For you folks actively involved in trying to change season structures, here is a historical recap from another state you may or may not find useful as you try to find ways to move forward.
Washington implemented 3 point minimum restrictions for mule deer statewide in the 1990s. Some units were also 3 point minimum for whitetail (predominantly agricultural area units). The driving force behind this was the escapement for bucks after rifle season was abysmally low. I believe in some units the counts were revealing numbers as low as 5 bucks per 100 does or less for escapement.
I am not an advocate of APR management. However, the choice was APR or limited entry. Limited entry was chosen as the route forward. Deer hunters were mandated to choose their weapon, but then could hunt in any unit in the state during their respective seasons. In addition, limited entry hunts are offered (typically rut/migration hunts) across weapon types as well. Some of the northern units offer an OTC November hunt for whitetail bucks, that is a fairly decent hunt.
Now, 35 years later we are still operating under this protocol. Some biologists will tell you flat out the APR approach is not the right way to go about things, and limited entry would be better (from an age diversity standpoint). However, many of the units have large amounts of private land in them and there is distinct reluctance to go limited entry because of landowner resistance.
Bigger ranches can effectively grow some fairly good deer under the current system. They can also make some money via hunt clubs and leases, much the same as Montana. My daughter had the luxury of hunting private land as a beginning hunter, and the deer hunting was quite good. I've maintained my public land approach because I didn't want to impact youth opportunity on my friends ranch. The deer hunting I've experienced over the last 16 years wouldn't rate as fantastic, but I'd put it above average.
In addition, even though I like concurrent opportunities, a huge hurdle is simply de-coupling the deer and elk seasons. There are distinct unintended consequences with changes in elk management on deer management that are very hard to reconcile.
Where am I going with all of this rambling? First, Montana is not unique in the challenges of balancing private and public land management for deer. Second, post season escapement counts are a pretty crucial part of the picture. Regardless of your harvest reporting data, the number of bucks left is a cornerstone to your management. Maybe the best approach isn't the most optimal path moving forward. In this instance, decades of APR are probably better than never getting LE (or a similarly restrictive mechanism such as choose your GMU) implemented.
I hate shifting baselines, but I think it's important to give an honest answer to the question of "how far back in time can we take mule deer hunting?" The upper Ruby was limited entry for decades, and in all of my wanderings up there I was continually underwhelmed by what I saw in terms of deer.
