The Economic Impact of
Hunters in Uvalde County
Hunting is an important part of Texas culture and the Texas economy. The opportunity
to enjoy nature and wildlife, spend time with family and friends, and perhaps harvest a
trophy animal attracts hunters from across the state and US to rural counties in particular.
These hunters spend money on hunting fees, food, lodging, gasoline, retail purchases, and
other expenditures.
Uvalde County welcomes hunters by hosting the Uvalde Area Chamber of Commerce
Annual Hunters’ Roundup. In 2010, more than 35 volunteers provided over 90 volunteer
hours to prepare food and offer a welcoming experience with a live band and 52 vendor
booths. More than 1,650 people attended the event. Event organizers surveyed 221
attendees about their hunting habits and expenditures. Eighty-five percent of respondents
reported hunting within Uvalde County. Thirty-one percent of those surveyed were nonlocal (not residents of Uvalde County). When local residents hunt, they may be redirecting
their expenditures from another local activity, although hunting at home may prevent
locals from spending money outside the county. Expenditures by non-locals are new
money in the county economy.
Table 1. Average spending by local, non-local, and all hunters in Uvalde County.
Category
Hunt fees
Food service
Auto expenses
Lodging
Retail
Miscellaneous items
Uvalde County Total
Overall Total
% of spending in
Uvalde County
Spending by
Local Hunters
$223.41
$89.83
$145.76
$21.11
$199.72
$36.40
$716.23
$793.74
90.2%
Spending by NonLocal Hunters
$363.41
$114.89
$171.37
$43.64
$96.42
$56.35
$846.07
$1,296.95
65.2%
Spending by All
Hunters
$266.39
$97.52
$153.62
$28.03
$168.01
$42.53
$756.09
$948.33
79.7%
Table 1 shows the average reported
spending of hunters in Uvalde County. The
average visiting hunter spent $846.07 annually or
$129.84 more than a resident hunter in Uvalde
County. The average non-local hunter spent an
additional $450.88 outside Uvalde County, for a
total average annual hunting expenditure of
$1,296.95. The average local hunter spent only
$793.74 on hunting annually, including $77.52
outside Uvalde County.
However, direct spending by hunters is not the only benefit to the local economy. A
hunter’s direct expenditure at a local store, café, or hotel is multiplied as firms purchase
inputs (indirect effect) and pay employees who also make regional purchases (induced
effect). The total effect on employment, labor income, value added (contribution to gross
regional product), and output in the county is greater than the initial dollar spent. Of
course, some of the original expenditure leaks out of the regional economy, for example as
inventory is imported from other regions, employees commute from other regions, and
businesses and households pay state and federal taxes.
Table 2. Economic Impact of Non-Local Hunters to the Uvalde County Economy.
Employment
Direct Effect
Total Effect
4.8
6.9
Labor Income
$110,500
$172,500
Value Added
$177,000
$291,900
Output
$429,500
$625,800
Hunting by non-local game dinner attendees alone contributed 4.8 direct full- and
part-time jobs and $429,500 in gross sales (output) in Uvalde County (Table 2). Using the
IMPLAN modeling system (Minnesota IMPLAN Group, 2010, Hudson, WI), these visiting
hunters expenditures resulted in 6.9 jobs across the entire economy. The $625,800 in gross
sales generated across the economy included a $291,900 impact on gross regional
product (value added) and $172,500 in labor income. Labor income is a subset of value
added, which is part of output, so these figures cannot be summed.
Table 3. Economic Contribution of All Hunters to the Uvalde County Economy.
Employment
Direct Effect
Total Effect
15.9
21.6
Labor Income
$378,200
$548,900
Value Added
$607,500
$922,700
Output
$1,247,500
$1,787,400
Most survey respondents were Uvalde County residents. Although residents’ hunting
expenditures do not represent new economic activity, they do make a contribution to the
local economy. When local and non-local game dinner attendees’ expenditures were
combined, they supported 15.9 direct jobs and $1,247,500 in output in Uvalde County
(Table 3). These overall expenditures contributed 21.6 jobs, $548,900 in labor income,
$922,700 in value added, and $1,787,400 in output across the entire economy annually.
Of course, these figures represent only the economic contributions of hunters
attending the game dinner. Hunting expenditures and economic contributions by all
hunters over the year are likely larger. The average hunter reported hunting 19.5 days over
the year. Most survey respondents (58.4%) visited hunting land as a guest or family member,
43.9% owned their hunting land, 28.1% leased hunting land, and 13.6% hunted public lands.
The average hunting party included 4.7 people, and the average survey respondent
traveled 88.6 miles to attend the game dinner. The most popular reason for hunting in
Uvalde County was spending time with family and friends (63.8% of survey respondents),
which was consistent with 64.7% of respondents being natives of the county. Enjoying the
rural atmosphere (36.2%) and seeing vast quantities of wildlife (32.6%) were other popular
reasons for hunting in the county. The opportunity to harvest a trophy animal was an
important consideration for 16.7% of respondents.
Rebekka Dudensing and Bryson Dalrymple
CED11-07
June 2011