Syracuse.com - Trapper criticizes Cuomo's plan to consolidate trapping license into hunting license

[HuntingNY-News]

"This gimmick under the guise of simplicity would only serve to disenfranchise NYS trappers and our trapping heritage into Irrelevance," he said.

Robert Jordan, of Woodville, sent me the following this week following stories about Gov. Andrew Cuomo's proposal to simplify the number of outdoors sporting licenses, in addition to lowering the costs of several of them.

Among the proposals, lower the hunting license fee from $29 to $22, and include in that cost the trapping license. As a a result, there would no longer be a separate trapping license. Jordan wrote:

"I'd like to Make a Comment on Cuomo's Proposal to Eliminate and Disenfranchise NYS's 15,000 to 20,000 Licensed Trappers.

"Folding the State's Licensed Trappers Privledges into an expanded Hunting License for simplicity's sake is a bad Idea,

"This Gimmick under the Guise of simplicity would only serve to Disenfranchise NYS Trappers and Our Trapping Heritage into Irrelevance.

"There's the old saying: "Out Of Sight" Out of Mind"

"If we're no longer recognized as a Legitimate, Stand Alone Stakeholder or User Group of Licensed Participants with Our State's Furbearer Resources with Our Own Unique Needs, Issues, and Resource Goals in Relation to Our Sport, We will be Unable to effectively influence The Direction in which Our Sporting Heritage is headed, and hence the future of Trapping in the Empire State.

"When we Are Lobbying Our State Legislature to Protect Trapper's Rights, Seasons, Methods, Etc. we can point to Our Clearly Defined User Group of 15,000 to 20,000 LICENSED Tax-paying Stakeholder Citizens whose Outdoor Heritage will Benefit from Positive Legislation regarding Trapping.

"BY the same Token, When We are Fighting to Defeat Proposed Anti-Trapping Legislation which will Negatively Effect Our Trapping Heritage, It is imperative that we are Recognised as a Separate, Distinct, Defined Outdoor User Group.

"Failure to Maintain the Staus Quo For NYS Trappers as a Department Of Environmental Conservation Recognised Distinct Licensed Natural Resource User Group will Diminish Our Staus and ability to act as Guardians Of Our Furbearer Resource and will ultimately lead to the elimination of Our Sport in New York State.

"I think this proposal to eliminate our trapping license stinks."

View the full article on The Syracuse Outdoors Blog