On a Web site for hunters in Connecticut, www.cthuntingnshooting .com, many local hunters expressed their concerns about Governor Jodi Rell’s proposal to increase the hunting license fees.

“She better not do this. It will make me angry,” responded one of the members to the online conversation. The bill proposes the hunting license fee hike from $28 to $56, firearm license from $14 to $28 and archery license from $14 to $28, for both state and private land hunting.

“The governor’s proposal essentially doubles the fees,” said Dennis Schain, spokesperson of the Department of Environmental Protection of the Governor’s Bill 6371. “As you could understand, people are concerned about the increase,” said Schain. This proposal is indeed making Connecticut hunters more than just concerned . Some worry that they’ll not be able to afford hunting in the coming season, and some say that there may be a rise in criminal activities because not everyone will not want to comply with the increase.

“It’s going to hurt a lot of people,” said Andy Swatik of Willington, the creator of the Web site. The 63-year-old hunter, who lives on disability funds, said that he hunts for meat for his family to last him for a year. “It’s going to take a chunk out of my pocket.” Swatik, who buys permits for two rifles, a muzzleloader , and archery, says that he spends about a $100 each season just for licenses and permits.

Another hunter, Rich Kratzke of Ashford, says that he hunts only for food. “That’s how I feed my family in winter,” said Kratzke, “If I’m able to tag even one deer, it gives me stew meat, steak, roasts and tenderloins.” Kratze, who lives with his wife and two sons, says a deer a year lasts his family throughout the year. Although he says he buys other meat from stores, it saves him a lot of money.

Hunters, such as Kratzke and Swatik also invest in much more than licenses. They spend on various preparation gadgets and products. Kratze uses a Trail Cam, a camera with a motion detector that takes pictures when there’s a movement of animals, which cost him $200. He also buys attractants to lure the animals, which he says are not cheap. Kratze, a custodian at Eastern Connecticut University, says that if there was an increase on the fees, he will spend 20 percent of his income on deer hunting.

Kratzke, who has been hunting for 19 years, believes that he contributes to the environment by hunting the over populating animals. The DEP recommends hunting of white-tail deer for population management and reduction of nuisance such as road kills and destruction of private plants and shrubs. But he laments that instead of providing incentive for protecting the environment , the government is taxing him more.

In the face of an economic decline, however, the proponent of the license fee increase, Gov. Rell’s office, argues that this increase, if approved, will bring in a $1 million income in the next year. Gov. Rell justified her position, in an e-mail response, by saying, “We are experiencing an extraordinary fiscal crisis, and I do not want to raise taxes across the board on Connecticut residents . In these times, we need to make certain fees cover costs associated with specific programs. I suggested this fee increase to the legislature. Now, it is up to the General Assembly to decide what measures it believes are necessary to balance the budget.”

There are approximately 50,000 licensed hunters in the state, according to DEP officials. And if there was an increase in the fee, not all may comply with it, says another hunter from Willington . Alan DaRos says that this increase of fees may backfire. “I don’t think people will stop hunting, even if they can’t afford it. They’ll say, ‘Hey I’m not going pay,’ and there’ll be a lot of criminal activities,” said DaRos. He said that it’s unfair for the state to try and balance the budget by trying to restrict his constitutional right.

If the bill is approved by the house, it will be activated on July 1, 2009.