House Finance reviews Alaska Department of Fish and Game FY26 budget; subsistence director post, surveys and vessel maintenance highlighted

The Alaska House Finance Committee on Feb. 24 heard an FY26 budget overview from the Department of Fish and Game that outlined requests to restore stock-assessment projects, add maintenance funding for vessels and aircraft, and finalize the hire of a subsistence director the department says it has funded but not yet filled.

The departmentpresentation, led by Commissioner Doug Vincent Lang and Administrative Services Director Bonnie Jensen, put new and restored funding at the center of the request. "This year's budget has no reduction in services as a result of the proposed budget," Lang told the committee, and he described new money for vessel and aircraft maintenance, surveys and fisheries enhancement activities.

Why it matters: committee members pressed the department on where budgeted dollars are held, how long the subsistence director post has been vacant and which monitoring and research projects would stop without restored funds. Several questions also focused on how federal grants and the state's dedicated fish-and-game fund interact with the department's priorities.

Lang told the committee the department is "very close to" making a job offer to fill the subsistence director role after the legislature added funding for that position in the current fiscal year; he said the salary for the division director position is about $145,000. He also said he has been performing many duties of the subsistence director and estimated "at least probably 30% of my time" has involved subsistence issues since the post has been vacant.

On funding sources and line items, Director Jensen said the governor's FY26 request increases unrestricted general fund by roughly $1.4 million, federal authority by about $1.0 million, and fish-and-game fund authority by about $750,000; she identified an approximately $8 million increase in interagency receipt authority tied to new facility maintenance components that will let Administrative Services accept rental payments from divisions and pay facility rent centrally.

Key operating and capital items identified in the presentation:

- Surveys and assessments: The department requested $716,000 in general funds to restore a set of stock-assessment and survey projects that were cut last year; Lang warned that without the increment projects such as the Judd Lake, Prince William Sound trawl survey, Lower Yukon test fishery and others would end or be reduced.

- Vessel and aircraft maintenance: Commercial Fisheries asked for a $450,000 one-time unrestricted general fund increment for research vessel, vehicle and aircraft maintenance; the department said it operates six research vessels and five aircraft and contracts maintenance for many of those assets.

- Genetics lab equipment: A one-time request of $175,000 in fish-and-game funds to replace aged equipment used for in-season genetic stock identification.

- Marine science capital: A multi-year capital push for the marine science program, including continued funding for the research vessel RV Equinox and expanded nearshore marine sampling. The commissioner said the largest year in the capital request is about $5.6 million UGF and the overall capital ask is just under $22 million.

- Hatcheries and enhancement: Anchorage and Fairbanks hatchery components seek federal and fish-and-game fund authority ($100,000 each) to maintain enhancement activities and provide match for federal grants.

- Division-specific requests: The Division of Subsistence sought $100,000 in statutory designated program receipt authority for mission-critical projects (Yukon and Prince William Sound, in partnership with NPRB). The Division of Wildlife Conservation asked for $217,000 in fish-and-game fund authority for maintenance of aircraft and vehicles and $112,000 UGF for a biologist to implement guide-concession permit work tied to SB 189.

Committee members asked for follow-up details on several items, including a breakdown of the roughly $1.4 million UGF increase (Jensen said that figure reflects salary, retirement, and health insurance adjustments across about 1,440 PCNs), the composition of the $8 million interagency receipts change, and the list of specific surveys funded by the restored $716,000.

Policy and authority issues raised: Representatives repeatedly raised the difference between state and federal authority over subsistence management. Lang said the Division of Subsistence is statutorily defined as a research division (citing Alaska statute 16.05.094) that collects scientific information to inform boards but does not itself set seasons, and he noted that federal control of marine mammals through the Marine Mammal Protection Act and federal authority over some rivers can limit state management in parts of the Yukon and Kuskokwim systems. He said the department is pursuing legal and intergovernmental avenues and has engaged other states and Department of Law on issues where the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Endangered Species Act and federal management intersect.

Subsistence, access and enforcement: Committee members from rural districts pressed the department about short openings, seasonality and access problems that affect subsistence users. Lang described options the Board of Game and Board of Fisheries can consider (for example, proposals to provide preferential access to local residents) and reiterated that "you can always take an animal in defense of life and property;" he added that meat taken under that standard must be surrendered to officers and typically is redistributed to local food programs. Members asked the department to better integrate traditional knowledge and timing concerns into management planning.

Other administrative topics: Jensen summarized staffing trends and vacancy patterns, noting that many seasonal positions drive vacancy rates and that the department has trouble filling IT analyst and certain specialized roles. Lang said the department is selectively permitting telework for some specialized positions to retain staff while attempting to bring most employees back to offices.

What the department will provide: Lang and Jensen agreed to provide the committee with additional detail on the insurance/salary split in the $1.4 million figure, a list of the specific assessment projects to be restored by the $716,000, and follow-up on telework counts and other recruitment metrics.

The committee did not vote on any items during the hearing. The meeting concluded after roughly 97 minutes of testimony and questioning; committee co-chair Justin Josephson adjourned the session at 3:13 p.m.