MAY TOWN HALL

MAY 6, 2025

The change of season is in full swing. The days are longer, warmer, and windier. Fishing season for the top trout streams is on pause for the spawn, providing time to apply for the year’s big game-controlled hunts. It’s wildfire awareness month, and Gov. Little signed a proclamation urging citizens to begin taking steps to protect against damage to homes and communities.

It’s also spring turkey season across Idaho, and several Town Hall attendees had plenty to say about the quality and quantity of the birds they bagged in the last few weeks.

Turning to the business side of things, Idaho Department of Fish and Game Director Jim Fredericks provided an update on agency impacts from the 2025 Idaho Legislature. Overall, Fredericks said the agency fared well, notably the funding approved for renovating and expanding the office in Salmon and separate funding for a regional sub-office in McCall.

The Director said that the agency should not be significantly impacted by lawmakers’ decision to reject about $680,000 in federal grant alignment funds. “While this looks like a big cut, it doesn’t prevent us from putting all of the federal money we have in the field,” he said.

Other items of significance include defeat of a bill that would have put a moratorium on mule deer doe hunting. More specifically, HB 196 would have imposed a five-year moratorium on mule deer doe hunting in specific units. Fredericks said defeat of the bill ensures the agency and Commission can continue making harvest decisions based on data and best management practices.

Benn Brocksome echoed the sentiment and praised the agency and staff for continuing to make sound and reasonable decisions about harvests for all species across the state. He added that enshrining hunting restrictions in statute creates a rigid set of implications that best suits the agency's expertise, data, and ability to adjust in real-time, allowing for the management of harvest areas by area and units by unit.

In many cases like this, Fredericks said a lawmaker is activated by a small but vocal group in their district, and that they really can’t be blamed for effectively advocating on their behalf. But he also encouraged sportsmen to decide whether giving the Legislature authority to make harvest decisions is in the best interest of the resource and hunting statewide.

Fredericks said he was also relieved to see HB 195 die in committee. The bill to put restrictions on the relocation of wildlife would have significantly curbed the agency’s ability, for example, to do something as simple as removing a moose from an urban neighborhood, he said. Agency staff will work during the offseason on solving some of the challenges that led to the proposed legislation.

Other tidbits from Fredericks included:

• An update of the 10-year strategic plan is underway, a process designed to help the agency identify or refocus its four primary objectives. Meetings have already been held across the state.

• The agency is undergoing a branding refresh. This is not unusual as multiple state agencies have engaged in the same process in recent years. The goal is to clean up the use of the logo and branding materials and find consistency in the ways they are used. This is not a new logo or a rebrand, so much as an update on how they use it.

• The Fish and Game Commission’s May agenda will include a discussion about the nonresident tag sales policy. Fredericks said they are working with a third-party vendor to create a draw system that will be used this fall and replace over-the-counter sales. The agency will carefully monitor the change, with a specific focus on its impact on revenue and outfitter allocation numbers. He also said outfitters are holding information-gathering meetings right now to help set a course for how the industry wants to approach a longer-term solution next year.

• A mountain goat management plan is being developed and should be ready for public comment later this month.

• The agency is working on rulemaking to set the guidelines for underwater spearfishing for certain species in specific waters. This likely includes walleye and carp and focused on north Idaho lakes like Lake Pend Oreille.

There are some other interesting nuggets to report that emerged from the meeting. Marie Neumiller, from the Congressional Sportsmen Caucus, highlighted the work with congressional members from both parties to reintroduce the America the Beautiful Act. The bill would appropriate billions of dollars over the next five years for upkeep, repairs, and improvements to national parks. She also said the caucus is working to block proposed legislation in Oregon that would prohibit beaver trapping on public lands. CSC recruited several Oregon trapping leaders to testify against the bill.

On a more regional front, there is some good news to report for waterfowl hunters and clean water. Last week, U.S. Sens. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., teamed up to introduce the Northwest Wetlands Voluntary Incentives Program (VIP) Act. The goal of the legislation is to improve wetland habitat across the Pacific Northwest, a critical step to improving habitat for birds and wildlife. The bill is designed to create a federal grant and assistance program that enables the government, tribes, nonprofits, landowners, and other stakeholders to collaborate in the restoration and improvement of wetlands. Idaho Sportsmen, along with Ducks Unlimited and several other western partners, have been working on this bill for three years and were thrilled to have it introduced early in this new Congress.

In case you don’t read the press release linked above, here’s what Brocksome had to say about it: “Access and opportunity for the sportsmen and women of Idaho who hunt, fish, trap, and recreationally shoot, is paramount.  In a state where water is our most precious resource, Idaho farmers and landowners are working hard to provide more managed wetlands and habitat,” said Benn Brocksome, Founder and Chairman of Idaho Sportsmen, Access & Opportunity.  “Many landowners in Idaho, and across the West, share our conservation goals and work with sportsmen pragmatically and collaboratively to meet the needs of Idaho.  These efforts should be supported, bolstered and recognized with the passage of this important bill.”

Some troubling news emerged just as our meeting was coming to a close. As part of the Republican-led tax and budget cut discussions, the House Natural Resource Committee voted to approve language authorizing the sale of federal lands in Nevada and Utah. While we acknowledge the merit in transferring or selling specific parcels for specific reasons, we’re not supportive of doing so as part of a rushed budget negotiation. The lack of process, deliberation, and public input associated with this proposal runs counter to our beliefs and the longstanding, proactive land management practices that are the foundation of our advocacy.

Yes, we believe in shared use. We support mining, timber harvest, grazing, and other natural resources as essential and legitimate uses of our public lands. But how and when these valued lands are sold or traded is one of our top priorities. Proposing to sell off 460,000 acres to help balance the budget sets a dangerous precedent. Stay tuned, as we will be adding our voice, along with other groups with shared concerns, to oppose this dangerous plan to sell off public lands that the public will likely never recover.

Finally, we also want to call out support for the bipartisan congressional Public Lands Caucus. We join several other groups, including the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, in support of this collaborative effort to protect and advance access and opportunity in Idaho and across the West.

Our next townhall is scheduled for June 3, at 6 p.m. at the Idaho Department of Fish and Game office in Boise.