Money coming in to DEC but not going out.

[erussell]

http://www.pressconnects.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011104020348

      Don Walker of Horseheads can probably show you every hole in Catharine Creek where big rainbow trout lurk during the spring spawning run.

But when it comes to the state agency that regulates trout fishing and other wildlife programs, Walker is baffled.

Two years ago, New York hiked sporting license fees across the board to help keep the state Department of Environmental Conservation solvent.

Since then, DEC has been hit with 140 layoffs, closed two environmental education centers and eliminated some lab functions including effluent testing at wastewater treatment plants.

The cuts leave Walker and others wondering where exactly their money is going.

"We don't know yet who is being impacted by it," Walker said. "Are fish hatcheries impacted by it, and the pheasant program? It's a tricky thing as far as I'm concerned."

Disappearing dollars  The DEC is one of the largest and most diverse state agencies -- managing everything from waste disposal to oil and natural gas exploration. Its 2010-11 budget was more than $514 million.

But for those who hunt, fish and trap -- more than 2 million New Yorkers in 2008-09 -- DEC is also the agency that uses their license dollars to manage New York's fish and wildlife resources.

The money that is spent on those licenses goes into the Conservation Fund, which provides the majority of funding for the state's wildlife programs.

The money in that fund is not to be allocated for other DEC programs such as enforcement of natural gas drilling regulations, for instance.

Two years ago, state officials sounded the alarm because the Conservation Fund was in the red.

The answer -- the Legislature approved across-the-board increases for all sporting license fees.

The cost of both resident fishing and hunting licenses went from $19 to $29, and the cost of a sportsman (combined) license rose from $37 to $47.

Now the fund has a healthy surplus, a bulge that continues to grow, in fact, because it isn't being spent.

The Conservation Fund balance on March 31, 2010, was $9.6 million. This year, the balance is projected to be $22.24 million.

At the same time, the DEC has been hit with reduced work force, centers and lab work.

"Even though this is 100 percent paid for by license fees, there are still limitations imposed by the Division of Budget," said Jason Kemper, chairman of the Conservation Fund Advisory Board.

"The fund is solvent. It's growing rapidly. But at the same time, we have issues in hatcheries and staff that we can't backfill. These are issues that can easily be resolved.

"We stepped up to the plate. We are the only interest group that pays for what we use," Kemper said.

"We pay a vast majority of the staff and resources in our department. The tough part is we pay for the services up front. We buy licenses for the next fiscal year. Now we're not able to spend the money that their license dollars pay for."

If sportsmen are unhappy with the return on their investment, fewer of them will buy licenses and go afield, Kemper fears. And that will mean more than just the loss of that license revenue.

"It's a double whammy because a lot of our federal aid is off of license dollars," Kemper said.

"If we can't keep the level of service that we did in the past, we lose licenses."

The state receives about $22 million annually in federal aid for sport fish and wildlife restoration as well as other programs.

Agency in crosshairs  Under the state budget approved March 31, all state agencies, including DEC, will see their funding cut 10 percent, said state Sen. Tom O'Mara, R-Big Flats.

It will be up to the executive branch to decide how to implement those cuts, and O'Mara said he is concerned about the impact on the sportsman.

"Times are tough. We're dealing with a $10 billion deficit, and everyone is taking hits, from education to health care and everything in between," O'Mara said.

"We just need to make sure our voices are heard, that the priorities be kept in place, and that we maintain the great outdoor sporting activities that we have here in New York."

While the Conservation Fund continues to build a surplus, DEC is trying to get by with fewer staff in the office and in the field.

Facilities such as the Rogers Environmental Education Center in Chenango County and Stony Kill Education Center in Dutchess County have been shuttered, aging fish hatcheries face expensive repairs, and conservation officers are patrolling larger and larger areas. Sometimes one officer has to cover an entire county.

Doug Stang feels the pinch.

Stang is DEC's assistant director of fish, wildlife and marine resources and an avid outdoorsman.

DEC is still struggling to figure out how to effectively manage those natural resources after losing many key players and funding, Stang said.

"We may not do everything as well as it used to get done. We're still grappling with what our reduced capacity is," he said.

"There were things many of those employees did that nobody else did. Every program has constituents. If anything starts to slide, those of us who are left hear about it."

State officials certainly heard from the sporting community a few years ago when then-Gov. David Paterson attempted to shut down the state's last remaining pheasant-rearing facility, the Reynolds Game Farm near Ithaca, because of budget woes.

The move would have saved $750,000 -- none of which was paid through tax dollars -- and sportsmen's groups that normally focus on their own niche rallied in support of pheasant hunters and against the cuts.

Paterson ultimately dropped the plan to close the game farm, but sportsmen's groups were wary of his administration after that.

Many of them are waiting to see if Gov. Andrew Cuomo is a friend or enemy to the outdoor community.

"Paterson didn't care about sportsmen's issues," Kemper said. "I'm hoping we will make better progress with this administration."

For Stang, a 28-year DEC veteran, the fight is personal.

He not only manages the state's wildlife resources, he and his family enjoy them.

Stang wants to make sure those natural treasures are there for his own family and all New Yorkers to enjoy, but when people ask him what the future holds, he can't make any promises.

"I don't have an easy answer for them," Stang said. "I'm also a license buyer. Many of us here are, and we want to make sure that we have good, enjoyable, successful experiences when we go out there.

"I am still very certain that I and my friends and family and going to go out and have a really good time in our boat catching fish," Stang said.

"My son had his first year for turkey hunting. We had great experiences. That part of it I'm very enthusiastic about. The budget aspects are less certain."

Sportsmen anxious  With trout fishing season now under way, area outdoor enthusiasts are seeing one tangible benefit from their license dollars.

So far, state budget woes haven't seriously affected the state's trout stocking program, but there are big question marks beyond this year, said Ken Osika, manager of the Bath fish hatchery.

The hatchery already had to shorten the hours it's open to the public because of staff cuts.

"On weekends we'll be closing at 11:30 instead of 4, which I hate to do. People like to visit during the weekends," Osika said. "We don't know what's going to happen after April 1. It's an unknown right now."

All that uncertainty is unsettling to local anglers and others who enjoy the outdoors.

"Yeah, we're worried about that. They did cut DEC officers in the area. You can call them, but you usually don't see someone right away," said Jim Laskaris, president of the Catharine Creek Chapter of Trout Unlimited.

"Of course the state took a big hit in the fish program. We were afraid they were going to cut back to a smaller amount of fish. That didn't happen to our county yet," Laskaris said.

"Eventually though, it will trickle down to the sportsman. Of course we're the ones who pay for it. It is a concern to all sportsmen."

Laskaris believes things like habitat improvement will fall by the wayside as the state shifts money elsewhere, unless counties and local conservation groups step up and try to pick up the slack.

Mike Warren of Hornell, president of the Steuben County Federation of Sportsmen, is even more pessimistic in his assessment of the situation.

"I think people were concerned about that before they had the big hit. Definitely yes, I'm disappointed that they are making cuts in staffing and stuff in DEC for sure," Warren said.

[Doc]

How long before large numbers of hunters are going to throw up their hands in disgust and take up a different line of recreation. Frankly, I am getting a bit weary of being taken advantage of and basicly being made the fool by paying more for less. I'm thinking that if this crazy stuff continues year after year, the drain on sportsmen's numbers will continue to accelerate, and then the DEC will experience money problems like they can't even imagine.

I also think it's about time some of these reporters did a bit of research to put names to all the financial problems that the DEC is encountering. I really don't believe that all of the blame, (or even a majority of it) resides inside the DEC. I also think it would be interesting to see if the DEC is taking a fair share of the statewide budgetary hits, including past years when they were already taking hits before it became fashionable.

[erussell]

I think thats what they want us to do, throw up our hands and stop hunting. The Anti's are behind this somehow, just don't know who. Not a real conspiracy believer but you starve a dog long enough it's going to die. My question is where are all the sportsman groups that are supposed to be watching these people?

[G-Man]

they are to buzy fighting amonst themselves to watch what their supose to.. Almost as bad as the politicians fighting for their piece of the pie for re-election campain funds instead of doing their jobs!

[Carpenter]

DEC - Thank you in advance for reducing license costs next year since you clearly have a surplus of our money.  I appreciate that you are doing that, to help out the people who support you, instead of spending it just because you have it, likely on programs which would only restrict us further in our sportsman endeavors.  Remember, government programs, regulations, etc never give you more freedom, they only take it away.

Regards,

Carpenter

_____________________________

Am I being a little too optimistic?  Now that we know how much of a surplus they've got that money will be gone faster than you can blink.  If I get stopped by a DEC officer driving a Lexus GX with a light bar on top I'm going to be mildly upset.

I love the DEC and what they've done in NY and across the country to establish prosperous wildlife populations and to prosecute law-breakers, but come on now, that's a hefty surplus.  How about you help out the people who gave it to you by scaling back the fees from here on out?