WMA waterfowl permits for non-residents now all-in-one

LITTLE ROCK – Non-resident duck and goose hunters, and there are a lot of them who come to Arkansas in the fall and winter, have been given a helping hand by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.

Instead of having to buy a non-resident waterfowl hunting permit for each wildlife management area they use, the visiting hunters can buy one that covers all WMAs in Arkansas.

The action was taken by the AGFC commissioners at their August meeting in Little Rock. An annual non-resident WMA waterfowl permit costs $100. A five-day non-resident WMA waterfowl permit costs $10. These permits were created several years ago after problems with overcrowding on some of the more heavily used public waterfowl areas in the state.

Arkansas residents are not required to have WMA waterfowl hunting permits.

The commissioners also increased the penalties for non-residents who hunt without an Arkansas license or who possess a resident license. The minimum fine for non-resident hunters who do not have a non-resident license was increased from $300 to $500. The minimum fine for a non-resident possessing a resident license was raised to $500.