What if I told you that Idaho had a fix for the somewhat broken OTC Tag system for nonresidents?  You’d probably be all for a change if you have participated in the OTC Nonresident Tag “Blitz” on December 1st.  Even as a resident of Idaho, I have felt the nonresident’s pain when trying to help my family get tags.  No doubt the system is broken but is the devil you know better than the devil you don’t?

With the introduction of Idaho House Bill 587 a few days ago, the Idaho Legislature is attempting to “fix” that broken system.  HB 587 would create a new section in Idaho Title 36 Chapter 4 “LICENSES TO HUNT, FISH AND TRAP”.  

Idaho Code 36-419 would read, “All nonresidents licensed to hunt in the state of Idaho shall be required to obtain tags and permits for deer, elk, and pronghorn antelope through a draw process as established by the department of fish and game. Nonresidents shall not purchase tags for deer, elk, and pronghorn antelope over the counter.”  This bill would go into effect Jan 1, 2025.  

Within the fiscal note for this bill, they mention there would be a positive impact on the IDFG funds, but I don’t see it making a big impact.  They are not limiting the number of nonresident tags so the amount of funds they get through tag sales will be the same.  The tags will still be sold out so that is not changing anything.  At most, it might take less I.T. personnel to keep up with the current system’s crashes.  

This would eliminate the current process as we know it and place a random draw for all the tags.  While some people would see this as a positive, I am hesitant to agree with the way this is being done.  There are too many examples across the west, from California to Colorado, of “conservation through legislation.”  Idaho even experienced this a couple years ago when the legislature did what the IDFG would not do and made the use of lighted nocks and mechanical broadheads legal (Idaho House Bill 507).  

This is a slippery slope to allow the legislature to go over the top of IDFG and create laws that will govern the way the IDFG operates.  Pretty soon you could see things like Propositions on the ballot for stopping Mountain Lion hunting like what happened in California (California Prop 117 from 1990).   

I do agree that the best way to fix this system is to do a type of a draw.  That would alleviate a lot of the headaches of the current nonresident system, but I don’t like the idea being presented through the legislature.  With the legislature creating a law, it takes another legislative act to undo or change that law if it is not working properly.  That takes time and with conservation, getting things done in a timely manner is crucial.  

This is why Idaho uses “Administrative Rules” to govern the number of tags, seasons, bag limits and methods of take (to name a few).  These Administrative Rules are quick to change and can be done in a timely manner.  The better solution to this problem would be for IDFG to come up with their own version of the nonresident “draw” system and implement it for the 2025 season (so instead of Dec 1, 2024 OTC tag “Blitz”).  

This way if IDFG does not like the way the system worked, they could easily modify it the following year.  Or just scrap it all together and go back to the old system.  Be careful about what you wish for on this one.  As much as the current system needs to change, I don’t think this is the way to do it.  What are your thoughts on this issue?  To read the bill yourself, follow the links below.

House Bill 587 — Fish and game permits, nonresidents – Idaho Freedom

HOUSE BILL NO.587 (2024) – Fish and game permits, nonresidents (idaho.gov)