Governor's tags benefit conservation groups

The sale of special non-resident deer “governor's tags” is benefiting several Iowa non-profit organizations.

Cedar Rapids-based Indian Creek Nature Center, for example, will realize more than $5,000 from the sale last week via eBay auction of one such special tag.

Proceeds from the non-resident license, which sold for $10,098 to a Wisconsin woman, will be split by the nature center and the Department of Natural Resources.

“This was our third year (in the program), and the amount hunters are spending is rising rapidly from about $6,000 a few years ago,” said Rich Patterson, director of the nature center.

The money will be used for programming and land restoration, said nature center marketing coordinator Susan Gordon.

At least 13 Iowa-based conservation organizations are participating in the tag auction this year, according to Steve Dermand, who administers the DNR program.

As of Thursday, Aug, 18, 2011, eight of the tags have been auctioned, at prices ranging from a low of $8,000 to a high of $10,900, Dermand said.

In addition to the Indian Creek Nature Center, other organizations that have completed their auctions are the Johnson County Trust, the Iowa Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation, the Iowa Bowhunters Association, the Iowa Quality Deer Management Association, the Iowa Chapter of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, the Iowa Chapter of the Wild Sheep Foundation and the Muscatine County Farmers and hunters Fighting Hunger.

The program was initially developed in the 1990s as a means to promote Iowa deer hunting, and most of the 75 available “governor's tags” are issued, at standard costs, to outdoor media personalities who agree to promote Iowa deer hunting through articles, videos and television programs, Dermand said.

Applications for the tags are reviewed and awarded by an internal committee, he said.

“They have to provide assurance of the broadness of their audience and confirmation that they have followed through with the coverage,” he said.

Iowa typically has more than twice as many applicants for its 6,000 available non-resident any-sex deer licenses, so out-of-state media personalities would often be unable to hunt deer in Iowa without the governor's tags.

Some hunters have contended that the governor's tags issued to outdoor media have outlived their usefulness since Iowa is widely regarded as one of the top states for trophy whitetails.

Dermand said the DNR believes the promotion is still useful in maintaining demand for Iowa deer tags and that it would be especially beneficial if the Legislature ever accedes to DNR requests to expand the non-resident quota.