LANSING-In an effort to offset potential budget cuts to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), some lawmakers are pushing for more expensive hunting and fishing licenses.

Under the proposal, basic license fees would increase to $16.25 in 2008, $17.50 in 2009, $18.75 in 2010 and $20 in 2011.    

"If we don't get a licensing package, we'll be looking at cuts up to $8 million next fiscal year, and that would grow to $40 million by 2010," said Rebecca Humphries, director of the DNR.

License prices, last raised in 1996, haven't kept up with inflation, and the department's share of general tax revenue has been declining, she said.

Budget cuts could lead to layoffs for conservation officers and other staff and less money for fish and wildlife habitat programs, Humphries said.

Ben Pfefferle, president of the Mason County Fin and Feather Club, said he supports higher fees because budget cuts would increase the workload for already overworked DNR conservation officers.

"They just keep squeezing more and more and expanding their duties," Pfefferle said.

Basic hunting and fishing licenses currently cost $15 each for Michigan residents.

Keith Charters, chair of the Natural Resources Commission, said the increase would bring Michigan's fees closer to those in other states.

According to DNR, Minnesota, for example, charges $27 for basic hunting licenses while Wisconsin and Indiana each charge 24.

The fee increase is one way to address the DNR's declining revenue needs, said Rep. Matt Gillard, D-Alpena, who supports the change.

"I think it's a reasonable compromise for the solution," he said

The proposal also would lower the 60 percent senior discount to 40 percent by reducing it by 5 percent annually for four years.

Humphries said: "As the majority of our baby boomers age, we're going to have the majority of our hunters on that senior level in the next decade or so. And we can't afford to have the majority of our license buyers getting that 60 percent discount."

According to the DNR, the average hunter in Michigan is 43 years old.

When the DNR began giving a senior discount, the Legislature agreed to make up the lost revenue, Humphries said, but her department hasn't received that money for several years.

The increase also would help make up for the declining number of hunters in the state, said Jason Dinsmore, resource policy specialist at Michigan United Conservation Clubs.

"It's a national trend and it's affecting Michigan," he said.

According to DNR, there were 2,141,394 hunting and 1,295,43 fishing licenses sold in 2006, generating $49.9 million, up from $48 million in 2005.

While that was a revenue increase from 2005, which Mary Dettloff, press secretary for the DNR, attributes to lowering of the hunting age, she said that licenses issued is dropping about 1 percent a year.

Bob Keith, club manager of the Tri-County Sportsmen's League in Saline, said raising license fees is not the solution to the DNR's dwindling revenue.

"I can see an increase, but not as steep as they're proposing," he said. "I would like seniors to be able to hunt for free because they've paid their dues."

Keith said he would like to see the DNR tackle its budget trouble by charging bird watchers and hikers a user fee.

"There are other ways than doubling the license fees" for fishing and hunting, he said.

Limited access to hunting land could be one reason for the lower numbers of hunters in the state, said Rob Southwick, president of Southwick Associates, a Florida company that tracks the business side of hunting and fishing.

Land is being developed for commercial purposes, which can force people to travel further and invest more time to hunt, he said.

"There could be less opportunity for people to get out there," Southwick said.

And while many states-including Florida, which is currently trying to raise its hunting and fishing license fees-adjust their fees every eight to 10 years, some generate revenue differently.

Missouri, for example, allocates one-eighth of every cent collected from sales tax for its natural resources department, Southwick said.

The Michigan legislation would also lower the age requirement for fishing licenses from 17 to 16.

Lowering the age could increase the number of fishing licenses issued in the state, Dettloff said. For every fishing license sold, the federal government gives DNR $8.18, and each hunting license generates $9 in federal payments.

But James Bedford, president of the Lansing chapter of Trout Unlimited, questions whether or not the change would help recruit more anglers.

"Maybe that would be a deterrent to buying the license," he said. "Teenagers have a lot of other things to spend their money on."