Why It Matters: While hunting and fishing license exemptions for qualified individuals or groups are well-intentioned, they threaten conservation funding for state fish and wildlife agencies through both the direct loss of license sales and the loss of matching federal funds through the Pittman-Robertson (PR) and Dingell-Johnson/Wallop-Breaux (DJ) Acts. State fish and wildlife agencies depend heavily on license sales to carry out their conservation missions that are critical to sportsmen and women and our time-honored traditions of hunting, fishing, and trapping.
Highlights:
- In 2023, the Kentucky General Assembly passed Senate Bill 241, sponsored by Kentucky Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus Chair Senator Robin Webb, which helped secure 54,000 acres of critical elk habitat in Southeast Kentucky and added “of five (5) or more acres” language to the resident owner of farmlands sport hunting or sport fishing license exemption.
- With the 2024 Kentucky Legislative Session now underway, Senate Bill 5 seeks to remove the “of five (5) or more acres” language from the farmlands license exemption.
- House Bill 106 would replace “owner of farmlands” with “landowner” and remove the “of five (5) or more acres” language from the farmlands license exemption. Also, House Bill 106 would exempt residents and authorized persons from having to obtain a fishing license when fishing in private ponds.
- Additionally, Senate Bill 55 would remove “farmlands” from the farmlands license exemption and would also exempt residents and authorized persons from having to obtain a fishing license when fishing in private ponds.
While Kentucky is perhaps best known for horse racing and bourbon, the Bluegrass State also offers unrivaled hunting, fishing, and trapping opportunities. Whether you choose to watch the sunrise while bass fishing on the family farm or explore the ruggedness of the Daniel Boone National Forest while chasing spring turkeys, there are endless ways to enjoy our time-honored traditions. Regardless of whether you pursue game on private or public land, the critical conservation dollars generated through the “user pays – public benefits” structure of the American System of Conservation Funding carries the same weight in the eyes of the state fish and wildlife agency. One of the key tenets of the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation is that fish and wildlife are public trust resources managed by the state for the benefit of the public.
An acreage component for the current license exemption for farmlands in Kentucky clarifies who is exempt from licensing while striking a balance to protect conservation funding. The intent of adding “of five (5) or more acres” to the “farmlands” definition in SB 241 was to cut down on the number of people claiming the “farmlands” exemption. Similarly, the minimum acreage to qualify for “agricultural land” is ten acres.
Fishing license exemptions as broad as those outlined in Senate Bill 55 and House Bill 106 would impact a large number of license buyers which would negatively impact conservation funding for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. Other Southeastern states handle fishing on private lands in a manner that protects conservation funding. For example, North Carolina offers a $100 Special Landholder and Guest Fishing License that allows the landholder and guests to fish their private waters without an additional license.
With conservation funding at the center of protecting our time-honored traditions, the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) will continue to work to protect conservation funding in the Commonwealth.
