That was my first thought. Specifically for springers. I couldn't believe that ID isn't involved in any of the springer allocation process when they are the ones most in touch with escapement in individual systems.

ID was not involved because the agreement brokered by the Feds was WA and OR. They were both commercially fishing there, so the agreement was between them. You think OR and WA and the Columbia Tribes would voluntarily add a complication such as actually getting fish to ID, especially if they were to be caught in ID. Or, even more scary, if ID wanted to increase escapement of those wild fish. A single fish above the minimum escapement is waste. Plus, it is economic waste to let that chromer color-up.

Things could be changing...
http://wdfw.wa.gov/commission/final_budget_policy_9-4-14.pdf

The last paragraph is interesting:

"The cost of managing and maintaining commercial fisheries has long been funded with general fund revenue. Commercial licenses provide very limited revenues to offset management costs -- roughly 4% of the costs of these fisheries. Unlike sport fishing license revenue, funds from the sale of commercial salmon licenses largely go directly to the state treasury. The sizable reduction in general fund revenue that the Department has experienced over the last two biennia has left it without the financial means to continue providing the existing commercial fisheries the hatchery fish that sustain them. The Director will include in his legislative requests submission a proposal that is designed to raise new revenues from commercial license holders that will help offset the costs of providing commercial salmon fishing opportunities."

Nice to know somebody has been listening.

Too bad they didn't delete the word "help" from the last sentence. That loophole could undermine everything written above it.

It will be nice to meet the new director.

Lets just hope he has the nads to not bend us over and let the "wild fish guys" hump us without lube, like our last Director did!

Fishy

CHINOOK OBSERVER ARTICLE

Observers hope new hire's Idaho experience will have useful parallels in Washington

OLYMPIA — Dr. Jim Unsworth, deputy director of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, was chosen Jan. 10 as the new head of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, replacing Phil Anderson.

“We may have a chance here,” said Tim Hamilton, president of the Twin Harbors Fish & Wildlife Advocacy, which was formed after settling a lawsuit with the fish and wildlife department last January over how salmon fisheries in Grays Harbor and Willapa are managed. He was at the meeting last weekend when the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission decided to hire Unsworth. The commission had interviewed eight candidates, narrowing that list down to four finalists. The commission members discussed the applicants in a closed, or executive, session. When the meeting continued in front of the public, Hamilton said they referred to the applicants as “Candidate A”, etc. “They kept talking about ‘D’ and what their anticipations and hopes for this man were,” Hamilton said. Commissioners said they sought a visionary leader with a strong conservation ethic, sound fiscal-management skills and the expertise to work collaboratively with the commission and the department’s constituents.

The department has come under a lot of fire in recent years, struggling to stay afloat, and, on the coast, weathering various fisheries management-related lawsuits. Hamilton has yet to meet Unsworth but is already hopeful. Based on Unsworth’s work over the last 30 years in Idaho, Hamilton feels Unsworth could bring a wealth of knowledge to a large, complicated state whose fish and wildlife department must juggle everything from coastal fisheries to inland wildlife hunts. “We know where he comes from and what his background is,” Hamilton said. “From my side, he’s real experienced in a state that has handled these things in probably a better way than Washington has been able to do.”

Kurt Beardslee, executive director for the Wild Fish Conservancy, an organization which has also filed and settled lawsuits with WDFW recently, hasn’t met Unsworth yet either, but is encouraged by the new director’s ecological background. “We’ll just have to see,” Beardslee said.

Commissioner confident

“After a thorough nationwide search, we’re confident Jim is the right person to guide the department through the many challenges that lie ahead,” said Miranda Wecker, chair of the commission and a part-time resident of Pacific County. “His solid understanding of natural resource issues and strong leadership skills will be invaluable in the department’s effort to manage and protect the fish and wildlife resources that are so important to the people of this state.” “Everybody is hopeful, extremely hopeful,” Hamilton said. “You get a new face, someone who doesn’t have the baggage. Well, time will tell.”

As director, Unsworth will report to the commission and manage a department with more than 1,600 employees, and a biennial operating budget of $376 million. His annual salary will be $146,500.
Unsworth, 57, has spent more than 30 years in wildlife management with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game and has served as deputy director for the agency since 2008. He previously held several management positions for the department, including wildlife bureau chief and state big game manager.

Unsworth holds a bachelor’s degree in wildlife management from the University of Idaho, a master’s degree in fish and wildlife management from Montana State University and a doctorate in forestry, wildlife and range sciences from the University of Idaho.
“I’m thrilled at this opportunity,” Unsworth said. “I look forward to taking on the many exciting challenges that come with managing fish and wildlife in the state of Washington.” Unsworth and his wife Michele have four adult children. He is an avid hunter and fisher.
Unsworth will replace Anderson, who announced in August he was resigning from his position at the end of 2014. At the commission’s request, he agreed to stay on as the head of the agency until a new director was in place.

“Phil’s enormous dedication to managing Washington’s fish and wildlife will truly be missed,” Wecker said. “As director, he was a tireless worker who successfully guided the department through one of the most difficult times in the history of this state. Under his leadership and with his support, the department made important progress in meeting some very challenging issues. We are extremely grateful for his service and all the contributions he made during his career at WDFW.”

LINK: http://www.chinookobserver.com/co/northw...itive-reactions

Nice one, Rivrguy!

Fish on...

Todd

Last guy Oregon hired from Idaho lasted 18 months.

There is one factor that all people in that job have to deal with and that is an unreasonable tribal culture that blames, blocks and finger points at everyone but themselves. As long as they have a hand in things reason will be fleeting. This is a problem most state directors don't have to deal with and hopefully he knows what he's getting in to.

My apologies to everyone. I found out this evening that the guy I thought was Jim Unsworth was not he. It was another person and not one of the finalists. Jim was not in the room or in town when the vote was taken.

Thank you....

It was good to see a candidate selected by the commission from outside WDFW instead of rewarding the top job to a hard-line commercial (cowboy or indian) ally like a Ron Warren or others in the department. Looking outside the department should be a no-brainer in the future if WDFW hierarchy panders to continued support of unrealistic commercial demands

It looks like the new director is highly qualified and it will be interesting to see how/if he will mold the WDFW into a more recreation friendly unit considering the continual increase in license fees that support a continued higher percent of the department budget due to biennium cuts.

A wholesale cleaning/ rearrangement of department personnel should be in order.