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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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CONTACT: Nicole
Reigelman |
State Rep. Marc Gergely
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Gergely’s elk hunting conservation license clears House
HARRISBURG, May 22 – Legislation introduced by state Rep. Marc Gergely that would auction off elk licenses to hunters and serve as a fund-raiser for the state Game Commission is one step closer to becoming law.
The bill (H.B. 747) was passed in the state House this week by a sizeable margin, 196-1.
Gergely said the legislation would allow the Pennsylvania Game Commission to offer a special elk hunting license through an auction every year in which 95 percent of the proceeds would go toward improving elk habitats in the Commonwealth.
Both residents and non-residents would be eligible to participate in the auction.
“Pennsylvania currently has a limited number of elk licenses while the number of interested applicants far eclipses the total available,” Gergely said. “Since these licenses are a hot commodity I saw it as a way to spark national interest as well as generate money to help our elk population.”
Conservation tags in other states have fetched upwards of $80,000, Gergely said. Currently, 40 elk licenses are available in Pennsylvania; 15 antlered, and 25 antlerless.
Under the bill, an organization independent of the Game Commission, such as Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, would conduct the auction and receive 5 percent of the proceeds.
The bill now moves to the state Senate for consideration.
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