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Show Fees announc ed f or hors e the Interior Department's Depart-ment's Bureau of Land Management has rescheduled for Jan. 2, 1982, the implementation of uniform adoption fees of $200 for wild horses and $75: for wild burros. Bureau Director Robert F. Burford had announced the new fees earlier ' this year in response to congressional and executive branch directives to reduce the Government's subsidy for the program. The higher fees would have gone into effect Oct. 1. "The delay will give us time to assess the effects of the fee increase on demand for wild horses and burros," Burford said. "Our review over the past several months indicates the adoption program would not meet the Bureau's removal and disposal goals of 11,000 excess animals for fiscal year 1982 and would result in a decrease in revenue for the program;" The Bureau is required by the 1971 Wild, Free-Roaming Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act to maintain healthy, viable herds of wild horses and burros at management levels determined by the Bureau through planning and environmental assessment. The land use plans for various management areas and other information relating to current rangeland conditions and the stability of horse or burro herds are used to determine management levels. BLM estimates an optimum population level of 25,000 horses and burros on the public rangelands. That means about 44,000 animals must be removed over the next several years to reach - management levels. Burford has ordered a complete study of alternatives to the previously announced lees during the 90-day delay in raising the cost per animal. "There could be a decrease of revenue collected and possible destruction of animals not adopted, in accordance ac-cordance with the absolute ab-solute requirements of the law," Burford said. "Destruction of animals is not desired by the Bureau or the Department, Depart-ment, and we have no plans to carry out destruction of excess animals unless forced to by the law." The principle method of disposing of excess animals is through the program. More than 31,000 animals have been placed in private custody through this effort. The increased fee of $200 per horse and $75 per burro would have partially reduced the subsidy. The Bureau spends about $325 per animal to gather, transport tran-sport to a holding corral, administer medical tests and treatment and prepare the animals for adoption. Previous fees ranged from a relatively few dollars to $145 (including (in-cluding transportation costs) at Cross Plains, Tenn., a Bureau contract adoption center. |