Tackler & Smiles:

Both good points but the "federal" tax we pay and get kickbacks from at the state level gets diluted and distributed to all branches of WDFW, not just the fish division.
I'm also not convinced my $1 tax would put small shops out of business. For example, Clifford Cityslicker hears Seiku got hot and he has to go!! So, he arrives up there and learns he brought the wrong gear so he goes in and buys $50-75 of hooks, leaders, weights, bait and other assorted goodies. You can't tell me the $1 tax inserted into his total is going to turn him away and ruin Seiku's little shop. He probably wouldn't even know the tax is there.

The beauty of my proposal (since it's just that...a proposal) is it would be earmarked for fish propagation ONLY. And I did mention in the above post that the money could go towards research of more biologically sound hatchery techniques as well.

The whole thing seems to me to be a relatively simple way to generate BADLY needed funds for the long term. You just have to get the legislature off their fat asses and make it a bill.