TULSA, Okla. — An announcement from the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation meant to provide clarity, instead sparked controversy.
"Everybody needs a hunting and fishing license. Period."
That's what Micah Holmes with ODWC told 2 News, echoing his department's statement. Going forward, everyone, including tribal members, has to have a license, the department says. That's a change from years past.
WATCH: State, tribes clash over hunting, fishing license requirement
"Tribal citizens need a state hunting and fishing license when they're anywhere in the state, except for on lands that are owned by the tribes, and that are held in trust by the U.S. government," Holmes said.
The state used decisions in two court cases, namely Strobel v. Oklahoma Tax Commission, which ruled tribal citizens must pay state income tax on money made within the reservation.
Some tribes responded in frustration. Muscogee Creek Nation Principal Chief David Hill telling 2 News in part, "Bringing up McGirt and the Stroble case shows the governor's lack of understanding or intentional disregard for federal Indian law and the U.S. Constitution."
Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin, Jr. added, "Our Cherokee Nation hunting and fishing model that we created is fully in line with federal law." He went on to say, "it's dangerous and misleading for Oklahoma to twist unrelated legal rulings to claim otherwise."
2 News asked Holmes for his thoughts on those statements.
"We are going to continue doing what we think is right and following the law as it's written and as interpreted by the courts," Holmes said.
The ODWC tells 2 News, of course, they want everybody to have a hunting and fishing license. But if you don't have one, enforcement, at least early on, will be more of an educational opportunity."
"Game wardens understand that we use some discretion, especially on these new types of regulations, or new interpretations of the regulations," Holmes said.
The state and select tribes did have compacts, where tribes bought hunting and fishing licenses for all of their members. That compact expired in 2021.
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