Who Pays

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• Hunting and fishing licenses.
• Wildlife and Sportfish Restoration excise fees.

Sources of Income

The Department has an annual budget of about $30 million. The agency receives no general tax revenues. The bulk of Department income is generated from the sale of annual hunting and fishing licenses.

Funds received from Grant Revenue (35%) include Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration income. These are considered "user pays – user benefits" funds. Wildlife Restoration funds are an excise tax placed on the manufacture of firearms, archery equipment and ammunition. Other income in this category comes from endangered species funds, from the Bureau of Land Management for McGee Creek, from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for various projects, from the North American Wetlands Conservation Act for wetlands protection, and from the Forest Stewardship program. The majority of this income goes to operation of the Department's wildlife management areas, but also supports the development of shooting ranges and the hunter education program as well as big game, upland game, waterfowl and furbearer programs. Anglers and boaters contribute Sport Fish Restoration monies through payment of fishing tackle excise taxes, motorboat fuel taxes and import duties on tackle and boats. Sport Fish monies are used for fisheries management, habitat improvement, hatcheries and stocking, research surveys and for the improvement of boating and fishing access.

Rounding out the Department's income are several smaller categories. The four percent "Fines/Contributions/Sales" category is generated from penalties and fines collected due to fish and game law violations, magazine sales, contributions, Deer Management Assistance Program, the sale of used equipment and vehicles, boat and motor registration, etc. Three percent can be attributed to revenue received from lands leased for oil and gas production, crops and grazing and from the sale of agricultural products.