November 9, 1999

I am requesting this Board submit two names for each of the current openings on the Board of Wildlife Commissioners. Before I give you a brief history on these individuals, I would like to give each of you a copy of a newspaper article showing Governor Guinn is in favor of term limits for state boards. This is good news for the sportsman because the sooner we rid the board of Governor Miller's dismal appointments to the Wildlife Commission, the better off sportsmen will be.

Currently, one third of our wildlife commissioners had not attended a county Advisory Board or Wildlife Commission meeting before their appointments to the Wildlife Commission. Time has proven these individuals have not been good representatives. Thank God Mahlon Brown is not still on the commission or almost half of them would be in this )category. By the way, has anyone seen former chairman Mahlon Brown attend a meeting since his departure from the Wildlife Commission? So much for caring about sportsmen's concerns.

All four of these applicants have three things in common. First, they have all attended Wildlife Commission and Advisory Board meetings. As stated, this is something that many of your current Wildlife Commissioners did not do prior to their appointment to the Wildlife Commission. In addition, by attending these meetings they have the knowledge to do a good job unlike some of the current Wildlife commissioners. And finally, none of them gave a big fat political contribution to buy their way onto the Commission like a certain member of the current Wildlife Commission.

1 will start out with the farmer's position. Jim Ornellas has been in Nevada since 1943 and has lived in farming communities for the last 46 years. Jim was ahead of his time in realizing twenty years ago that the

/mountain lion was going to decimate our deer herds. Jim is a wealth of knowledge on predators and currently this is his job on a 450 acre farm in Gardnerville. Jim

has been attending Wildlife Commission and County Advisory Board meetings for many, many years. The other farmer is Eric Olsen who lives in Fallen. He has attended local wildlife advisory board meetings. Gee, that's different. In addition, hunters currently harvest turkey, quail, dove and waterfowl on his farm. This is unlike current Wildlife Commission member Merv Matorian who restricted access to hunters. I will explain about this later.

The first sportsman I would like to nominate is Brad Quilici, forty seven years old, born and raised in Lovelock. A Pershing County Advisory Board member from 1975 to 78 and presently chairman of the Pershing County Advisory Board. Here is another person who has had experience attending meetings involving the issues facing the Wildlife Commission. And most important of all, is his concern about the direction of the Nevada Division of Wildlife. The next person I would like to nominate is Roger Heath. Roger was an Advisory Board member and chairman of Carson County Advisory Board from 1994 to 1999. In addition, he has testified at the Nevada State Legislature for sportsmen's and wildlife issues. Roger has a very impressive resume and would represent sportsmen well.

I have personally spoken to all of these except Eric Olsen and I had a representative of HUNTER'S ALERT go to Fallon and interview him personally.

I would appreciate this board's consideration of all four of these qualified individuals to be submitted to the Governor for the current openings. Thank you. Are there any questions?

I would like to make a comment about Jelindo Tiberti's recommendation that Merv Matorian be reappointed. Commissioner Merv Matorian served as secretary/treasurer of a subdivision called Wellington-Crescent, west of Carson City. While serving in this capacity, Commissioner Matorian wanted to deny hunters access to Ash Canyon. This

was done even as he was also serving as a sportsmen's representative on the Wildlife Commission. This is how Merv Matorian has represented sportsmen during his tenure.

But Commissioner Matorian showed his true colors and I would like to read from an article printed in the Elko Daily Free Press, Dec. 19, 1997. "Nevada Department of Wildlife Willie Molini announced this week he was ending his long reign of mismanagement next September. That's the good news. The bad news is that things won't get any better as long as the corrupt powerbrokers currently in office are allowed to pick his successor. That sad fact was made clear this week when Nevada Wildlife Commissioner Merv Matorian quickly dismissed requests from sportsmen's groups to be included in the search for a new director.

Gerry Lent of the Nevada Hunters Association pleaded, 'All sportsmen should have a say in who directs their funds.' But Matorian shot back, 'It's not going to happen. Lent wants to stick his nose into everything, but this is a government function'.

Matorian's arrogant reply typifies the current administration that has allowed Nevada's hunting opportunities to deteriorate to miserable levels. Now the politicians are telling the sportsmen that the selection of a director for a department totally funded through taxes they pay is none of their business—it's a 'government function'."

The Elko Daily Free Press stated this magnificently. Corrupt power brokers did choose the new administrator and Matorian did not want the sportsmen involved. And current Wildlife Commissioner Jelindo Tiberti has the gall to write this Board and ask for an endorsement for Merv Matorian??? This says it all, not only about Commissioner Matorian but also about Commissioner Tiberti.

 By Cecil Fredi