Dear Friends                                                                February 1,2006

There is a new specialty License tag out with a deer on it. Like most people I assumed that if I buy this tag the money would go towards deer hunting and deer management.

This is a mistake there is nothing in writing from the Sportsmen's Land Trust that states this money will be used for this purpose. The Sportsmen's National Land Trust states they are dedicated to saving land for responsible recreational enjoyment. These lands create life-sustaining habitats that are enjoyed by families, hikers, sportsmen and anglers.

You must ask yourself these questions before purchasing a tag.

What or who defines "responsible recreation" ?

Who are the sportsmen?  I have not seen the word hunter in any of their paperwork.

This may mean they are anti-hunter or afraid to mention hunter.

Any money secured by this whitetail license plate should be used for hunting since hunters will be the prime consumers. So far 0 dollars are mandated for hunting and 0 dollars are mandated for deer management.  The money is distributed 50% to cover startup costs, 25% to fund programs within the state that preserves open spaces and wildlife habitat promote conservation, improve wildlife habitat and establish open space for perpetual use of the public. This sounds great but look at the Panther refuge the original base line study for the Panther NWR states that placing the land into public ownership would be good for the local economy because when hunters use the land they will spend money. There is no hunting in this land now. The other 25% of the money is used for marketing and administration.

Until we have it in writing this money goes for hunting, I would not buy these tags because for all we know they could buy land just to close more areas to hunting or with their version of responsible recreation. Just remember what has been done to us in Flamingo and The Big Cypress and all the other lands we have been locked out of.