March 10, 2022 at 2:26 p.m.
Wisconsin Conservation Congress brings spring hearings questions to Natural Resource Board
Questions will be part of April 11, 2022 survey ballot
Wisconsin Conservation Congress brings spring hearings questions to Natural Resource Board
This year, the WCC brought forth 45 questions that will be placed on the spring hearings questionnaire. The public will have an opportunity in April to weigh in on each of those questions. Many are specific to one area, and others look to make a change statewide. Some, if approved by the public, would require a legislative change while others would be a matter of rewriting a policy or regulation.
The first question posed by the WCC asked if respondents would support a three-year antler point restriction trial for bucks in Florence County. This trial would create a restriction on bucks, allowing only those with three points or greater on one side (excluding brow tines) to be harvested. It would not apply to youth under 17, disabled or military hunters.
Other deer hunting questions will also be posed by the WCC. One such question asks if respondents would be in support of re-establishing in-person deer registration. Another asks whether there would be support for a return to wearing back tags, as well as whether there would be support for returning to carcass tagging procedures as was the law in the past. Both of those changes would require legislation, if approved by respondents.
Another question looks to gauge support for an "either sex" tag to be issued to a hunter who harvests a CWD-positive deer. The tag could be used in the current or following year. The option would only be available in counties where the Country Deer Advisory Council (CDAC) requested it to be part of their management recommendations.
Question six from the WCC has to do with the registration deadline for the nine-day gun deer hunt. Currently, a harvested animal must be reported by 5 p.m. the day after harvest. Because there is a lack of phone service or access to online services in many rural parts of the state, it can be challenging for some hunters to abide by this, according to the question background. The question asks whether there would be support for extending this registration deadline to 5 p.m., the day after the season closes.
The Statewide Dumpster Program for the handling of deer carcass disposal also will be given some attention. According to the background of this question, improper disposal of CWD-positive deer carcasses can spread the disease into additional counties. Dumpster programs are seen as a solution to mitigate that risk. The question itself asks whether there is support of a reallocation of antlerless fund fees to establish a statewide dumpster program for handing deer carcass disposal. Three different options are listed under this question.
The WCC also looks at whether there is support for the presence of captive cervid operations. These operations are under the jurisdiction of the Department of Trade, Agriculture and Consumer Protection (DATCP), not the DNR. The background to the question states 34 farms have had a positive CWD test since 2001, and 19 herds have been depopulated as a result of those findings.
Two questions coming from the Warm Water Committee that is specific to the Northwoods looks at the panfish and crappie daily bag limit on the Willow Flowage in Oneida County. The flowage received very high fishing pressure year round, according to the question background, leading to a reduction in successful outings for panfish, especially crappie. It also states the flowage is capable of growing trophy-sized pan fish. The first question asks whether there would be support of changing the panfish limit on the Willow Flowage to an aggregate bag limit of 10 panfish total. The next question asks for support in maintaining the current 25 fish bag limit, but disallowing more than 10 of any one species.
Plum Lake in Vilas County is also on the questionnaire for April's consideration. The background of the question states there is reason to believe the fishery is capable to producing trophy sized musky. The question asks whether respondents would support a size limit change from 40 inches to 50 inches with a daily bag limit of one fish.
The Motorized Recreation Committee posed one question, which will find its way to the questionnaire next spring. Currently, transportation of passengers on an ATV not designed for passengers is illegal, according to the question background.
"It is no longer legal for a parent to take their child out on a four-wheeler to go ice fishing, bait bears, check trail cameras, check traps, etc. on an ATV that is only designed for a single rider," the background states. "If a family can't afford to buy a new UTV or ATV designed specifically for two riders, the passenger would need to walk." The question asks whether there is support for the WCC to work with the DNR, the legislature and the NRB to allow passengers on an ATV not designed to transport passengers specifically for the purposes of hunting, fishing, trapping and agricultural activities.
The furbearer committee asks respondents to look at dispatching an animal within 50 feet of the centerline of unpaved roads. All furbearing animals in Wisconsin during the open season must be released unharmed or immediately dispatched with a firearm. In the case of some larger or more aggressive species, it is only practical and humane to dispatch them with a firearm. However, Wisconsin State Statute prohibits the use of a firearm within 50 feet of the centerline of a public roadway, with only some exception, such as small game hunting with a muzzleloader or shotgun loaded with shot shell or chilled shot number BB or smaller, according to the background. The question asks whether there is support of the WCC working with the legislature to change this and allow the dispatch of a legally trapped furbearing animal with a rimfire rifle or handgun within 50 feet of the centerline of any unpaved road.
Still, other questions from the WCC ask whether it should be mandatory for all hunter safety classes to include a "hands-on" learning portion and whether it should be legal to hunt small game mammals and unprotected species with a slingshot, which would require legislation.
Another question looks at the creation of a Wanton Waste Law for the state, which would also require legislation. Wisconsin currently does not have a law requiring utilizing a harvested animal for food, pelt or taxidermy. The first question here asks if the state should have such a law. The second question asks whether the DNR should permit and regulate hunting contests to control wanton waste and carcass dumping.
Citizen Input
The spring hearings are not only an avenue for sportsmen and other stakeholders to have their voices heard, but also a place where citizens can propose a natural resource-related question to other attendees in their county. This is the first step in getting a citizen resolution to the spring hearings questionnaire. In past years, many citizens have been successful in seeing their proposed question moved up through the process until it becomes a part of the next spring hearings questionnaire. This year, citizen resolutions are due in by midnight on March 11, 2022.
Once a citizen resolution is introduced, it is voted on within the county in which it was introduced. If it passes favorably in that county, it moves on to the next step. In this step, the resolution is assigned to a WCC advisory committee for vetting. Those resolutions that complete that step are then referred to the District Leadership Council. Here, each resolution can be recommended for statewide input. This will put the resolution on the next April's questionnaire.
Those questions listed here are but some of the questions respondents will find on the 2022 spring hearings questionnaire. For more information, head to the DNR website dnr.wi.gov and input keywords "Spring hearings."
Beckie Gaskill may be reached via email at [email protected].
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