Fish and Game proposes $5 habitat fee hikes, annual sweep of dedicated accounts to shore up operations

Stephanie Simic, executive director of the Fish and Game Department, told the House Finance Division I work session that the department recommends raising two habitat fees by $5 each — the fisheries habitat fee and the wildlife habitat fee — to align their values and capture inflation.

Simic said the department’s estimate, based on recent sales averages, is that a $5 increase on the fisheries habitat fee would generate about $640,000 and the same increase on the wildlife habitat fee about $144,000. She told the committee Fish and Game typically sells 140,000 to 150,000 fishing licenses annually and about 80,000 to 85,000 hunting licenses.

Why it matters: Fish and Game leaders said the revenue would flow to the Fish and Game Fund to support department operations and reduce reliance on general funds. Committee members pressed for clear statutory language because the two habitat fees now sit in…