Chapter IV - Block Management Effectiveness 



equitable manner commensurate to hunting opportunity 

 provided?" 



Rules specify that impacts include those identified in section 87-1- 

 267(5), MCA, plus time spent dealing with hunters. Types of 

 impact payments described in the rules are the same as recommended 

 by the Incentives Advisory Committee. 



We examined the current compensation system and found the system 

 is based on the number of hunter days occurring during the hunting 

 season and does not differentiate compensation for the actual or 

 potential impacts to the land or landowner as specified by law. The 

 Incentives Committee decided the level of impact could most directly 

 be correlated to the number of hunter days so landowners are paid 

 per hunter day. But, under the current system, every landowner is 

 paid $6.00 per hunter day, no matter what the impacts. Some 

 landowners incur more impacts than others. For example, a 

 landowner who has a roster box at a parking area of a walk-in area 

 and never sees a hunter is paid the same base amount ($6.00) as the 

 landowner who issues permission slips and assigns hunters to specific 

 areas to which hunters can drive. The first landowner does not have 

 the "inconvenience" of dealing with hunters, does not have road 

 maintenance issues, and has decreased weed problems compared to 

 the second landowner. If the system were set up to pay for 

 "impacts" the second landowner should technically receive more 

 money per hunter than the first landowner since the second 

 landowner has more impacts to him and his land. 



The base impact payment could be modified to consider fixed and 

 variable payments based on hunter day. For example, every 

 landowner could be paid a certain amount per hunter day. As the 

 impacts increase - dealing with hunters, road maintenance, weed 

 control - the payment would increase. The amount of the increase 

 could be based on each specific type of impact, or a general level of 

 impacts. For example, if a landowner allows hunters to drive on the 

 property, there could be an amount for each impact allowing 

 vehicles on the land creates (road maintenance, weed control, gates 

 left open, etc.), or an amount for the general level of impacts of 

 driving on the land. 



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