Pennsylvania Game News - November 2015 - 43

fees are changed, then would increase by
$5 in the third year, and another $5 in the
fifth year of the plan.
Fees for bear, antlerless deer, archery,
muzzleloader, migratory game bird and
special wild turkey (second spring gobbler) licenses also would see increases as
part of the proposal.
However, the Game Commission also
is seeking legislation to create a new
license that could be used to participate
in just about all hunting and trapping
opportunities in Pennsylvania, and at a
significant discount for those who purchase it.

New license
The Ultimate Outdoorsman license
would include a general hunting license,
furtaker license, special wild turkey
license, and licenses for bear, archery,
muzzleloader and migratory game bird.
If approved, the resident Ultimate
Outdoorsman license would be available
initially for $125. That's only $25 more
than residents pay now for those licenses
combined. And if license fees increase
as proposed, the Ultimate Outdoorsman
license would save hunters $23 compared
to buying the licenses individually.
Fees for the Ultimate Outdoorsman
license would increase incrementally by
$25 in the third year, and another $25 in
the fifth year, based on the proposal. In the
fifth year, the $175 license would result in
a savings of $33.
Antlerless deer hunters with an Ultimate Outdoorsman license still would
need a valid antlerless deer license,
DMAP permit or DMA 2 Antlerless Deer
Permit for each deer they harvest, except
during the flintlock muzzleloader season,
when an antlerless deer may be taken
with an unused antlered deer tag. Those
participating in the seasons for bobcats,
NOVEMBER 2015

fishers and river otters also would need
valid permits in addition to their licenses.
Elk applications and licenses also would
continue to be sold separately.

Where did all the gas money go?
In questioning the need for a licensefee increase, some have asked about the
revenue the Game Commission receives
from timber sales and energy leases on
game lands, and why they can't be used
to make up funding shortfalls.
The answer is, they have been used in
that manner.
About 17 percent of the revenues generated by the oil, gas and mineral program
since 2005 have been used to purchase
an additional 43,731 acres of state game
lands. But the bulk of oil, gas and mineral
revenues has been used as stopgap funding that has allowed the Game Commission's operations to continue, even as its
total expenses began to outweigh its total
revenues.
Because gas and timber revenues are
market-driven, they are unpredictable and
therefore unreliable sources of income. In
recent years, both timber sales and energy
leases have generated less money. And
industry analysts predict market prices
will remain depressed for the foreseeable
future.
The top year for timber revenue was
2005, when markets were high and the
program netted about $12 million. In
2014, timber sales resulted in only about
$550,000 in actual profits. Revenue related to Marcellus shale leases and other
elements of the agency's oil, gas and mineral program peaked in 2013, when $24
million was raised. In the current fiscal
year, profits are projected at $22.5 million.
While Marcellus shale leases continue to be an important source of agency
revenue, there is minimal opportunity
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pennsylvania Game News - November 2015