Would you consider this alarming?

Nope. Unlike the USP, we know what it means.

[align=left]HUNTING LICENSE SYSTEM HUNTING LICENSE YEAR-TO-DATE SALES COMPARISONS DATE 8/15/06[/align][align=left]LICENSE DIVISION FROM FISCAL YEAR BEGINNING UP TO AND INCLUDING JULY SECTION B[/align][align=left]REPORT LICS2502 COMPARING 2005/2006 TO 2006/2007 PAGE: 2[/align][align=left][/align][align=left]***********************************************[/align][align=left][/align][align=left]"It's data for the month of July. When do the current licenses go on sale? July 1. Got a whole months worth of data there. Send it off to the legislators and proclaim the doom of the PGC already..."[/align][align=left][/align][align=left]My thoughts alsowhen I read it. Doe applications started to arrive in the first fullweek of August and will be coming in over therest of themonth. [/align][align=left][/align][align=left]Kinda early to be crying wolf, orin the case of some, gloating.[/align][align=left][/align][align=left][/align]

Are you Joseph J. Neville, legislative liason/lobbyist for the PGC and former Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs?

If so, why the opaque cheap shot?

When the PGC goes down the tubes because it has no money to operate, And hunting in PA ceases to exist. The anti-hunters will havefinally gotten their way and they will have you hunters who DID NOT BUY A LICENSE TO THANK for helping in their cause. You guys are so selfish and narrowminded that you cannot see that you are doing more harm than good!!! When my children and grandchildren ask me why they can't go hunting with pap, i'll be sure to tell them about the selfish hunters PA USED to have that ruined it for us all.

If you look at the root of the problem (why hunters are not buying licenses) you should be able to understand that the hunters are not the problem. Surely you can see that PA has all kinds of problems going on right now.

The PGC's public relations problems

Deer populations way down in some areas

Nothing being done to restore small game populations, namely rabbits and pheasants

I just don't see these problems in our neighboring states.

It seems that hunters are always ask to give a little more and to accept changes.

We were force fed the antler restrictions that most didn't want.

We ask to cut back doe licenses in some areas.

We ask to go back to a three day doe season.

By the way, where is Gary Alt today? He started all this.

We have all noticed the drop in deer numbers no matter which county you hunt.

The PGC created the habitat destruction problem we have today. Back when the deer population was sky high in the north central part of the state, the PGC stuck to the one deer per season limit. They could have prevented the habitat being destroyed by too many deer by allowing the harvest of more deer in those areas, but they didn't. We are paying for that mistake today. If they would start cutting the trees now, they would have more forest regeneration. But they are dragging their feet on that issue. We pay the PGC to manage our deer and other game and they dropped the ball, more than once.

The PGC has all but given up on rabbits and pheasants. Small game hunting is basicly limited to squirrels in PA.

Many hunters are upset with the way they are treated in the field by WCO's. We've all heard the stories. Funny, I rarely hear stories, like these, from other states. Look in all the forums on this site. Where else do you see this many complaints, about a state's WCO's, than here, in good old PA.

If you want to pay your hard, earned money to these guys to mismanage, go right ahead. I'll give mine to a state that knows what they are doing and doesn't bite the hand that feeds it.

Guys like you want to blame hunters but I choose to blame the real culprits, the PGC.

Quote:

Are you Joseph J. Neville, legislative liason/lobbyist for the PGC and former Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs?

Yep. Not a cheap shot but a factual statement. Unfortunately, I spend a great deal of my time correcting the inaccuraciesspread bythe USP.

I don't know what the controversy is about the date of the report. It came right from the Elmerton Avenus office of the PGC. It simply compares the figures from July 2005-2006, and July 2006-2007. What it shows is nothing more than what the facts are. There is adrastic drop in hunting license sales this year as opposed to the same (exact) time last year.

I'm not going to make the assumption that the PGC has forgotten who their major customers are.
I'm not going to make the assumption that a great many PA hunters are very unhappy with how the PGC is managing the deer herd across Pennsylvania.
I won't go into the fact that the agency is not in full support of the Wild Pheasant Reintroduction Program.

I'll let you decide for yourself.

I'm sure Joe Neville will be more than happy to post the comparable figures for August of 2005-2006 and this August 2006-2007 when they become available. How about it Joe??? We're counting on it!

Consider for a moment if you will, how any major corporation with an operating budget of some $73 Million dollars would react to a comparable loss of revenue such as is displayed in this PGC report?
My thought is that there would be some major management changes and damn soon.

Joe, you hunting Game Lands the first day of rifle season this deer season, or private land???...No need to answer that last question, I'm pretty sure I already know, but please, mark your calender so you don't forget to post those August hunting license sales figures. We're counting on you. (No pun intended.)

Crazy horse your figures are false, therewere no anterless tag sales in July 2005 or July2006, so how can any data be presented on anterless license sales? Why not bring up the fact that anterless licenses were a week later this year, this fact could very easily push license sale back a week.

Anyone wanting to compare actual data can compare last yearsanterless license sales to the current anterless sales, their pretty close.

Provide us a link to your data Crazy Horse, if you can?

I know several guys at work and have a few relatives that didn't even buy their hunting license yet, that usually have them by now.

When I ask what's up, the answer is all the same. They aren't sure if they are going to get them this year. I've had many more tell me that if the license price goes up next year, then they will quit hunting PA.


I think the PGC would be much wiser to raise the price of doe license instead of regular hunting license.

They need to have those public forums and ask the sportsmen of PA what the problems are, just like they did to get input before the antler restrictions. They need to work with the hunters and find common ground, not say this is the way its gonna be.

But we all know it won't happen.

Look at it this way;

Even if all the data that the proper carrying capacity is being implimented.It won't matter when hunters quit buying licenses and the PGC goes bankrupt.

Here's the choice ;

The PGC sticks toits deer population extermination agenda in the name of habitat restoration and goes bankrupt.......OR...........They cave into hunters desires and keep their jobs.

What's it gonna be?

John - you missed my point. The numbers are accurate. You guys have no clue as to why.

I'm disappointed that the USP has sent this to outdoor writers. Feaser is having all the fun in responding. Please send your thoughts to the General Assembly showing the demise of the PGC. I'll be happy to explain.

I will be hunting the exact SE corner of Crawford Co. the first day unless the Senate is in session. That land is open to the publc and the few small posted parcels of that block are open if you talk to the landowners. It only takes a little interpersonal skills to get permission. If you need a marked topo showing good stand locations let me know and I'll send you some suggestions.

I will also be hunting SGL 242 (2 very large bucks patterned), as well as the Frankintown SGL and the one in southern Cumberland Co. (4 big bucks seen last week).