Oregon Hunting Fees Raised by a Third

The Oregon legislature has passed HB 2223, which raises hunting and fishing license fees each by roughly 30% (or 20%, depending on how you do math.) The bill passed the House 34-to-22 on June 12 and passed the Senate today 19-to-11. It now heads to the governor for his signature.

Read the Oregonian synopsis here.

HB 2223 is being described as a bill to allow ODFW to impose a "20%" fee hike, but it the numbers listed by the Oregonian for the final bill are as follows:

• Annual fishing license: rises from $24.75 to $32.50 for anglers age 14 and older.
• A resident hunting permit will go up from $22.50 to $29.
• Annual combination license -- fishing and hunting -- will rise from $43.75 to $57.50.

I'm not sure what math is used to arrive to claim any of these figures as being 20%, but I've never taken "legislative math." 20% of $22.50 is $4.50; 20% of $29 is $5.80. The rate increase for hunting is $6.50. That's about 29% of 22.50, so I would call it a 1/3 increase. The closest method I see is to divide the rate increase by the final amount: $6.50/$29 = 22%. Not how I would have done it, but I guess a 20% hike is easier to sell than a 30% one. Clearly, I have no future as an accountant. If your math skills are better, please explain.

The reasoning behind the bill was to avoid a $17 million dollar shortfall in the 2009-2011 ODFW budget, and well as to avoid even higher price hikes in 2011-2013. New game & fishing officers are also proposed. Read the ODFW reasoning on HB 2223.

The Oregon Hunting Association has their legislative summary here.