State lawmakers have rejected another proposal to raise selected hunting license fees. The House voted 52-8 Monday to throw out House Bill 260, which was projected to generate $3.6 million a year for the state Game and Fish Department if it had passed. The bill was a scaled-down version of an earlier proposal that lawmakers rejected earlier to raise fees. Both bills were spurred by concerns that the department will face deep budget cuts if it doesn't fill an $8 million to $9 million annual shortfall by 2015. Game and Fish officials say license fees haven't increased since 2008, but department costs have been rising due to inflation and new legislatively mandated programs. Some lawmakers questioned whether it was the right time to raise fees.
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