Committee adopts technical changes to DNR bill, lays over HF 4261 after debate on permits, boater safety and license timing
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Summary
House members heard the Department of Natural Resources' annual policy bill (HF 4261). The committee withdrew a timber-permit extension amendment for further work, adopted an amendment reducing phased-in boating-education age changes, and adopted a calendar-year option for annual angling and small-game licenses; HF 4261 was laid over as amended.
The House Finance Committee considered House File 4261, the Department of Natural Resources' annual policy and technical bill, which includes provisions on fraudulent temporary registrations, clarifications for boater safety and rental operations, invasive-species reporting, and fisheries management changes.
Barbara Keller, the DNR legislative coordinator, walked the committee section-by-section, explaining fraud-related penalties for temporary registrations and permits, clarifying off-road vehicle and snowmobile registration language, and describing proposed changes to invasive-carp reporting and commercial retention of burbot in Lake Superior.
The committee considered multiple amendments. Representative Borwoz moved an A1 amendment to grant one-year extensions to permits that expire before March 1, 2026, to address recent timber-market disruptions. John Dremel, the DNR's forest operations section manager, told members the agency already grants targeted one-year extensions and cautioned that a blanket extension could affect roughly 1,400 permits and about 1.6 million cords of wood. Dremel said DNR was willing to work with the sponsor; the amendment was withdrawn to allow that work.
Representative Schultz offered the A2 amendment, seeking to narrow the phased-in expansion of mandatory boating safety education and instead set a lower age threshold for required training. Lieutenant Colonel Robert Grecki of DNR enforcement said the phased approach had helped reduce boating accidents and expressed concern about weakening the requirement, but members debated access and cost for occasional renters. The A2 amendment passed on a voice vote.
Schultz's A3 amendment would change annual angling and small-game licenses so they run a full calendar year from the purchase date rather than expire with the season. Bob Myers, the DNR commissioner, told the committee the change is administratively feasible and said the agency planned a public input process to simplify licensing products; he cautioned that some federal-aid reporting and system programming work would be required. Members adopted the A3 amendment.
After amendment votes and discussion about implementation details, Co-chair Heintzeman renewed the motion that HF 4261, as amended, be laid over for possible inclusion in a future bill. DNR officials said they will pursue public input and evaluate programming and fiscal implications as part of a broader licensing simplification effort.
The hearing included technical clarifications (electronic licensing timing, boating safety phased implementation, and invasive-species reporting) and fiscal questions the DNR said it would follow up on with a fiscal note or programming estimates.
