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Panel hears bill to raise nonresident bonus-point fee for Smith River permits
Summary
The House Fish and Wildlife and Parks Committee heard testimony on Senate Bill 257, which would increase the fee nonresidents pay for bonus points in the Smith River permit drawing and dedicate revenue to the Smith River Corridor account.
The House Fish and Wildlife and Parks Committee heard testimony on Senate Bill 257, which would increase the fee nonresidents pay to purchase bonus points used in the Smith River permit drawing and direct those funds to the Smith River Corridor account for river protection and restoration.
Sponsor Senator Laura Smith told the committee that the Smith River experiences heavy recreational use, with roughly "20,000 put ins per year," and that the bill increases the nonresident bonus-point price so the additional revenue can be used for bank stability, restroom and human-waste systems and other measures to protect the corridor's natural and scenic values.
Jeff Lukas of Trout Unlimited said the organization "stands in strong support of SB 257" and praised the proposal's focus on stream-bank restoration and mitigation of recreational impacts. Tom Jacobson of the Montana Wildlife Federation also voiced support for funds that would "help support Smith and keep it clean, keep it healthy." Quentin Kujala of Fish, Wildlife & Parks appeared as an informational witness and answered committee questions about the permit and bonus-point systems.
Committee members sought details about how the bonus-point system works and how recent policy changes affect the permit distribution. Kujala explained: "A bonus point is essentially another opportunity'another chip in the drawing box. . . . If you have 2 bonus points when you apply, you get 2 chances in the bucket. . . . The bonus points accumulate from one year to another." He and others noted that in 2023 the Legislature set the first bonus-point price at $50 and added a 10% cap on successful nonresident applicants.
Representative Millett questioned the proposed increase from $50 to $125 for nonresidents as steep; the sponsor and other lawmakers discussed the possibility of committee amendments such as raising resident fees modestly or lowering the proposed nonresident fee to $100. Representative Secondjure stated that 74 commercial trips are withheld from the lottery each year; those commercial trips are treated akin to a winning lottery permit for capacity calculations, and a commercial trip accounts for multiple passengers and staff.
No opponents testified in the hearing. The sponsor said she would consider amendments proposed in committee. The hearing concluded with no recorded committee vote.
