CONCORD, N.H. - The 2014 recommendations of the Legislative Commission to Study Opportunities and Options to Improve the Sustainability of the Fish and Game Department, tasked with finding future funding solutions for the Department, have been released. Among the ideas are: considering financial support from users of non-motorized watercraft, authorizing the Executive Director and the Fish and Game Commission to set license fees, and making changes in the resident over-68 hunting and fishing license.

"We are looking for a serious, thoughtful consideration of the ideas the Legislature has put forward," said Fish and Game Executive Director Glenn Normandeau. "Without support for changes from a broad spectrum of the public, the Fish and Game Department you know and rely upon today will not be able to fulfill all of our obligations to the residents and visitors to N.H."

The Legislature has been searching for several years for ways to address the funding gap at Fish and Game. "In spite of significant reductions in personnel over the last three biennial budgets, rising costs are still outpacing revenue," said Normandeau. "This gap is a serious problem."

In 2013, the Legislature provided stopgap funding in Fish and Game's budget ($699,000 for FY 14 and $893,000 for FY 15) to keep the Department whole for the current biennium - the two-year period that runs through next June. Meanwhile, it tasked the Sustainability Commission to come up with ideas to help increase Fish and Game's revenue stream going forward.

The 2014 recommendations of the Legislative Sustainability Committee include the following (please note that no bills have been filed as yet):

• Implementation of a program by which canoeists and kayakers contribute to the Department. The Department hopes to work with paddlers and others towards a consensus solution that works for all.

• Authorizing the Executive Director, with the consent of the Fish and Game Commission, to set all license fees. Currently, most Fish and Game license fees are set by the Legislature.

• Changing the free resident license for those age 68 and older to an annual fee of $10 for a hunting or fishing license, or $20 for a combo license (currently free; current over-68 license holders would be grandfathered in; would provide the Department with more accurate data on participation; could raise a potential of $60,000 annually.)

"These changes and more are needed," said Normandeau. "It will take about $3 million a year in additional revenue for us to be able to maintain the current level of services the public expects. These ideas would be a start. But keep in mind that even if legislation is filed and the bills pass in the 2015 session, they would not be implemented until calendar year 2016 (after the start of the 2016-17 biennium). Fish and Game is solvent through June of 2015, but we will be looking to the Legislature to help address the deficit to keep the Department operating until these proposals can be implemented."

What's at stake are the services people across the state count on the Fish and Game Department to provide, from managing wildlife populations to rescuing hikers, stocking fish, and building boat ramps.

"It takes financial resources for the Fish and Game Department to do its job properly," said Normandeau. "The citizens of New Hampshire care deeply about the state's fish and wildlife, land conservation, and access to public waters. Fish and Game is the agency that protects and maintains these valued resources, which not only have significant intrinsic value in their own right, but are a powerful economic engine for New Hampshire." He explained that hunting, fishing, and wildlife watching contribute $550 million annually to the state's economy.

"Given our mandate to conserve the state's fish, wildlife and marine resources and their habitats, as a public trust, we have a responsibility to support the initiatives the Legislature is presenting," said Normandeau. "I honestly believe that most people who enjoy New Hampshire's outdoors and value our quality of life are willing to do their part. Let's focus our energies on finding a solution together."

Learn more about Fish and Game's funding situation, and how you can help, at www.wildnh.com/funding.