Big-game hunters who purchased or were issued a deer or elk tag in 2021 must report their hunt by 11:59 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 31, for any hunt that ended by Dec. 31.
Hunters need to report on every 2021 deer, elk, bear, cougar, turkey and pronghorn tag purchased or issued as part of a Sports Pac license, even if they didn’t harvest an animal or go hunting. E-taggers who validated their tag through the app or online also still need to complete a separate report. Hunters should also report any other 2021 big game (cougar, bear, antelope) or turkey tags though there is no penalty for not reporting these tags.
Failure to do so by the deadline will result in a $25 penalty when purchasing a 2023 hunting license.
How to report
Set up an account and report at ODFW’s licensing system at https://odfw.huntfishoregon.com/login and use Verify/Look Up to find your profile, which will include any tags you need to report. Enter your ODFW ID number (printed on all licenses and tags) and follow the directions to set up an account. An email address is required. Once you’ve done that, click under “Mandatory Reporting” to complete your reports.
Hunters can also visit any license sale agent (businesses that sell hunting and fishing licenses) to report. License agents will not charge hunters a fee for this service. See a list of agents at https://bit.ly/3tKFEAf.
While ODFW Licensing staff can take reports by phone at (503) 947-6101, call hold times can be long and are expected to increase as the Jan. 31 reporting deadline approaches. Hunters are encouraged to report online or visit a license sale agent rather than calling.
The information helps ODFW determine harvest and hunting pressure for each hunt and is used to help set tags. This information is also available at https://bit.ly/3fOEGuN.
ODFW offices remain closed to walk-in visitors due to Covid-19.
Incentives to report
As an incentive to report on time, every hunter who does is entered to win one of three special tags ODFW offers each year. Winners can choose a deer, elk or pronghorn tag that is valid statewide during a four-month season, similar to auction and raffle tags which people can pay thousands for.
Brandon Ake of Redmond won the 2021 inventive tag for reporting his 2020 tags on time and took a large bull in the Wenaha unit on his special tag.
“This was definitely a hunt of a lifetime with the incentive tag I didn’t even know existed until I won it — and the tag was free!” Ake said. “Definitely a good reason to report on time.”