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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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State
Rep. Marc Gergely |
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Gergely’s bill to auction elk licenses to become law
HARRISBURG, Oct. 8 – Legislation authored by state Rep. Marc Gergely that would auction off an elk license to hunters and serve as a fundraiser for the state Game Commission passed the state House and Senate this week and will go to the governor for his expected signature.
First introduced by Gergely last year, the legislation (H.B. 747) will allow the Pennsylvania Game Commission to offer a special elk conservation hunting tag through an auction every year in which the proceeds would go toward improving elk habitats in the Commonwealth. The commission will be required to prepare an annual report for the General Assembly detailing how the proceeds are used.
Both residents and nonresidents will 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 the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, can conduct the auction and receive no more than 20 percent of the proceeds.
The program will expire in five years, at which point it will be reviewed and evaluated for future use.
Gergely thanked several organizations for their support of the bill, including: the Safari Club of Pennsylvania, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, the Pennsylvania State Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation, and the Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs.
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