Why It Matters: Introduced on February 16, 2024, Massachusetts Senate Bill 499 (MA S 499) – An Act to reimburse the George L. Darey Inland Fisheries and Game Fund, proposes to amend Section 11 of Chapter 131 of the General Laws, by adding a new sentence which would allow for the George L. Darey Inland Fisheries and Game Fund to be reimbursed annually from the general fund for all loss of revenue from discounted or free fishing or hunting licenses. License reimbursement is a top priority of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF), and we are happy to see MA S 499 moving favorably in the Senate.
Highlights:
- MA S.499 – An Act to reimburse the George L. Darey Inland Fisheries and Game Fund, seeks to reimburse Inland Fisheries and Game Fund to prevent the loss of critical conservation funding.
- Massachusetts S.546 sought to provide similar funding in March 2021. Nearly a year later, S.546 reported favorably out of committed and referred to Senate Ways and Means. As of January 2, 2023, no further action had been taken. Given the history and progress on the matter, CSF is working to see MA S. 499 complete the legislative process and reach the Governor’s desk in 2024, accomplishing a significant win for conservation in the Bay State.
- States must receive a net revenue of $2.00 from each license sale to report a certified paid license that factors into the formula of how much Pittman-Robertson or Dingell-Johnson funding a state is eligible for. When license fees are eliminated completely, states lose out on this additional revenue in addition to the loss of the original cost of the license.
Introduced on February 16, 2024, Massachusetts Senate Bill 499 (MA S 499) – An Act to reimburse the George L. Darey Inland Fisheries and Game Fund, proposes to amend Section 11 of Chapter 131 of the General Laws, by adding a new sentence which would allow for the George L. Darey Inland Fisheries and Game Fund to be reimbursed annually from the general fund for all loss of revenue from discounted or free fishing or hunting licenses.
Revenue from sporting licenses is a crucial element for funding state fish and wildlife agencies’ conservation efforts across the nation. However, well-intentioned programs to offer free and discounted licenses to certain qualified individuals/groups have the potential to reap deteriorative effects on the agencies’ budgets. To prevent the loss of sportsmen-generated dollars for conservation funding, some states have enacted legislation to require reimbursements to the state fish and wildlife agencies from the general funds for any free and discounted licenses. Massachusetts is once again proposing good legislation in MA S.499 to ensure conservation funding in the Bay State is not negatively affected through noble intentions.
The Pittman-Robertson (PR) and Dingell-Johnson (DJ) Acts are two cornerstones of the American System of Conservation Funding (ASCF) that authorize federal funding for state fish and wildlife agencies to manage and restore wildlife resources. The distribution of these funds is formula-based and dependent on state size and the number of paid hunting and fishing license holders per state. This means that states that distribute free, and in some cases discounted licenses, are losing funds both from the initial revenue of license sales, as well as from funds that would have otherwise been apportioned through PR and DJ.
As a top priority issue for CSF, we look forward to working with the Massachusetts Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus to move MA S.499 through the legislative process and to deliver this legislation to the Governor for signature.
