Fast forward to 53:30

If you can keep watching without cringing at least go look at how it ends at 1:10.

http://www.tvw.org/watch/?eventID=2017011402

Yikes.

UMsworth...

Good times.

we're screwed...

Braun is a prick.

He was obviously talking about comments on the fee increase (nothing positive) and Unsworth was talking about the comments received during their statewide "listening sessions", pre-increase. Braun obviously has a hard*n for the Dept. Not that most of you don't....

However, I agree that Unsworth came off horribly unprepared and goofy.

SOS

I'm think'n that Unsworth got told "don't come here and try to blow smoke up our butts".........your surveys clearly show the opposite of what you telling us today !!!!!!!!

When I worked for the State I got told more than once "Put your WANTS in one hand and sh!t in the other, see what you have the most of"

OUCH!

That was embarrassing!

A Director of a Department who has the responsibility to manage OUR public resources, who goes before a Senate committee and does such a poor job of presenting his case should not get the sympathy of the citizens, he should be run out of town!

Is there any question WHY our fisheries are spiraling down the $hithole and the Tribes are running the show?

My sympathies go out to the poor staff at WDFW that are busting their humps trying to make sense out of a Department who's leadership is just plain incompetent.

That was not his finest moment.

It's now perfectly clear a change in direction is desperately needed at the helm of WDFW. The fish rots from the head down--and the decay is overwhelmingly obvious. An alarming budget deficit, inability to deal effectively with the Tribes, extremely low morale amongst enforcement agents and biologists in the field, Commissioners lacking cohesion and common purpose, license and tag fees forcing many off the water and out of the wild, total mismanagement of the Willapa Bay potential...and a citadel in Olympia where most employees look over their shoulders to anticipate the next edict from above, followed by taking cover in their cubicles. Public meetings where transparency is reciting the same thing printed in handouts, not hearing or seeing what actually transpires at NOF or "extremely sensitive" Tribal confabs...and above all else...absolutely no incentive or impetus to make the fisheries a level playing field for all, while creating a sustainable yield salmon fishery. How much more? How much longer? The last fish will soon be out there somewhere. Bring Joe Stohr into play, and give him a fighting chance to turn things around before it's beyond all hope.

WOW.......

That looked pretty bad, alright.

Frustrated as I am, I feel for the guy. Realistically, the ones sitting on their high perches and slinging the arrows are the ones responsible for the current state of our fisheries, because recent legislative votes indicate that a vast majority of our senators and reps are backing tribal interests that conflict with ours.

The way Unsworth stammered through his spiel made it obvious to me that he didn't believe in the message he was tasked with delivering any more than the committee did. The facts are that, in order to provide us with even the status quo level of opportunity, WDFW is going to need more money, yet in the wake of last year's NOF debacle and the loss of opportunity it left behind, seeking that money through fee increases (the only avenue they really have) is an indefensible position. Due largely to circumstances beyond his control, his head is squarely on the chopping block, and it may be the first head to roll in the (overdue) shakeup coming WDFW's way. (I sincerely hope it's management that gets cut; not the people on the ground doing the best work they can, but I strongly suspect otherwise.)

Budgets must be balanced, so cuts are coming, which can only be bad news for hunters and anglers. The next biennium doesn't hold much promise for anything but more lost opportunity in the sporting community, but at least we won't be asked to pay more to receive our less (this year).

Does anyone see any hope for a positive outcome here? If so, I could use some good news....

So I watched it again and you know if CC when he worked for the agency had let his boss go into a hearing as unprepared as the Director was hell to pay comes to mind. For whatever reason the Director was running with a presentation that had been prepared for him that was just a standard WDF&W roll out. Standard agency slant that has worked in the past but the thing is the little dust up with the senate is two years old. Remember the we used up reserves bit?

So round two but I do not know enough to fine tune a argument pro or con around it. For the senate bit the agency always operates in a emergency mode moving from issue to issue. Thing is government is system oriented. By that I mean go clear through a process ( NOF as a example ) terrible results, crap flying but in the end if the process worked fine regardless of the outcome. Private sector is results orientated and whatever your process if the end result was a product incomplete or non marketable your history in a NY minute.

Two different standards & two different outcomes which still work as long as you can afford it. That is the rub as WDF&W cannot function as it has in the past going forward and they have zero and I mean zero idea of how to be results orientated.

The link just provides TVW, not the hearing in question. How do I find the hearing that Paker refers too?

It's a direct link to the specific hearing, SG.

Mebbe a problem with your browser?

After watching that, I worry a lot more about the commission delegating the negotiations over non-concurrence in the CR Policy solely to the director.

Why are the tribes running the show? Not because of the Director or the Commission! While WDFW certainly has its issues the Leadership Issue which Sen. Pearson opined it is my view that that problem starts at the top - meaning Federal. And then there is the Governor and State legislature which further constrains the Commission and Department.

So, let's hold the Commission and Director accountable for what is within their purview - and not for perceived failures over which they have little or no control.

And let's also continue to push those in a position of power for appropriate changes both in financing and relationships with the tribes.

I don't know if I want to laugh or cry after watching that. Wow that was quite the beat down at the end...it was like a dad catching his son for lying and belittling him in front of all his friends to teach him a lesson.

Sigh...

BD

I think this is called "cringe comedy".

Pretty poorly done by all involved. And I include the senator who just couldn't wait to humiliate unsworth. But yeah, unsworth didn't help matters by crapping the bed.

I am no policy expert...but it seems like WDFW is caught in a catch-22 here.

those W&M clowns who hold the purse strings are on the up side of the exploding population (i.e. the increased tax base), whereas WDFW is on the down side. The rapid pace development degrades the salmon habitat even more.

Thank you Larry,

You and I have agreed on many points and I respect your opinion, on this though, we have a difference of perspective:

It IS the Directors responsibility to manage the resource. If it fails, it is ultimately his failure. If he does not have the tools to effectively do his job, or is in need of assistance to correct some issues that impact his ability to responsibly manage, then it is HIS responsibility to reach out and seek that assistance. Are the Feds needed to correct the permitting issue which gives the Tribes leverage in the NOF process, yes. Is it the Directors responsibility to get federal assistance by notifying the appropriate departments, yes.

An effective leader stands up for what he believes, says what he means, and means what he says.

For example: Director Unsworth stated publicly that he supported open NOF meetings, yet what did he do to try to get that accomplished? He allowed the Tribes to declare the meetings Gov't to Gov't, without any challenge at all. Further, he put out a public relations statement arguing FOR the Tribes position by saying "These government-to-government meetings must occur for fishing seasons to be set." It is HIS FAILURE to find a solution to the permitting problem that makes it a "MUST" we agree with what the Tribes want!

I can go on and on about failed accountability, failed enforcement, etc. It is clear, there is a lack of competent leadership. Leadership that will stand up for whats right!

Simply saying a leader is not to blame for his failures contradicts the meaning of leader. What an effective Department Head does is look for and works for solutions, not makes excuses that it's not his fault.

I agree, he is the head of a department that in many ways is a mire of agendas, influences, personalities and political end games, but that's what he was appointed to manage. Failing to do so, and looking for excuses is not leadership. At least not the leadership we need to fix the problems. We need a Director that will have the integrity to stand up. Seek the resources and assistance needed to make the changes, and let us all know when things aren't looking good so we can all work together to save our fish.