Florida WMA Non-Resident Restriction - UPDATE

[Jbird22]

Other states should counter this move with RECIPROCITY!

that's allready happened ...every bordering state has delayed its seasons by several weeks .
.those hunters have been pounding florida for a few seasons now ..so this is a reaction to that

 what happened in the early 1990's when Georgia went to $200 non resident licenses ...very quickly every state in the area....did the same..

North dakota has a resident season for waterfowl...earlier ...then they allow non residents

One breaks ranks them the rest follow

I'm a MS resident. I know all about having a season that opens earlier than the bordering states.

[Jbird22]

Aren't some of these areas in question federal and supported by federal dollars rather than state? 

Yes they are. The usual reply is "they've been doing it out west for years".  Currently MS locks non-residents out of their National Forest for the first TWO weeks of the turkey season.  That's TWO weeks of a six week season.  Lots of BS to go around on this issue.  Even seen replies that say "well you aren't really locked out you just can't hunt"  LOL.  As we are seeing from our current political climate it is only going to take one federal judge to turn this into a circus.

Add - remember this would not take effect until at least 2026 in Florida.

You can apply for the natl forest draw if you're non res. They draw a very generous # of non res from what I've been told.

As for our WMAs, non res can apply for the same draws that I do as a res. I have the same chance of being shut out on WMAs as a non res for the first 2 weeks.

Make sure you tell all of the facts and not just the ones that support your narrative.

[deerhunt1988]

They have these "meetings" " stake holder meetings " and propose them for rule change under the disguise that it will be democratic process ....the real fact is ...most of the time it's a (DONE DEAL ) They will push ahead with the rule change , the only thing that will delay the rule ammendment is
 a huge public outcry , even then they will circle back and push it through...this is decades of observation




The 10 percent non resident,  was done decades ago ..i don't know what they are talking about that rule has allready been in place 30 years

Unfortunately that is the case with A LOT of wildlife commissions.


The 10% cap on non-rez is currently only for Special Opportunity hunts, not quota hunts.

[deerhunt1988]

Other states should counter this move with RECIPROCITY!

!!!!!!!!

I mean, if they want to TOTALLY block non-rez..Fair is fair...

I think a better move on FL's part would be a Non-Resident Public Lands draw like MS has. Non-Rez can hunt, but they WILL BE LIMITED.

[deerhunt1988]

We can ban em from duck hunting in Arkansas. Then they'll hit us with a Florida beach quota draw. We can just all regulate ourselves to nothing. It's past time for Arkansas to hammer Mississippians that flood Arkansas public duck hunting. Need to do a quota like they do us.  Imagine if you can...Arkansas has more non resident duck hunters than resident duck hunters.  And no quotas....

lol @ Florida beach quota draw

All the regulating really is starting to get old. Its tiring. Part of me hopes the current Federal happenings will trickle down into some state regulation.

[deerhunt1988]

Aren't some of these areas in question federal and supported by federal dollars rather than state? 

Yes they are. The usual reply is "they've been doing it out west for years".  Currently MS locks non-residents out of their National Forest for the first TWO weeks of the turkey season.  That's TWO weeks of a six week season.  Lots of BS to go around on this issue.  Even seen replies that say "well you aren't really locked out you just can't hunt"  LOL.  As we are seeing from our current political climate it is only going to take one federal judge to turn this into a circus.

Add - remember this would not take effect until at least 2026 in Florida.

One SUBSTANTIAL difference though. Non-residents can still hunt public land the first 2 weeks in MS. They just have to draw. This Florida proposal would COMPLETELY ELIMINATE non-resident hunting on said areas for a specified amount of time.

[deerhunt1988]

Maybe the Trump effect will eventually trickle down to wildlife management and common sense will enter the equation.

I'll be danged. Glad to see others are thinking it as well!

[10th Legionaire]

Spot on Shannon!  SC raised their non-resident license shortly after GA and that's the last time I hunted there. Also have seen the "public" forums in NC to "discuss" proposed changes = we are already doing this but making you feel like we listen to you, with we = the state DNR.  We all agree that the land and birds are a finite resource and need to managed, but in more sensible and fair ways with an emphasis on residents. Maybe the Trump effect will eventually trickle down to wildlife management and common sense will enter the equation.

Trust me, Trump just nominated Kathleen Sgamma to run the BLM. Read up on that... lol

That's a no bueno appointment for sure. I knew something like that would happen.

I used to buy archery tackle from an outfit in Montana that sold t shirts the said "help protect wildlife habitat shoot a land developer".

[WV Flopper]

I am going to whine a little....

It is what it is and it is only going to get more restrictive as time goes on. I think we can all agree on that. We can argue the reasons for these happenings.

I would like to see the current states mandating permits,quotas, special hunts, get their act together.

There is no excuse for Florida to still be having limited access drawings going on now. There is no excuse for Mississippi to wait until March 3rd to draw their non res public land permits.

South Florida will start in days, Above 70 and Mississippi start March 15th. Logistically this a PIA for anyone wanting/trying to travel to any state that does this horse crap!

[deerhunt1988]

There is no excuse for Mississippi to wait until March 3rd to draw their non res public land permits.

Mississippi got delayed this year due to moving to a new licensing system. The system was supposed to go live in January (when turkey draws normally are), but got delayed by measures beyond their control. It sucks, but it is what it is. Guarantee you non-resident application numbers still won't suffer.

Next spring the draws will be back to January.

[squidd]

The odds of drawing a redraw permit rival the Powerball.

For the record Florida's turkey quota draws closed November 30th.  Those selected were notified within a week. What is going on now is a lottery type draw for returned permits. There are no non-resident restrictions for any general quota hunts for the 2025 season.  The odds of drawing a redraw permit rival the Powerball.

I received one in over 10 years of applying for redraws.

[Swampmonkey]

Got email from FWC. All changes passed. 9-day nonresident ban on south Florida wma's, gotta buy annual license to hunt turkeys and 10% non resident quota.

[MStrky]

It was fun while it lasted.. Now, while I am young to most and didn't find out about south Florida until 2018 when I was 18, I've been going for 3 years and this will be my 4th and for some reason it has sunk its claws in me. I know people that have went and had luck and will never go back. That wasn't my experience, I can say with confidence that it's my favorite place to hunt. What happened probably needed to happen, but I would like to see a draw system put in place like here in Mississippi for nonresidents.

[Jbird22]

Seems extreme but it is what it is.

Reciprocity awaits!!!

I told you last year when you brought that word up to be careful what you wish for.

[deerhunt1988]

Like I said, other states will take notice. Now we get to wait and see what state will be first in the chain reaction!!

We had a good run, unfortunately a few have caused it to come crashing down for us all in recent years. I'll get to tell my kid "Back in my day, we could actually hunt public land across the U.S. without having to draw!!! Can you believe that!!"