Non‐resident college student hunting license regulations in the United States

Abstract

AbstractA decades‐long decline in hunting participation jeopardizes state wildlife agency funding amid growing conservation and management challenges. College students are being recognized by states and non‐governmental organizations as an important population for hunter recruitment and retention, fueling a proliferation of learn‐to‐hunt programs on college campuses. Nearly 3,000,000 students attend college in a state where they are not a resident and may face constraints to hunting. We analyzed hunting license residency statutes in each state to determine whether non‐resident college students were addressed in statutes or policies, catalog statutory provisions that may exclude populations of students from hunting, and document how students' residency status affects the price of a deer and small game license. Nationwide, 29 states have statutes allowing non‐resident college students to hunt at a resident rate. Among these states, we identified a patchwork of statutory requirements for non‐resident students to be eligible for resident‐rate licenses, including waiting periods, age restrictions, credit restrictions, and unclear or onerous purchasing procedures. Non‐resident college students fell into a gray area of licensing policy in the 21 states without statutes addressing this group. In these states, students often needed to pay non‐resident hunting license rates. Hunting licenses were substantially more expensive for non‐resident college students in states without statutes addressing students, and license sales data from Montana, USA, indicated that high license prices are a constraint for student hunters. With college students becoming a focal point for hunter recruitment efforts, we identify statutory constraints to recruiting and retaining hunters on college campuses and help improve the effectiveness of learn‐to‐hunt programs on college campuses.