Southeast RAC endorses Division rule on outfitters, but presses for clarifications and committee

The Southeast Regional Advisory Council voted to approve most of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources' rule establishing registration and field limits for outfitters, guides and spotters, while asking the division for clarifications and a stakeholder committee to refine several implementation details.

The rule, part of legislation passed by the Utah Legislature this year, sets a registration and renewal schedule for outfitters and requires guides and spotters to obtain certificates of registration and affiliate with at least one outfitter. It also limits the number of paid individuals who may be “assigned to a client” while actively hunting on public land to two (three for once‑in‑a‑lifetime hunts), and establishes an annual expiration date for registrations.

Council members pressed staff on how the rule would work in practice and on conflicts with federal permitting. After discussion the RAC approved a change striking wording that would have required applicants to include federal permit numbers on the Division application; the…