Commission will consider big game hunting recommendations

The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission will consider staff recommendations for 2023 deer, antelope and elk hunting seasons when it meets April 19 in Fremont.

The meeting will begin at 8 a.m. at the Holiday Inn Express, 2415 N. Lincoln Ave.

A public hearing is scheduled for proposed amendments to Commission orders pertaining to season dates, bag limits, permit quantities and areas open for deer, antelope and elk hunting. The changes will help the agency manage big game populations at socially acceptable levels.

Staff will recommend:

• removing 40 general either-sex and 155 general doe/fawn antelope permits,
• including archery season on all Mule Deer Conservation Area permits, making them valid for all open seasons,
• prohibiting antlerless mule deer harvest statewide on all lands open to public hunting, except land in the Open Fields and Water Program,
• reducing the nonresident either-sex and buck only deer permit quota to 10,000, excluding landowner and youth permits,
• reducing the nonresident archery deer permit quota to 3,000 and make it not valid for mule deer in the MDCA,
• reducing the nonresident muzzleloader deer permit quota to 1,000,
• creating a new Plains Whitetail firearm deer permit,
• reducing available November Firearm permits by 5.2% and Antlerless Only Season Choice permits by 7.4%,
• restructuring elk management units,
• adding 36 bull elk permits and 214 antlerless elk permits,
• minor adjustments on other deer, elk and antelope permits to meet management objectives.

The commissioners also will consider approving a Board Resolution to apply for Transportation Alternatives Program grant funding through the Nebraska Department of Transportation to surface 24.6 miles of Cowboy Trail from Rushville west to mile marker 400.

In other business, commissioners will consider:

• permanent and temporary easement requests from NDOT for work on Nebraska Highway 7 in Ainsworth and the temporary diversion of the Cowboy Trail there, and
• a staff recommendation to designate Phillips Canyon and Midway Lake, both located near Johnson Lake State Recreation Area in Dawson County, as state recreation areas. Both are located on the Supply Canal and operated by Central Public Power and Irrigation District.

There also will be a review of the 2022-2023 river otter season and an overview of the Northeast Region by regional staff.

To view a complete agenda, visit OutdoorNebraska.gov and search for Public Notices.