TEXAS WHITETAILS = BIG BUCKS

You can keep those topsy- turvy Wall St. stocks. I’d like to have a dime for every dollar spent on Texas whitetailed deer hunting each year.

Hunting whitetails is a huge deal around here. And business is apparently pretty good.

Big city merchants may not notice the impact deer hunting has on their bottom line, but you can bet the little guys do. Deer hunting is like a golden goose that lays enough eggs to keep some rural economies fed from one year to the next.

Just how plump is the financial cash cow?

The results from an economic impact survey titled “Economic Values of Whitetailed Deer in Texas” indicate it’s a fat one.

The survey was carried out jointly in 2022-23 by the Texas A&M University Department of Rangeland, Wildlife and Fisheries Management and the Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute.

Released in December 2023, the second part of the three-part survey shows Texas deer hunting and the landowners who support it account for a $9.6 billion boost to the Texas economy each year.

Researchers say the figure takes into account economic multipliers and the trickle down effects from direct expenditures on all sorts of items related to participation in the sport and the associated costs of property management including labor costs, tax revenues and more.

The $9.6 billion value might be a tough pill for some to swallow. If the numbers are accurate, the economic value of Texas deer hunting is roughly $2.2 billion richer than the state’s $7.4 billion golf concession, according to figures in a 2022 release from the Lone Star Golf Course Superintendents Association.

“If anything, the number may be on the conservative side,” said Alison Lund, program manager with Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute and Department of Rangeland, Wildlife and Fisheries Management.

Mega Deer = Mega Bucks The survey overview called white-tailed deer Texas’ most abundant and hunted game species. The state currently has a whitetail population estimated at around 5.4 million animals. Money spent by hunters who hunt deer, and the land managers who care for their habitat, adds up to some rich ripple effects that are felt by many counties around the state.

The economic benefits are particularly noticeable in Llano County, frequently called the “Deer Capitol of Texas.” It is estimated that the 15,000 hunters who visit that county each fall leave behind as much as $3.5 million annually.

“Hunting white-tailed deer not only supports jobs, retail sales and a variety of supportive businesses, but also contributes substantial revenue to conservation efforts through excise taxes that benefit a wide range of species,” the report says.

Additionally, the overview cites chronic wasting disease in white-tailed deer as “the catalyst” for carrying out the survey.

“Potential implications of the disease, both ecologically and economically, are yet to be fully realized but threaten our state’s biological and economic well-being,” the report says. “Understanding the economic opportunity costs and impacts to deer hunting is important to better inform state decisions regarding white-tailed deer management, especially in light of serious disease outbreaks.”

What follows is a synopsis of the survey and the methodologies researchers used in carrying it out:

Who Was Surveyed

The web-based survey was sent to a random sample of 100,000 Texas Super- Combo license holders for the 2022-2023 hunting season. Respondents were divided into two groups — hunters and landowners. Researchers received a nine percent response rate accounting for nearly 9,100 unique responses to a wide variety of questions, the survey says.

Hunter Contributions and Findings Based on survey data, researchers believe Texas white-tailed deer hunters generate an estimated $4.6 billion in total economic output each year.

According to the report: * White-tailed deer hunting supports 23,726 jobs resulting in $1.3 billion in labor income and $446 million in annual tax revenues.

* Most deer hunters are urban dwellers from the state’s four largest metropolitan areas including Dallas- Fort Worth, Houston, Austin and San Antonio who visit rural areas to hunt 1-10 days per season. Deer hunting occurs statewide, but Central Texas typically sees the most hunter traffic due to higher deer densities.

* Fifty-two percent of the respondents reported hunting on land owned by family or friends; 41 percent on leases; 5 percent on public land; and 2 percent hunted with outfitters.

* Hunters spend a bundle along the way, including an estimated $472 million in travel alone. The money is distributed throughout the state, often benefitting rural areas lacking significant financial input from other industries.

* Each hunter has an average economic impact of about $6,000 per year.

* The five most common expenditures reported by hunters are licenses, transportation, meals, shooting equipment and feed and/or feeders.

* The five most costly expenditures reported are outfitter or guide fees, lease fees, lodging, land management activities and feed/ feeders. Reported estimates averaged over $1,000.

* Nearly 2,000 of the surveyed deer hunters reported lease fees as an expense averaging $2,904.

* Several industries benefit from hunter spending. Among them are real estate, motor vehicle dealers, auto parts retailers, durable goods merchant wholesalers, animal food manufacturers, gas stations, restaurants, feed stores, taxidermists and more.

* The survey says hunting activities support 24,000 jobs, provide $1.3 billion in labor income and generate $446 million in tax revenue.

Landowner Contributions and Findings

The report says landowners who support white-tailed deer hunting generate about $5 billion in annual economic output. The properties employ about 35,000 people, provide $707 million in labor income and generate more than $90 million in tax revenue. About 2,800 landowners responded to the survey.

* Money generated from lease fees and hunting trips is often used for private lands habitat and land management activities resulting in benefits that extend beyond white-tailed deer.

* Supplemental feed, fencing, road improvements and land management are the top expenses reported by landowners, accounting for more than 60 percent of the costs related to white-tailed deer activities.

* The five most common expenses reported by landowners are supplemental feed, property taxes, land management, equipment maintenance and capital improvements.

* The five most costly expenditures reported include payroll, land management, supplemental feed, hospitality and property taxes.

* More than 1,700 landowners reported supplemental feed as a deer management expense averaging $3,593 annually.

* The majority of landowners (95 percent) described their deer herds as 100 percent native with no influence from supplemental deer from breeders.

* About 70 percent of Texas deer hunters do not own land, and 45 percent of those hunters reported leasing land or hiring outfitters.

* Sixty-seven percent of responding landowners allowed access to their property to hunt white-tailed deer other than themselves, and 33 percent reported employing full-time or part-time help on their property .

* Surveyed landowners reported an average of $18,800 in expenses related to white-tailed deer hunting and habitat management on their land during 2022-23 season.

* The average income reported is about $20,700 Matt Williams is a freelance writer based in Nacogdoches. He can be reached by e-mail, mattwillwrite4u@yahoo.com.