Little support voiced for hunting, fishing license fee increase

Steve Jones, also of Clark-Skamania Flyfishers, said sportsmen should not have to pay a disproportionate share of salmon and steelhead management costs.

Forestry practices, wastewater treatment plans and other detriments to fish populations benefit all taxpayers and should be mitigated through the state’s General Fund, Jones said.

“All taxpayers share responsibility for endangering these species and all taxpayers should share in paying the cost of recovery,’’ he said.

Liz Hamilton, executive director of the Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association, said the Department of Fish and Wildlife needs more revenue, but the size of the proposed fee hikes will result in additional drops in fishing and hunting participation.

Gabe Miller of Farwest Sports in Fife, Wash., said the drought in 2015 caused emergency fishing closures and a dispute between the state and Puget Sound tribes delayed fishing openers in 2016.

“We need something to sell,’’ Miller said.

Tim Thompson of Long Live the Kings, a Seattle environmental program, was among those supporting the legislation.

“The last thing we should be doing is fighting over this bill,’’ he said. “We should advance it.’’

Jim Unsworth, director of the Department of Fish and Wildlife, said the agency needs about $25 million more to maintain current service levels in 2017-19.

Unsworth, too, said he worries about pricing typical sportsmen out of hunting and fishing.

But in the era of the Endangered Species Act, habitat degradation and hatchery reforms, salmon and steelhead, in particular, have gotten expensive to manage, he said.

Ron Garner of Puget Sound Anglers said his group intends to propose a substitute bill within a couple of weeks.

“It’s a difficult, difficult issue,’’ said Rep. Brian Blake, D-Aberdeen, committee chairman.

Blake said fewer people buying more expensive licenses is not his goal.

“Let’s see if we can work through this,’’ he said.

The committee took no action on the bill.