Minnesota's senior anglers could hook discounted fishing license fees

Two lawmakers tested the waters Thursday for giving some anglers a break on licensing fees they must pay to drop a line into Minnesota’s rivers, lakes and streams.

Rep. Mary Franson (R-Alexandria) proffers HF413 that would let state residents aged 65 and older fish for free; HF276 would reduce their annual license fees to $15. Rep. Jim Nash (R-Waconia) sponsors that bill.

Adult residents now pay $25 annually for an angling license until they turn age 90, when fees are waived.

The House Environment and Natural Resources Finance and Policy Committee laid both over for possible inclusion in a committee bill. Some members jokingly remarked that they might soon be benefactors if either bill becomes law.

Retirees and grandparents can play a big role in giving younger generations an appreciation for fishing, which Nash reminded members is an amazing economic engine for the state.

“It’s just a simple request that this bill is making to provide a little bit of relief for people who are at age 65.”

A General Fund transfer to the Game and Fish Fund would make up for the $10 reduction per license loss in revenue.

Rep. Peter Fischer (DFL-Maplewood) praised the “creative way” Nash’s bill is crafted to be revenue neutral and not reduce funds the Department of Natural Resources receives from license fees.

Eliminating licensing fees for residents 65 and older, as called for in the free fishing proposal, would cost the DNR an estimated $4 million per year in lost fees, said Pat Rivers, deputy director of the department’s Fish and Wildlife Division.

An additional $1.1 million would be lost annually because the DNR would also receive less money from an excise tax the state collects on fishing equipment purchases, which are distributed proportionally based on the number of fishing licenses purchased, he said.

An annual reduction of $5.1 million per year to the game and fish fund would need to be made up somehow, Rivers said, most likely by a fee increase to anglers under age 65.