Federal Aid for Wildlife Management
by Ken Elowe
Director of Resource Management
Every time you buy firearms, ammunition, and archery equipment the manufacturers pay an excise take that is reflected in the sales price. Did you ever wonder where this money goes? This is an 11% tax (10% on pistols and revolvers) that was imposed as part of the Federal Aid in wildlife Restoration Act passed by Congress in 1937. This Act (also called the Pittman-Robertson Act, or PR for short) established a partnership between hunters, firearms, manufacturers, the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and state wildlife management agencies like our Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, to ensure that wildlife management programs are funded, and that those paying for the program (hunters) will see the vast majority of the funds go to programs directly benefiting wildlife in their own state.
Hunting: A Boon To The Maine Economy
by Mario F. Teisl and Kevin J. Boyle
Hunting is much more than a traditional pastime in Maine; it is also a powerful part of Maine's economic fabric. During 1996, hunting generated more than $330 million in retail sales activity. These retail sales helped support approximately 6,400 full and part-time jobs in Maine, which paid out almost $130 million in salaries and wages. These wage and employment benefits were not concentrated in only one or two economic sectors but were shared across many sectors of the Maine economy. These income benefits are particular important in rural or remote areas of the state, where much hunting takes place. In addition to generating income for Maine residents, hunting provides revenues in state coffers. During 1996, hunting activities contributed approximately $27 million to the state through sales and income tax revenues.
Of the total funds collected nationwide each year, each state receives a portion that is dependent on the land area of the state and the number of hunting licenses sold in the state. In Maine, we receive about 1.7 million dollars each year. How does this translate into a wildlife program? First, the money must be spent on management programs for birds and mammals. Then, the federal money must be matched with 25% state money. This means that for every $1.00 that Maine puts into management for birds and mammals, we can receive $3.00 more of federal PR money to put into those programs. The benefit is obvious, as we can have, essentially, 75% of our management program paid for by PR dollars up to the total 1.7 million each year.
Here in Maine, 75% of almost our entire research and regional management biologists' salaries and operating costs are paid for by Pittman-Robertson dollars. We would have, essentially, almost no wildlife management program without these dollars, including our deer, moose, bear, furbearers, upland game programs, and habitat programs with landowners and on wildlife management areas.
