Kansas fisherman wants to throw back proposed law change

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Fishing is a passion for Peet Crissey, but when he and his brother were just kids fishing wasn’t fun.

“My dad was just an avid fisherman, they’d get in that boat and drag my little brother and I at like eight in the morning and they wouldn’t come in 'tll five o’clock at night,“ Crissey said.

Luckily, he found fly fishing. And now that he's about to turn 65, he’s looking forward to fishing for free thanks to a Kansas law that exempts seniors from hunting and fishing fees.

Except, that could change this year if the man who runs the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism has his way.

Robin Jennison doesn’t have anything against older hunters, it’s just that they’re living longer, and with so many baby boomers about to become seniors he’s worried about a cash crunch.

“The things that we do in the wildlife side of our agency are totally paid for by the hunters and anglers in the state of Kansas, “ Jennison told 41 Action News.

Currently, the state has four fish hatcheries and it leases more than one million acres of land that is open to Kansas hunters. Jennison said the $20 license fee he wants to impose is still a great deal for all Kansas outdoorsmen.

“This isn’t about taking away and right of privilege from a senior citizen," Jennison explained. "It’s about being able to pass on our outdoor traditions to the next generation. “

Crissey still doesn’t think it’s right. “It’s just the principle, that we’ve been around quite a while and we’ve paid our dues,” he said.

The proposal is now in the hands of the Kansas Legislature.