It has been a while since any news about funding for Reiter Ponds has been posted. Below is a message sent out by Bob Everitt, Regional Director from WDFW Region 4. Apparently the message below supersedes Senator Stevens Bill for funding Reiter. I guess, bottom line is that funding for Reiter is secured through June 2001. After June 2001?? At this time it will be up to WDFW to include Reiter in their future budget requests to the Legislature. In short, I guess we, the recreational community and concerned people within WDFW were successful in making WDFW and the Legislature realize how important the Reiter Ponds steelhead rearing facility is to the recreational community.
Please be watching for bulletins concerning volunteer fin-clipping possibilities in the future. A huge thanks is owed to all of you who have helped in saving this valuable facility. Please see Mr. Everitt's statement below.

Thanks again for everyone's efforts on behalf of Reiter.

Gary Bee
President of the Sky Valley Chapter of Trout Unlimited.
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I'm sure you've all heard how the Reiter Ponds funding issue was finally resolved during the legislature's recent session. In case not I thought I'd provide a brief summary.

The legislature has recently adopted the supplemental budget which included proviso language for Reiter Ponds (which requires the agency to fund the facility for the remainder of the biennium---through June 2001). Language in the budget directs the Department to, at a minimum, operate Reiter Ponds at fiscal year 2000 production levels. In a dollar amount this equates to $130,000 per year. No new money was provided for this purpose, so the agency will use existing program funds to accommodate this budget need. The details on how that will be accomplished is still being worked out as we sort through all the supplemental budget direction.

It appears to me that our work here is down for now. Please accept my thanks for the time, interest and energy you committed to this issue. If I can answer any of your questions or provide additional information, please feel free to contact me via E-mail or by phone at 425-775-1311, ext. 118.

Bob Everitt
Regional Director

Thank you for providing these updates. Funding through June 2001 means that this summers steelhead will be collected, raised, and released. It sounds like funding for next summer and subsequent summer runs has not been resolved so it would be particularly helpful to get the latest info as you here it. It looks like we will have to get active pretty soon again.

Again thanks for keeping an eye on this and reporting it to the board.