Fish and Game tells new committee members how divisions, grants and hatcheries support hunting, fishing and search-and-rescue

Representative James Spillane, chair of the House Fish and Game and Marine Resources Committee, opened the orientation by asking department leaders to describe the functions of their divisions and the agency’s priorities.

The department told the committee it manages a broad mix of conservation, licensing and enforcement work that relies heavily on federal grants and long-standing habitat-fee revenue. Kathy Labonte, chief of the business division, said her office manages licensing, accounting, fleet maintenance and federal grant reporting and that the department processes roughly $8 million to $11 million a year in federal grant reimbursements and oversees about 350 license agents statewide.

Randy Curtis, the department’s federal-aid administrator, said federal programs provide a large share of Fish and Game funding. “In most years about 75% of all of that federal revenue comes from just two programs: the wildlife restoration program and the Sport Fish Restoration program,” he told the committee, referring to Pittman-Robertson and Dingell-Johnson funding streams.

Division chiefs outlined operations and staffing. Dan Bergeron, wildlife division chief, said his unit manages game species, non-game and endangered species, and roughly 60,000 acres of Fish and Game properties. Diane Timmons, chief of inland fisheries, described modernization work at the New Hampton hatchery — an ARPA-funded project that will more than double production at that location and improve filtration to meet NPDES permit limits — and said the state’s hatcheries face substantial infrastructure costs.

Nicola Whitley, public affairs division chair, described the department’s outreach, publications and volunteer network; Deirdre Grimes outlined HR duties and said Fish and Game employs about 225 people; and Mike Dion, environmental review coordinator, described his role assessing projects including bridges, culverts, energy and aquatic herbicide permits.

Colonel Kevin Jordan, head of the law enforcement division, told legislators that the division currently fields roughly 38 officers in the field — well under its authorized 48 positions — and is actively recruiting. He described the division’s broad responsibilities: enforcement of hunting, fishing and OHRV laws; coastal and marine enforcement in partnership with NOAA; and statewide search-and-rescue leadership. Jordan detailed specialized teams and equipment maintained by the division, including a certified dive team, an airboat rescue team, a K-9 evidence and search program, side-scan sonar capability and a new trailer to fill diving tanks at scenes. He said those specialized teams have been integral to several complex rescues and cold-case recoveries.

Jordan also described the HikeSafe card, a voluntary $25 membership that funds search-and-rescue work. He said sales in the most recent year totaled roughly $300,000 and that cardholders have been among those helped in recent survival rescues on Mount Washington.

Commission representatives introduced themselves and described their roles. Ray Green, chair of the Fish and Game Commission, said commissioners represent the public and serve as liaisons with the director and with the department. Several commissioners noted that they do not receive substantial pay and serve as volunteers.

Why it matters: Committee members heard that Fish and Game’s operations rest on a mix of license fees, federal grants and dedicated habitat fees; that hatchery infrastructure and freshwater fisheries have distinct funding constraints; and that law enforcement is understaffed but operates a wide array of technical, search-and-rescue and marine enforcement capabilities. Several members pressed for details on staffing, funding and timelines for priorities such as OHRV online registration (the department said it remains on track for an online OHRV registration rollout in September 2025) and hatchery modernization work already under way at New Hampton.

Looking ahead: Department leaders said they will provide the committee with follow-ups on requested items, including a detailed inventory of Fish and Game equipment and a breakdown of how the agency’s land holdings provide public water access and habitat benefits. Several committee members signaled interest in next-session bills on enforcement penalties and on agency licensing rules.