Out-of-state deer fees

There were approximately 200,000 car-deer collisions in 2007. Missouri drivers know someone who's been in a car-deer accident. In July, Missouri landowners who reside outside the state were told by the Missouri Conservation Department that they could no longer purchase discounted hunting permits. This will reduce the number who hunt their own land and hit the wallets of businesses catering to hunters.

MDC receives a eighth-cent sales tax. The fees from this aren't relevant. MDC's rationale for the new tax is that other states treat Missouri landowners unfairly, so they will too. They didn't learn this eye-for-an-eye policy in school.

Anyone who owns five acres can get a free deer or turkey permit to hunt their own land. Landowners not residing in Missouri now pay $225 for an any deer permit. My 110 acres get trumped by the five-acre golf course in a semirural area.

I won't pay $225 to hunt land which my family has stewarded from the 1830s. I'll not buy seed, fertilizer and diesel fuel for animal food plots. I won't rent hotel rooms or eat at local restaurants. I won't buy gas for my truck in Missouri or bring friends and family. One person hunting nine days spends over $1,000 on hotels and food.

MDC wants $225 three times a year, and Missouri citizens lose over $1,000 a year in revenue. The deer will be skinnier. Perhaps they won't make as big a dent in your car.

KEVIN COULSON, Emporia, Kan.