Thread: IL Water Usage Stamp - Illinois is the dumbest state!!!

You have to look at the bigger picture. All fees (if like SC) goes into our wildlife programs which improves our fish/hunting. All of our lakes are stocked at a point when they are in need of some help. Our cold water rivers and lakes are stocked monthly with trout (except a few deep winter months) plus SC run their own fish hatchery for our trout. $6 is really a small fee to be able to use your water in a watercraft. We have a good many small bodies of of water lakes that has their own fees and decals that run from $35 to over $65 and if you are not in the same county you will pay more. Each lake has it owns fees, think about that then think about your $6 fees. Just a little info to think about our fees to your fees.

wish that was the case,in illinois all fees go into the general fund.the state government if you can call it that,issues a budget to the of their discretion to the conservation and natural resources agencies.so the legislature can keep as much of the money for "other" uses as they please.

I guess I should have been more clear on why I think IL is goofing this up... I have no problem at all paying for my licenses, registrations, fees etc - especially when it helps go to fund the outdoors. But as jcozzz pointed out - the Chicago 'raiders' seem to think they have other better uses for that money. I'll not dive into IL's political problems.

But - the implementation of this leave a lot to be desired. to whit - why can't we buy these on-line? who came up with that unworkable 'double layer' sticker thing? why can't they leave the normal registration alone (three years like my other boats use>) Many states don't even require registration for non-powered craft like canoes and kayaks and why in the world would we penalize out of staters that probably don't even know they're in violation. Particularly, if they have their boat registered in their home state? WTH???

However - IL is very definitely in a financial mess and they use every possible means at their disposal to generate money for the state. Our Concealed Carry training is twice what most states require and the fees to do so are ridiculous (out of reach for many actually) Plus they don't honor most other states permits (also ridiculous) and when I hear about CPOs (game wardens) having to write tickets because a person might have their fishing license in their tackle box (5 feet away) instead of physically 'on their person' as stated in the regs - yes, this actually happens. Then I know things are really jacked up...

In Pennsylvania you have to have a sticker on canoes and kayaks if you use a Fish commission lake or state park lake..

@ ILRiverRat
Two thumbs up Bro! This idiotic WUS stamp pisses me off every year! I was cool with it before the elected officials of Chicago changed it to be a yearly "sticker" so they could "Tax" the "hordes" of residents recreating on the states watersheds, of which they already pay taxes on- as residents. Now I have to remember to buy WUS after Dec.31 even though my fishing license is good till March 31st? And then-follow directions on applying said WUS=good luck with that! I just use clear tape, AND if you don't mount it on the inside of vessel the ultraviolet rays turns sticker brown and unreadable-just like our elected politicians from Chicago. What good does this tax stamp do if it cannot be seen from outside hull???
Someone please succeed Chicago and E.ST-Louis from Illinois so my Grandkids can enjoy hunting/fishing/trapping/Mother Nature in this political black hole known as the land of Lincoln.