F&G Holding Negotiated Rulemaking Meetings for Landowner Appreciation Program

Fish and Game's Landowner Appreciation Program (LAP) currently allocates a proportion of controlled hunt tags to a lottery draw specifically for landowners who provide important habitat for deer, elk, and pronghorn in units where general hunting is limited. Landowners who draw authorization for a control hunt tag can designate the tag to another individual. The Idaho Department of Fish and Game recently initiated negotiated rulemaking to gather public input about revising the Landowner Appreciation Program due to landowner and sportsman concerns with the program. IDFG is presenting a revised draft of LAP rules for comment in upcoming negotiated rule meetings. Under the proposed changes, allocation of control hunt tags would be guaranteed and more directly related to the amount of habitat for deer, elk or pronghorn provided by each landowner. Additional tags would also be issued to landowners who sign access agreements, habitat management agreements or depredation release agreements. Fish and Game is also considering limiting where certain recipients of the tags can hunt; currently any recipient can use the tags in any part of a hunt area in which a landowner has drawn a LAP tag. Under the new LAP proposal, direct family members and employees of the landowner would continue to have this opportunity. However, landowners may also market and sell the LAP designation. Hunters who have purchased LAP tags and are not related to or employed by the landowner would be limited to private land within the hunt area. The Fish and Game negotiated rule public meetings to receive input about the proposed changes at the following times and locations:

• May 22, 2014 - 6-9 pm - Upper Snake Regional Fish and Game Office, 4279 Commerce Circle, Idaho Falls, ID 83401
• May 27, 2014 - 6-9 pm - Southeast Regional Fish and Game Office, 1345 Barton Road, Pocatello, ID 83204
• May 29, 2014 - 6-9 pm - Magic Valley Regional Fish and Game Office, 324 South 417 East - Suite 1, Jerome, ID 83338
• June 3, 2014 - 6-9 pm - Clearwater Regional Fish and Game Office, 3316 16th St., Lewiston, ID 83501
• June 4, 2014 - 6-9 pm - Southwest Regional Fish and Game Office, 3101 S. Powerline Rd., Nampa, ID 83686

If you are unable to attend a meeting, you can read the full proposal and provide comments by visiting the IDFG webpage: http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/public/about/?getPage=33 Online comments will be accepted from May 19 to June 6.