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Oneida County delegates urge stable DNR funding and revisit stewardship program at state convention
Summary
A Conservation Congress delegate reported strong convention attendance and discussion of long-term DNR funding gaps, proposals including license-fee increases and a possible dedicated sales tax, concerns about the Knowles‑Nelson Stewardship Program expiry, and local deer management recommendations for several units.
Ed Choinski, Vice-Chair of the Oneida County Conservation Congress, summarized the May 15–16 state convention in Green Bay for the committee on June 8, focusing on several conservation funding and management items that may affect Oneida County.
Choinski said delegates emphasized a lack of stable, long-term funding for Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources programs—fisheries, wildlife, and conservation law enforcement—and noted that license fees have not increased since 2005, leaving them out of step with inflation. Delegates considered several funding proposals: a dedicated 1/8 of 1% state sales tax to fund conservation (models exist in Minnesota and Missouri), increases to hunting, fishing and trapping license fees (Choinski said a 25% increase had support while larger increases were rejected), and a Natural Resources Board question proposing fee adjustments to reflect roughly two decades of inflation (about 66%).
Delegates expressed concern that the Knowles‑Nelson Stewardship Program, which funds public land acquisition and conservation through matching grants, is set to expire in 2026; Choinski said delegates urged legislators to reauthorize the program. He also reported a delegate-supported proposal to increase the turkey stamp fee by $10 to fund turkey research and habitat improvements.
Deer management was a major topic: updated Deer Management Unit boundaries now place Oneida County in Units 116, 120 and 121. County Deer Advisory Councils recommended modest antlerless-tag increases in Units 120 and 121 but recommended zero antlerless harvest in Unit 116 due to consistently low deer populations; Choinski said that recommendation advanced to the Natural Resources Board despite disagreement from some local biologists.
Other convention items Choinski summarized included resolutions supporting habitat restoration, wetland and water-resource protection, pollinator and native-species conservation, discussion of wind-energy impacts on birds (including a resolution encouraging mitigation such as painting one turbine blade black), and youth engagement highlights.
The committee voted to forward Choinski’s Conservation Congress State Convention report to the County Board Chair for consideration as a report item on the County Board agenda.
