Chris Dorsey recently appeared as a guest on The Great Outdoors with Charlie Potter WGN Radio show and podcast. The two discuss the rise in non-resident hunting license fees that is sweeping the country–especially the West, and tackle the questions a lot of hunters are asking: Is it legal and constitutional for states to charge exorbitant license fees and limit access to federal lands that they do not manage? Is it fair to non-residents who pay federal income tax and who partially foot the bill for federal lands to pay 10X or more what residents pay to hunt the same ground? Is it also fair for states to disproportionately limit non-resident access to federal lands? How will the states balance the demands of resident hunters with their desire to raise more money for management programs? Will there be legal maneuvering and legislative retaliation by congressional delegations of eastern states to limit Pittman-Robertson funding to western states seen as hostile to non-residents? Are states through their increase in license fees contributing to the overall decline of hunter numbers while at the same time looking for federal R3 money (the industry’s Recruitment, Retention and Reactivation effort) to grow hunter ranks?
The Great Outdoors with Charlie Potter airs on WGN Radio 720 in Chicago and is available as a podcast at all major podcast providers.
Charlie Potter is President and CEO of the McGraw Center for Conservation Leadership and of the Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation. He is well known throughout the United States for his leadership in the conservation arena. Charlie has also successfully started and operated businesses in the outdoor recreation industry and has been engaged in the world of agriculture investing to create agriculture properties that benefit conservation and natural resource interests.
Chris Dorsey has been called the ‘brand-father’ of outdoor television having helped create and launch almost 60 series in the outdoor genre and an equal number of series in mainstream television, including for such networks as ABC, Discovery Channel, History Channel, HGTV, Travel, DIY, ESPN, WGN America, National Geographic, Nat Geo Wild, Destination America, Oxygen, and all the outdoor networks. Dorsey formerly served as editor in chief of Sports Afield and Ducks Unlimited magazines, is the author of 12 books, and is a regular contributor to Forbes. His work also has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, National Geographic, Newsweek, and The Robb Report. He’s among the world’s most widely traveled hunters having taken the 29 big game species of North America, the deadly seven species of Africa, the spiral horns of Africa and the wild turkey world slam. He’s a member of the Outdoor Legends Hall of Fame and is a recipient of the Ray Scott Trailblazer Award as well as the Curt Gowdy Memorial Award. Dorsey has also served in board and advisory positions of numerous conservation and sporting advocacy organizations.
