but at least you can hunt the entire season and kill 2 turkeys.

It's like Cougar said in IL we have to draw for aspecific week and then if you get sour weather you may be screwed. That's the reason they made 5 weeks of Turkey season, they can sell tags 5 times. Sad!![:@]

Dan

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

No big deal, no one's perfect, I sure the heck ain't!! I think they've always been fairly decent priced but i could be wrong. Magicman- I like all your post through out the board, you have real good things to say! Keep it up buddy!!

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

It's hardly ever about the hunters. It's almost always about revenue. This sucks. If you who are paying these absorbant prices keep paying them they'll just continue to increase. Wise up people. We are a cash cow to most states.


Spud from Misouri

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

Hell, i thought that it was already legal to bow hunt during gun season. In the area where i hunt, it is all private land, so i dont really see hunting pressure increase the same way that it might on public lands. There are too damn many deer anyway, so, except for the high prices, I dont see a real downside to increasing the potential for higher harvest rates. it would be wonderful if they would take just a small portion of therevenue generated by deer permits and invest it in developing public access land.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

I guess the best we can hope for is for Blagosumbitch and other greedy, corrupt politiciansto run the IDNR into the ground to the point where our deer herd crashes, so the outfitters and non-residents move on to rape and pillage some other state's deer herd and we can have control of ours back.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

I would think that this is an area where people can do something if they organize. The state government should be held accoutable for how money generated by hunting is spent, especially in terms of reinvesting money in developing and maintaining natural resources. Unfortunately, even though i own land in Illinois, I am no longer a resident (now a damn out-of-state hunter after 40 years as a resident). Otherwise, I would spend half my time on the phone or writing letters to my state legislators.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

Illinois has the single highest priced whitetail tags in the United States. Number one. Just glad I moved here from Indiana 2 years so I don't have to deal with it anymore.Covered myself by picking up a lifetime license for only $210.Those are so cheap it's the first thing I signed up for when I became elligible. Definitely a system grossly weighed in favor of residents, and as a resident I don't like it. My out-of-state friends cannot hunt with me anymore. This sucks. I think everyone should be able to hunt every state reasonably. In my case I hunt primarily federal land too. My buddiesown it and are getting screwed out of hunting it.

RE: Illinois NR price increase and quota increase plus...
 

I live in Michigan, and have hunted Illinois the last 10 seasons. I remember when the tags were $125 over the counter!
They are simply getting ridiculous. I love to hunt Illinois, but there are other states with just as good hunting and alot more reasonable prices.
I managed to get a lease in Buffalo County Wisconsin this year, the tags are only $160 over the counter. According to P&Y, and B&C Buffalo County has been one of the best counties in the country for 10 years running for book animals. I have hunted their several times, but this will be my first year with a lease. Illinois maybe on the back burner for me now.