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Your 2020 renewal application and license fee were due December 1, 2019 and no later than December 31, 2019 per Board Rule. (Year End reports due by January 31, 2020). If you would like to retain your license and place it on an inactive status you still need to complete the application and submit the licensing fee as well as a 2019 year end report with a request to go inactive. If you did not have any clients you must indicate that and submit.

What appeared to be an uneventful interim period for us at the Travel, Recreation and Wildlife Committee as well as the Revenue Committee decided to get interesting towards the holidays. Governor Gordon and the Appropriations Committee have expressed a willingness to revisit the statewide lodging tax. While wishing to see the Department of Tourism removed from the general fund and freeing up $20 million in tax dollars seems tolerable on the surface, the performance of the Department and taking it out of budgetary oversight of the legislature is unwise. The Wyoming Department of Tourism is an adversary to the hunting industry. They are not our partners or advocates. Until this policy changes, why would you ask your clients to pay more for their experience in Wyoming to support a bureaucracy that does not support you?

On the license allocation front, Senator Larry Hicks and an upstart group out of Jackson called Mountain Pursuit will push a 90/10 bill during the budget session. The bill would be disastrous to small businesses across Wyoming, jeopardize the funding stream for the Game and Fish, and cause a drastic increase to licenses for Wyoming resident hunters. All of those disastrous things before it crushes the outfitting industry.  As the session gets underway on February 10, 2020, please take action when the legislative alerts come out and help kill this bill. If you run into your legislators (especially Senator) over the holidays or in January, give them an earful of how the Hicks 90/10 bill is bad for Wyoming.

Individual and committee bills are starting to be filed and posted by the Legislative Service Office. I am reviewing the bills as soon as they are posted and the Executive Committee will take formal positions on the bills in the coming weeks. We all need to be vigilant over the next three months to protect the industry and your way of life. Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Bill Novotny, WYOGA Lobbyist 

 

2020 Legislative Session

In January there will be a special newsletter dedicated to the upcoming Legislative Session regarding the 90/10 bill coming from Mountain Pursuits!! Additional information we will coming in January!!!

 

WYOGA Annual Convention
April 2–4, 2020 • Ramkota Hotel, Casper, WY
 

MORE IMPORTANT EVENTS:

2020 Shot Show
January 21–24, 2020 • Las Vegas, NV

Safari Club International Convention
February 5–9, 2020 • Reno, NV

Tickets are great stocking stuffers!! 

Go to www.wyoga.org to order

Monday, February 3, 2020
10:00am–3:00pm
Ramkota Hotel, Casper

 Wednesday, March 18, 2020
9:00am–4:00pm
Holiday Inn, Cody

The Wyoming Outfitters & Guides Association received a 2020 Commissioner License from Commissioner Gay Lynn Byrd.

The license will be auctioned with a minimum bid of $15,000 dollars. The auction will start Monday, December 23, 2019 at 10:00am and will remain open until Monday, February 3, 2020 at 5:00pm. Bids will be accepted at the WYOGA office VIA phone at 307.258.0024 or email to gro.agoyw@agoyw

 



Copyright © 2019 Wyoming Outfitters & Guides Association, All rights reserved.


Contact us for more information:
Wyoming Outfitters & Guides Association
P.O. Box 2650, Casper, WY 82602
307.265.2376
gro.agoyw@agoyw
www.wyoga.org

WYOGA Newsletters