Oregon $10m Fund to Reimburse Guides for River Closures

GOTY

GOTY

Steelhead
Disclaimer: this thread risks being uncomfortably political for my taste, so Evan/Billy/Josh please shut it down if it turns into a shit show.


Oregon Outdoor Recreation Outfitter and Guide Relief Grant Program

The Oregon Outdoor Recreation Outfitter and Guide Relief Grant Program (the “Program”) is designed for Oregon domiciled persons registered as an Outfitter and Guide with the Oregon State Marine Board prior to March 1, 2020, that can attest to Oregon guiding business financial losses due to...
industry.traveloregon.com industry.traveloregon.com

Pursuant to Oregon Laws 2021, chapter 4, section 30 (Second Special Session), the Oregon Legislature, appropriated $10,000,000 from the General Fund to the Oregon Business Development Department for distribution to the Oregon Tourism Commission (“Travel Oregon”) to support a one-time program. The program will provide grants to registered outdoor recreation Oregon resident Outfitter and Guides financially impacted by restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic or by service disruptions related to drought or wildfire.

I imagine something similar will be pitched in WA soon due to the steelhead closures of late. One of the catalysts for this legislation was from a meeting in Maupin with Senator Hansell and Deschutes guides who have missed days due to COVID and last year's steelhead shutdown. While it doesn't explicitly say river closures due to low returns, "drought" is a catch all and leads to those items, so it appears to be covered.
 
GOTY said:
Disclaimer: this thread risks being uncomfortably political for my taste, so Evan/Billy/Josh please shut it down if it turns into a shit show.


Oregon Outdoor Recreation Outfitter and Guide Relief Grant Program

The Oregon Outdoor Recreation Outfitter and Guide Relief Grant Program (the “Program”) is designed for Oregon domiciled persons registered as an Outfitter and Guide with the Oregon State Marine Board prior to March 1, 2020, that can attest to Oregon guiding business financial losses due to...
industry.traveloregon.com industry.traveloregon.com

Pursuant to Oregon Laws 2021, chapter 4, section 30 (Second Special Session), the Oregon Legislature, appropriated $10,000,000 from the General Fund to the Oregon Business Development Department for distribution to the Oregon Tourism Commission (“Travel Oregon”) to support a one-time program. The program will provide grants to registered outdoor recreation Oregon resident Outfitter and Guides financially impacted by restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic or by service disruptions related to drought or wildfire.

I imagine something similar will be pitched in WA soon due to the steelhead closures of late. One of the catalysts for this legislation was from a meeting in Maupin with Senator Hansell and Deschutes guides who have missed days due to COVID and last year's steelhead shutdown. While it doesn't explicitly say river closures due to low returns, "drought" is a catch all and leads to those items, so it appears to be covered.
Click to expand...
Couldn’t they have already received relief funding from the Covid stimulus that went down awhile back??
 
I've been reading about the possible delay or closure of the Deschutes steelhead season this year.
Interesting times for sure.
SF
 
Stonedfish said:
I've been reading about the possible delay or closure of the Deschutes steelhead season this year.
Interesting times for sure.
SF
Click to expand...
Yea, seems another closure is likely. Hopefully they up enforcement and go after the "I'm trout or salmon fishing" poachers.
 
a one time bailout would be understandable, providing it actually makes it into the pockets of the guides and crew, not the scammers, which is always the issue....as worsening drought conditions guarentee declining fisheries and hay field irrigation flows, however, it should not be the tax payor's responsibility to keep bailing out those grimly holding on to what used to be, not what is.
 
Color me as being totally opposed to this sort of bailout. At very little cost (annual guide license fee) fishing guides appropriate a disproportionate amount of a publicly owned resource for their personal private benefit. At the very least, states should be receiving a percentage tax for every guided angler rod day. Guides make a free choice to tie their livelihood to the unguaranteed health of public fishery resources. There simply is no entitlement that goes with that. The bailout is a slap in the face to taxpayers. That's not political, is it?
 
Not a steelhead guide myself, but a guide nonetheless, and this just isn't something I can get behind.

While I try my best to be a good steward, give back as best I can etc etc, the fact is that guides make a living off a public resource. If we can't make that work for any reason I don't see how it should be anyone's problem but our own.
 
Good attitude Nick! I'm not anti-guide. Guides provide access to fishing for people that otherwise might not be able to fish, particularly when a boat is required for participation. However, I just can't see how provision of such a service can be entitled in any way. Outfitting and guiding is a roll of the dice, and favorable weather or resource abundance is not assured. Droughts happen. Wildfires happen. Floods happen. Ocean survival rates can crash. Etc.
 
Awesome. Do the Columbia River Endorsement and gillnetter bailout next.
 
I believe I saw that the Deschutes is beginning with something like "closed to salmon and steelhead fishing" this year, until/unless fish returns through the dams (where counting happens) are high enough to support opening. I think that's a first for the system??

Interesting mentality shift from "open unless it's a bad year" to "closed unless some fish come back"... Hard for guides to run a predictable business there now when there is even no way to know until August if it will even open.
 
Might just be year 3, I do not buy a fishing license…I’d rather see ODFW defunded than support their governmental mismanagement style of business. 🤬🤬🤬
 
GOTY said:
Yea, seems another closure is likely. Hopefully they up enforcement and go after the "I'm trout or salmon fishing" poachers.
Click to expand...

This hits home as I'm legitimately getting into trout spey this year to fill the void left by summer steelheading. I'm going to spend my fishing days in May getting after it, including a canyon float, and am super excited about it.

Then I kind of realized that much of the summer it would be a bad look at the minimum to be spey fishing the D. Even worse is that my trout spey flies wouldn't be that different than what I usually fish for steelhead there. I know I'd do the right thing and immediately break them off as I have in the past when I accidently hooked one nymph fishing but I'm not sure if that matters. I guess I just don't trust the fuzz to know that because I'm using a 12' 3wt and 2X means I'm trout fishing, and I really don't want the hassle dealing with them anyway. Dangit, I just want to spey fish so I can enjoy a cold one and watch the sun on those hills!

Fully agree on the salmon bit though.
 
Tallguy said:
I believe I saw that the Deschutes is beginning with something like "closed to salmon and steelhead fishing" this year, until/unless fish returns through the dams (where counting happens) are high enough to support opening. I think that's a first for the system??

Interesting mentality shift from "open unless it's a bad year" to "closed unless some fish come back"... Hard for guides to run a predictable business there now when there is even no way to know until August if it will even open.
Click to expand...

The plan:

odfw-steelhead-plan.png



deschutesriveralliance.wordpress.com

deschutesriveralliance

Protecting the Lower Deschutes River
deschutesriveralliance.wordpress.com deschutesriveralliance.wordpress.com
 
Salmo_g said:
Color me as being totally opposed to this sort of bailout. At very little cost (annual guide license fee) fishing guides appropriate a disproportionate amount of a publicly owned resource for their personal private benefit. At the very least, states should be receiving a percentage tax for every guided angler rod day. Guides make a free choice to tie their livelihood to the unguaranteed health of public fishery resources. There simply is no entitlement that goes with that. The bailout is a slap in the face to taxpayers. That's not political, is it?
Click to expand...
Agree...
 
Supply chain issues have been my drought and wildfires as of late.
Where do I sign up since I’m not getting paid for stuff I sold months ago? ;)
SF
 
That's why they call it guided fishing and not guided catching.

I honestly wonder how many of these guys rally against government assistance of all kinds and yell "socialism!" with conviction and all the righteous anger they can muster then turn around and support this proposal? Sorry if that is too political to point out the obvious hypocrisy there.

My thoughts? As a tax payer I'm totally opposed. I feel for steelhead and salmon guides but if you don't see the writing on the wall then you're just as unscrupulous or stupid as the loans and institutions that were active pre 2008. There's no longevity in this game and the entitlement is just a bit sickening.

In other news Swanny is all for it and I quote, "it's not socialism when we do it." Unfortunately visiting hours were cut short and I had to cut the interview without further comment. He's doing well and orange is definitely his colour in case any were wondering. The clipper is running the show on the inside.
 
This is interesting, as OR guides with >35% losses in 2020/21 were already cashed out from the first round of CARES funding, with a 2nd round on the way...hopefully the state uses the same requirements as PSMFC for determining eligibility and need
 
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