SALEM — Thousands of hunters of deer and elk in Oregon are facing fines for failing to report their hunting results under a mandatory program passed by the Oregon Legislature.
The Medford Mail-Tribune reports that the hunters who failed to make Thursday’s reporting deadline for 2012 hunting results face $25 fines.
Officials with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife say by Thursday night 86 percent of elk hunters and 84 percent of deer hunters had filled out the requisite forms. That’s far better than the 52 percent of elk-tag holders and 48 percent of deer-tag holders who reported last year, when the program was mandatory but before fines had been added for noncompliance.
Before the program began and was penalty-free, the agency received information from just 3 percent of hunters.
