Alaska House approves tougher standards for resident hunting, fishing licenses
- Mark Sabbatini
- 4 hours ago
- 3 min read
HB 93 seeks to mirror most Permanent Fund dividend residency requirements and apply them to fish and game entry requirements
By James Brooks
Alaska Beacon
Alaskans seeking to get resident hunting, fishing and trapping licenses may soon need to meet most of the same standards needed to get a Permanent Fund dividend.
In a 27-12 vote Friday, the Alaska House of Representatives approved House Bill 93, which would apply PFD-like residency restrictions to hunting, trapping and fishing license requirements.
The bill, from Rep. Rebecca Himschoot, I-Sitka, advances to the Senate for further consideration.
Under existing law, Alaskans who want to get a resident hunting, fishing or trapping license must meet the same standards as those who want to vote in the state. Qualifying requires applicants to to maintain a home here, have the intent to return to the state if they leave and stipulates they can’t establish residency elsewhere.
If adopted, HB 93 would require someone to spend 12 consecutive months in the state before being eligible for a resident license. Unlike PFD qualifications, those 12 months could start at any point in the year.
If that person is absent from Alaska for more than a certain number of days — and doesn’t qualify for an exemption — they would have to get a nonresident hunting and fishing license instead.
In Alaska, some hunts and fishing openings are available only to residents. Residents also have larger bag or catch limits in many places.
Explaining the need for the bill, Himschoot said the existing standard creates a loophole because someone can spend just a few months in Alaska each year and still qualify for resident hunting privileges.
A freezer full of fish and game can be the difference between being able to stay in the state or not, Himschoot said, speaking on the House floor Friday.
“To me, this is the most fair way that we could make sure that Alaskans who are living from the fish and game resources our state provides us have the resources that they need,” she said.
Leading the opposition to the bill was Rep. Kevin McCabe, R-Big Lake, who unsuccessfully attempted to amend the bill with an exemption for airplane pilots who may work out of the state.
McCabe, a former commercial pilot, noted that he has previously become ineligible for the Permanent Fund dividend because his work took him out of the state for longer than allowed.
“What about those pilots that have vacation homes elsewhere that would like to go spend two months in Hawaii?” he asked.
They might own homes and hunting camps and pay local taxes but would be excluded from resident hunting rights, he said.
He also raised concerns about people who might have to leave the state for medical reasons and thus would become ineligible for resident hunting status.
McCabe and a handful of other legislators suggested that better funding for the Alaska Wildlife Troopers and stronger enforcement of existing laws could deal with the kinds of problems that contributed to the need for the bill.
Rep. Dan Saddler, R-Eagle River, spoke afterward in support of the bill.
“There is infinite need for enforcement. There’s limited money,” he said. “We can no longer afford to pay to have a trooper behind every bush, but we can make a statement from the people of Alaska that there are certain qualifications to enjoy the benefits of a resident hunting and fishing license.”
Himschoot, speaking before the final vote, said nothing in the bill would prevent McCabe’s hypothetical pilot or medical patient from continuing to hunt or fish with a nonresident license.
“Nobody is saying you can’t hunt or fish in Alaska. That’s nowhere in this bill. However, in the bill, you may have to hunt and fish as a nonresident if you’re not here with us when times are tough,” she said.
• James Brooks is a longtime Alaska reporter, having previously worked at the Anchorage Daily News, Juneau Empire, Kodiak Mirror and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Alaska Beacon is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
