Utah Wildlife Board approves new e-tagging option for harvested wildlife, other items

Salt Lake City — The Utah Wildlife Board approved some additional hunting permits on various hunt units and CWMUs and made a few updates to some license and permit rules — including allowing the option of electronically tagging a harvested animal — during a public meeting held Thursday.

Tagging requirements

Previously, hunters who harvested wildlife in Utah that required a permit had to notch the paper permit and physically attach it to the animal. During Thursday's meeting, the Utah Wildlife Board approved an update to the tagging rule to also allow for the use of a new e-tagging option with a digital permit.

"With more services transitioning to digital, we wanted to provide another option for hunters to make things more convenient during their hunting trip," Utah Division of Wildlife Resources Licensing Coordinator Lindy Varney said. "We hope this new e-tagging option will help streamline the process, making animal tagging and harvest survey reporting simpler for hunters."

For electronically tagging a carcass under this new rule, a hunter will need to:

• Electronically notch the digital permit (in the Utah Hunting and Fishing app) to correspond with the date the animal was harvested and to provide other required information.
• Keep the electronic harvest code in their possession.

With this new option and rule update, a hunter will not be allowed to:

• Remove more than one notch indicating the date.
• Tag more than one carcass using the same physical or electronic permit.
• Hunt or pursue the species after shooting and retrieving the animal being hunted or after detaching the tag from the permit and notching the tag (either physically or electronically).

For physically tagging a carcass under this new rule, a hunter needs to:

• Completely detach the tag from the permit.
• Completely remove the appropriate notches to correspond with the date the animal was harvested.
• Attach the physical tag to the carcass so that the tag is securely fastened and visible.

In a change from the previous process, a hunter will no longer be required to have the tag remain with the largest portion of the meat until the animal is entirely consumed.

This new e-tagging option may be available by the late October big game hunts. For more information on how to use this new tool, visit the DWR website.

Additional permits for 5 CWMUs

The DWR oversees the Cooperative Wildlife Management Unit Program, which allocates hunting permits to private landowners who then provide hunting opportunities to public and private hunters for a variety of wildlife species. The CWMU program in Utah has opened more than 2 million acres of private land to the public for hunting.

In June 2024, the Utah Wildlife Board approved a few revisions to the rule for CWMUs. As part of the updates, some tools were approved that can be used on CWMUs located in hunting units that have been 10% or higher over the population objective for big game species during the past three years. Five CWMUs currently fall into that category, and during Thursday's meeting, the board approved additional permits for the following CWMUs:

• Deseret CWMU: Allowing a second cow elk permit for antlered and antlerless hunters
• East Fork Chalk Creek CWMU: Allowing a second cow elk permit for antlerless and antlered hunters
• Ensign Ranches CWMU: Allowing a second cow elk permit for antlerless hunters
• Grass Valley/Clark Canyon CWMU: Allowing a second cow elk permit for antlerless and antlered hunters
• Weber Florence Creek/Stillman Creek CWMU: Allowing a second cow elk permit for antlerless and antlered hunters

The board also voted to approve a new member on the CWMU Advisory Committee.

Additional drought permits for bison on the Henry Mountains

The Henry Mountains Bison Management Plan establishes a post-hunt population size of 325 adult bison within the Henry Mountains Wildlife Management Unit, but allows the flexibility to make adjustments to the population size in times of drought. Temporarily reducing the population can reduce competition for limited resources and prevent negative impacts to habitat.

During recent surveys, DWR biologists confirmed that drought conditions on the mountain are significant. As a result, the wildlife board approved an additional 19 hunter's choice (either-sex) bison permits for the Henry Mtns hunting unit in an effort to temporarily reduce the overall bison population in the area.

Updates to permit surrender and variance rules

The wildlife board also approved a few updates to the surrender and variance rules for permits. Previously, if a hunter wanted to surrender their permit, they were required to do so 30 days before the hunting season for when that permit starts. However, sometimes draw results are finalized and posted less than 30 days before the hunt starts. Previously, refunds were not allowed for the surrender of limited-entry and once-in-a-lifetime permits.

The board approved allowing someone who surrenders a permit that has season dates that start less than 30 days from the post date of an application to qualify for the refund of that permit, minus $25 on limited-entry and once-in-a-lifetime permits.

Previously, surrendering a permit for medical reasons was accepted until the end of the hunting season if the individual had not hunted. A signed doctor statement must also be received within 90 days of the end of the season to have all of that individual's bonus/preference points reinstated and the waiting period waived for future applications. The board approved a rule update that all medical paperwork must be submitted within 30 days of the end of the season. This change will ensure that all surrenders are processed prior to the next application period.

The board also approved an update requiring variance applications to be submitted 30 days from the end of the season, instead of 120 days. This change will ensure that variance deadlines are not extending or overlapping into application periods, causing eligibility issues. Another approved update included adding court-ordered subpoenas as another qualifying reason for surrendering a hunting permit and obtaining a variance. The subpoena has to be during the hunt season dates and would substantially preclude the individual from hunting on their permit. In addition, the board approved removing COVID-19-related personal health concerns as a qualifying event for which a variance or refund can be approved.

Proposed updates to sportsman permit and group application rules

The board also approved a few other rule updates, including:

• Allowing successful applicants in the sportsman's drawing to be eligible to purchase a bonus or preference point for a species that they would have normally been ineligible to apply for. (Previously, if you drew a sportsman permit, you couldn't purchase a point for that species in the same year.)
• Updating the opening dates for a statewide sportsman or conservation permit if the regularly scheduled opening date falls on a Sunday, in order to be more consistent. If the hunt opens on Aug. 1 and it's a Sunday, the hunt would instead open on Aug. 2. If the hunt opens on Sept. 1 and it's a Sunday, the hunt would instead open on Aug. 31. If the statewide turkey hunt opens on April 1 and it's a Sunday, the hunt would instead open on March 31.
• Clarifying that an applicant may only draw out for one species within the sportsman drawing.
• Allowing group applications for all management buck deer hunts within the big game application period.

You can watch the full meeting on the Utah Department of Natural Resources YouTube Channel.