Why in the world does WA still have paper-only fishing licenses?

I would actually be amenable to a license fee increase if the money were earmarked for recreational fishery improvements, but in the current climate, we simply can't trust (or even reasonably expect) that it would be. The Department of Salmon would more likely eat it up to produce hatchery fish for ocean commercial fisheries.

Are there proposals on the table to increase the cost of commercial licenses?
 
Dustin Chromers said:
My all time favorite wdfw thing is getting parking tickets for the ink on your parking pass being faded out. It's just so Washington.
Click to expand...
Do you live in eastern Washington?

Mine fades out in less than 30 days. This has been an issue for years.

I have no idea why the Department does not fix this.
 
509 said:
Do you live in eastern Washington?

Mine fades out in less than 30 days. This has been an issue for years.

I have no idea why the Department does not fix this.
Click to expand...
Why is an environmentally friendly soy ink made from carbon neutral soy we import via coal powered ships from the far corners of the earth. Plus that secondary revenue stream from tickets that working people don't take the time to show up and defend is a boon to a boondoggle agency.
 
Evan B said:
I am not sad that cursive went out of style.
Click to expand...
Slightly off topic, but I noticed on the back of this 'hunting and fishing license', the cost was $3.00 - Inflation brings that to just shy of $60.00 today. A full privilege license today would be the 'Get Outdoors Package' at a cost of $230.00 - So yeah, eggs aren't the only thing going up in price.
 
Replicant said:
Slightly off topic, but I noticed on the back of this 'hunting and fishing license', the cost was $3.00 - Inflation brings that to just shy of $60.00 today. A full privilege license today would be the 'Get Outdoors Package' at a cost of $230.00 - So yeah, eggs aren't the only thing going up in price.
Click to expand...
Definitely not that much in Oregon.
 
Thought about buying my WA license online a few nights ago. Discovered they are passing on the credit card fee to the buyer now. Guess I'll wait and pay cash across the river.
 
Does anyone know if theres a procedure for when you've bought your license and have the temp printout but don't have your catch record sheet yet? I've never had anyone ask for mine but I don't really like fines and I'd like to get back to the river before its time to just hit the beach here on Whidbey
 
offensivename said:
Does anyone know if theres a procedure for when you've bought your license and have the temp printout but don't have your catch record sheet yet? I've never had anyone ask for mine but I don't really like fines and I'd like to get back to the river before its time to just hit the beach here on Whidbey
Click to expand...
You can’t print them off at home, so I imagine your only recourse would be to go to a physical retailer and get a new one printed from them like you do after you’ve filled your old one or your existing one is lost or whatever.
 
Snopro said:
Thought about buying my WA license online a few nights ago. Discovered they are passing on the credit card fee to the buyer now. Guess I'll wait and pay cash across the river.
Click to expand...
I guess it's an online thing because I have bought my license the past 2 years in-person at WDFW HQ using my credit card and I have not paid a credit card.

I frequently go for a lunch time walk with former co-workers, so the next time I am there, I can ask them about it.
 
Big Bose Headphones!!! Man I was coming fast up out of the woods trying to I get the car before the PATROLS left!! They were trying to WRITE ME UP!! They can't write me up!! I'm carrying my MAIN LICENSE!!! Luckily I got there. Paper license thing almost BLEW AWAY!!!! then I would had to just outright REFUSE to be issued a ticket!!

That's the main reason I'm PRO DIGITIAL.
 
offensivename said:
Does anyone know if theres a procedure for when you've bought your license and have the temp printout but don't have your catch record sheet yet? I've never had anyone ask for mine but I don't really like fines and I'd like to get back to the river before its time to just hit the beach here on Whidbey
Click to expand...
From WDFW website- "You must have a catch record card in your possession when fishing for salmon, steelhead, sturgeon, halibut and Puget Sound Dungeness crab."
If you're fishing a body of water that does not contain salmon, steelhead, sturgeon, halibut and you're not crabbing Puget Sound then you're fine to fish without it.

The easiest way to think about it- if if there's a catch record code for the water you're fishing, you better have that thing with you.
 
skyriver said:
From WDFW website- "You must have a catch record card in your possession when fishing for salmon, steelhead, sturgeon, halibut and Puget Sound Dungeness crab."
If you're fishing a body of water that does not contain salmon, steelhead, sturgeon, halibut and you're not crabbing Puget Sound then you're fine to fish without it.

The easiest way to think about it- if if there's a catch record code for the water you're fishing, you better have that thing with you.
Click to expand...
That's consistent with WDFW thinking, but funny when you consider that a catch record card is irrelevant when fishing a steelhead CNR stream.
 
Josh said:
It's 2025, everything is on our phones. But I still have to remember to bring my paper fishing license with me and move it between packs/pfds/etc every time I go fishing. Why isn't this fixed yet? Other states have mobile app fishing licenses (as well as harvest cards). We're one of the leading tech industry states in the country and we can't figure this out?

The rules changed in 2023 to expressly allow electronic/mobile licenses. But we seem to have made no headway?

wdfw.wa.gov

WDFW Mobile Licensing and Electronic Harvest Reporting

wdfw.wa.gov wdfw.wa.gov

Blegh. Someone tell me I'm wrong and just missed seeing a button in the fishWA app or something.
Click to expand...
Well, it took a year, but now we don’t:

IMG_2004.jpeg
 
Looks like you can print off everything at home on your own printer. This could lead to people printing out multiple catch record cards.
 
CRO said:
Looks like you can print off everything at home on your own printer.
Click to expand...
I hope they have genuinely updated this. As of March 1 you still couldn't print out your license. You could print out a receipt that shows you purchased a license, but not the license itself. I would love hear about the genius brain trust behind that.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top