The Big Game License Allocation Working Group Continues to Make Progress

The next meeting will take place on June 17, from 12 p.m. to 9 p.m. and on June 18, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the National Mining Museum in Leadville, 120 West 9th Street.

The Big Game License Allocation Working Group is nearing completion of its task of analyzing the way the state of Colorado issues deer, elk and pronghorn hunting licenses and developing a list of alternatives to improve the system.
 
The next meeting will take place on June 17, from 12 p.m. to 9 p.m. and on June 18, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the National Mining Museum in Leadville, 120 West 9th Street.
 
The group last convened in Buena Vista and during the meeting developed several options for addressing license allocation concerns brought forward by the group in its previous two meetings.
 
Some of the possible options suggested by the group will be presented to the Colorado Wildlife Commission once the public has had the opportunity to comment on them. The commission has also been updated throughout the process.
 
“The group has made progress and is working hard to develop possible improvements to the current system,” said Dave Lovell, Big Game License Allocation Working Group coordinator for the Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW). “Many of these proposals have been floating around the sportsmen and landowner circles for some time, others are new ideas. This process has allowed us to ask our constituents how we can improve the current system. As a public agency, we benefit from asking those questions.”
 
The original list of 22 issues has now been consolidated and pared down to 11. Of these, four major issues have been identified and remain the primary focus of the working group. These include landowner licensing, resident/nonresident licensing, outfitter licensing, and the preference point system. The group has developed and is considering between four and seven options for each of the four major issues. Examples of these options include a proposed “firm” resident/nonresident allocation to increase the predictability of the nonresident draw, which is desired by the licensed outfitters in the state. Another option under consideration for landowners is the possibility of increasing the percentage of the landowner allocation in eastern Colorado, where a high percentage of the land is private and tags are extremely limited. Several options for changing the resident/nonresident allocation of licenses are also being discussed and considered.
 
“We are still encouraging members of the group to come up with fresh ideas,” said Lovell. “These ideas will be scrutinized by the public, the director of the DOW and the Wildlife Commission before any potential changes would be made to the current licensing system.”
 
For a summery of all of the issues covered by the group and corresponding comments during the previous meetings and more information about the group please visit: http://wildlife.state.co.us/hunt/biggame/license_allocation/.
 
The DOW values public comment and interest in this process. Public comment will continue to be accepted through e-mail at: licenseallocation.wildlife@state.co.us. There has also been time allocated at the end of each meeting day for public comment. This opportunity will continue throughout the process.
 
Once the working group meetings are finished and the draft document has been presented to the director and the Wildlife Commission, a series of eight public meetings will be held in July and August. The purpose of these meetings is to solicit public comment on any of the proposed ideas. These meetings will take place throughout the state. Any proposals the committee develops will also need to be approved by the Colorado Wildlife Commission. Public comment is always accepted and encouraged at the commission meetings. Due to the minimal number of committee meetings and the lack of time to develop proposals, the DOW wants to encourage as much public comment as possible be submitted through e-mail, through committee representatives, and during the public input meetings designated for that purpose.
 
                                

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