(Betsy Bloom/Daily News photo) An advisory question on preventing crop damage by sandhill cranes is among dozens of topics in the 2025 Spring Hearing Questionnaire to be considered in counties across Wisconsin on Monday.

A proposal from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to open the inland trout season a month earlier is among the topics the public will take up at the annual Fish and Wildlife Spring Hearings.

Sessions on Monday in all Wisconsin counties are organized through the DNR and the Wisconsin Conservation Congress.

DNR staff and WCC delegates will be on hand to discuss local issues, answer questions from the public and open a dialogue between the public, the DNR and the WCC about areas of interest and concern.

The schedule:

— 6 p.m., arrival and sign-in.

— 6:30 p.m., DNR staff presentations.

— 7 p.m., Wisconsin Conservation Congress delegate elections.

— 7:30 p.m., review Spring Hearing questions and any introduced local county resolutions.

The Florence County hearing will be in the lower level of the Florence Natural Resource Center, 5628 Forestry Drive, Florence.

Marinette County’s hearing will take place in the auditorium at Wausaukee High School, N11941 U.S. 141. The Forest County venue is the auditorium at Crandon High School, 9750 U.S. 8.

Additionally, an online opportunity for public input will be available from 7 p.m. Monday through 6 p.m. Wednesday.

The WCC will hold its delegate elections at each meeting. Two of the five WCC seats will be up for election in each county.

Finally, the public is invited to provide feedback on a variety of fish, wildlife and other natural resources-related topics as part of the spring hearing process. A number of paper ballots will be available at each in-person meeting, or responses may be submitted online.

The trout season proposal would move the inland opener from the first Saturday in May to the first Saturday in April. According to the DNR, smaller streams in particular becoming harder to access in summer due to vegetation growth.

A proposed wildlife management rule change would extend the fall turkey season in Zone 7, which includes the western half of Florence County and the northern half of Forest County. The season now closes on the Friday before the Thanksgiving holiday.

An advisory question asks if legislation should be passed to create a Sandhill Crane Stamp to help farmers reduce crane-caused crop damage.

Funds raised by stamp sales or donations to the program would be used to compensate farmers for treating their corn with a crane deterrent or purchasing pre-treated corn. Stamp purchases would be voluntary and available to the general public.

Advice is sought by the DNR on whether all active bear baits on public land should be labeled with identification, and whether there should be a ban on lead ammunition and lead fishing tackle.

In all, there are more than 70 items on the 2025 questionnaire, including whether a K-9 unit should be created in the DNR’s law enforcement division.

The Wisconsin Conservation Congress is the only statutory body in the state where the public elects delegates to advise the Natural Resources Board and the DNR on responsibly managing natural resources.

More information is available at https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/about/wcc.