In most places, game wardens routinely check state-issued hunting and fishing licenses, but it’s not that simple in Oklahoma.

Historic confusion was again amplified after five Oklahoma tribes announced a cooperative agreement on July 12 to honor each other’s tribal hunting and fishing licenses on each of their respective tribal lands. Last week, the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation fired back with its own statement that the state’s Title 29 laws still apply to everyone.

State game wardens and the hunting and fishing public are caught in the middle.

— History of Conflict

For decades, confusion reigned with overlapping state and tribal jurisdiction issues where tribal citizens claimed sovereign rights to fish and hunt historic lands without a state-issued license. In 2015, the Cherokee Nation signed the first state-tribal hunting and fishing compact, and the Choctaw Nation soon followed suit. The annually renewed agreements had the tribes purchasing bulk orders of state hunting and fishing licenses at a reduced rate and re-issuing those licenses at no cost to tribal members.

Officials lauded the compact compromise for continuing to boost state wildlife management funds while recognizing tribal sovereignty.

However, after the McGirt v. Oklahoma Supreme Court Decision determined that most of eastern Oklahoma remains an Indian reservation in 2020, and Gov. Kevin Stitt refused to renew the state-tribal compacts in 2021, everything changed.

In 2022, the Cherokee Nation began issuing its own tribal hunting and fishing licenses and adopted the state’s Title 29 hunting and fishing regulations into its own set of laws. This year, the Inter-Tribal Council of the Five Civilized Tribes announced that citizens of the Cherokee Nation, Chickasaw Nation, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Muscogee Nation, and soon the Seminole Nation will honor each other’s hunting and fishing licenses on their respective lands.

Following that announcement, the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation issued its own statement stating that people must follow federal and state laws regardless of where they live, hunt, or fish.

“All Oklahomans remain subject to Oklahoma’s Wildlife Conservation Code. Neither the law nor the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation treats individuals differently based on race, heritage, or background. The press statement released by the Inter-Tribal Council of the Five Civilized Tribes concerning the Five Tribe Wildlife Management Reciprocity Agreement reflected very questionable statements of the law without any consultation with state partners,” it read.

— Statutes vs. Reality

Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation spokesman Micah Holmes said the statement intended to set the record straight for hunters and anglers.

“It’s each individual’s responsibility to follow the law. To know where they’re at and what licenses are needed,” he said.

“(The Tribal Compact) wasn’t done in consultation with the Wildlife Department or any other state agencies we’re aware of, so we just want to make sure that as we get going into fall, people know that before you go hunting or fishing in Oklahoma, you have the right licenses and know that you’re doing the right thing.”

Holmes said that anyone who has a question about where they’re hunting or fishing and what documentation is required should contact their local game warden. The warden will be familiar with the area and licensing needs.

When asked about his response to such questions from the public, game warden Capt. Hank Jenks, supervisor for District 1, which covers Osage County east to the Arkansas border, said his wardens answer people’s questions as best they can.

“Basically, how we’ve been handling it is we tell folks the law is still the law. Until leaders determine how this all works, you technically need a license to hunt and fish in Oklahoma, and there are no exemptions for tribal members,” he said.

Indeed, state laws under Title 29 state every person must have a state-issued license. But what of the licenses issued by the tribes?

What is technically accurate might not reflect the reality in the field or a citation any of the state’s district attornies is interested in enforcing.

“I can honestly say that in the past couple of years, we have not issued any citations to Cherokee Nation citizens who did not have a state license,” Jenks said.

With the new Five Tribes compact, his wardens might see licenses from more than just the Cherokee Nation.

He allowed that while state law dictates that everyone must have a hunting and fishing license, wardens can’t ignore the fact that, under McGirt, a citation for a tribal member not in possession of a state-issued license could become complicated.

Each of Oklahoma’s 77 counties is assigned at least one game warden, so out of necessity, most are cross-deputized with regional Tribal police, and all coordinate with their local district attorneys and other law enforcement agencies, Jenks said.

While cross-messaging persists over license and tag purchases, both Jenks and Holmes said that cooperation on enforcement of violations like hunting outside season dates, trespassing, and harvesting over the limit remains solid across all entities, state, federal, and tribal.

— The Oklahoma Ecology Project is a nonprofit dedicated to in-depth reporting on Oklahoma’s conservation and environmental issues. Learn more at okecology.org.