SHERIDAN — Outdoor recreation in Wyoming continues to become more expensive for nonresidents as the Wyoming Legislature will be considering the first increases to nonresident fishing licenses since 2018 in the upcoming budget session.
Draft bill 24-LSO-0217, which was unanimously approved by the members of the Wyoming Legislature’s Travel, Recreation, Wildlife and Cultural Resources Committee earlier this month, would raise costs by “10% across the board” for most nonresident fees, according to committee member Rep. Andrew Byron, R-Jackson.
The only out-of-state licenses not impacted will be annual youth licenses, which will remain at $15, according to the Legislative Service Office.
Under the proposed bill, nonresident fees will increase from $102 to $112 for an annual adult license; $14 to $16 for a daily license; and from $56 to $62 for a five-consecutive-days license.
The increase makes Wyoming the most expensive state in the Mountain West for nonresidents to purchase an annual fishing license, coming in just ahead of Colorado, which charges an annual fee of $111.03.
Similarly, the five-consecutive-day increase puts Wyoming at the top of that category, in front of Montana at $56 and Colorado at $36.26.
The daily increase puts Wyoming on par with South Dakota, which also charges $16. The two states are right in the middle of the pack when it comes to daily nonresident costs, with the fees ranging from $14 in Montana to $22.50 in Idaho, according to the LSO.
Nonresident fishing license fees were last increased in 2018, when annual fees for adults increased from $92 to $102 and the annual fee for youth increased from $14 to $15, according to the LSO.
The increases could bring a fairly significant increase in revenue for the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, with new revenues of roughly $670,000 annually, said Wyoming Game and Fish Director Brian Nesvik during the travel committee’s Oct. 5 meeting in Cheyenne.
In 2022, the department brought in $5.79 million in revenue through the sale of 200,093 out-of-state fishing licenses, according to the LSO.
In addition to generating increased revenues, the bill was discussed by committee members as a way to reduce usage of Wyoming’s waters, committee member Sen. Wendy Schuler, R-Evanston, said.
But Nesvik said despite the proposed increases, he didn’t expect there to be significant changes in the number of out-of-state users coming to Wyoming.
“Our experience is that we have an incredible resource, and people want to come use it,” Nesvik said. “So when these fees have been increased in the past, we have not seen a decline in participation. So I wouldn’t expect that we would in this case either.”
The proposed fishing license increase is the latest change to fees for out-of-state recreationists. During this year’s regular session, the Legislature approved a bill from Rep. David Northrup, R-Powell, which increased the cost of a special draw of various species for nonresident hunters. Under the bill, nonresident special license fees jumped 118% for elk from $576 to $1,258; 187% for deer from $288 to $826; and 203% for antelope from $288 to $874.
The draft bill will be up for consideration by the Wyoming Legislature during its upcoming budget session, which will convene Feb. 12, 2024.