January 21,2001

PETE: Good morning Las Vegas and all of our neighboring states. This is the Peter Liakopoulos show and my guest for today is Cecil Fredi, founder and president of HUNTER S ALERT. Welcome aboard, Cecil.

CECIL: Thanks, Pete. It s a pleasure to be here. Your show is a one-of-a-kind, keeping the sportsmen informed. That is what HUNTER S ALERT does with its newsletter.

PETE: You re right. There are many sportsmen s organizations that do good things for game birds and animals but few organizations inform or support hunters. I know HUNTER S ALERT has a bill in the upcoming legislative session and we want to discuss that today. But what has HUNTER S ALERT done in the past legislative sessions? What have they accomplished?

CECIL: Next month will be the start of HUNTER S ALERT S sixth legislative session. After this session is over, that will mean 12 years of hard work for sportsmen in Nevada. What have we accomplished? Well, Pete, here arc a few of our accomplishments. We were able to take the Wildlife Commission from a board of 7 with 2 sportsmen s representatives to a board of 9 with 5 sportsmen s representatives. These 5 sportsmen must now have some qualifications before they can be appointed. It took us 2 sessions to completely remove the big game tag draw from the Nevada Division of Wildlife. Hunters now have a fair big game tag draw. Seasons, dates and policies regarding wildlife must be set using sound scientific knowledge. This prevents someone who doesn t believe a dog should be used for bird hunting to attempt to outlaw that use.

PETE: That’s quite a few accomplishments. I know I worked last session to get SB211 passed. And to get a bill passed, it takes a lot of time and money. I know that last session you had the support of Nevada Hunters Association. Has anyone else come aboard to support this upcoming bill?

CECIL: There is some really good news in this area. Both Safari Club International Chapters here in Las Vegas and the Nevada State Rifle and Pistol Association have committed to get this bill passed. The Nevada State Rifle and Pistol Association is the largest sportsmen s organization in the state.

PETE: 1 know you attended their annual officers meeting last week in Reno and you were appointed as one of their directors. How did the meeting go?

CECIL: After I presented them with the five parts of the bill, I asked them for three things and they wholeheartedly endorsed it. I asked them to put the word out on their internet site. 1 asked them to write letters to the northern senators and assemblypeople and to have some bodies there for some strong lobbying. I am very grateful to have support like this.

PETE: Well, you said this bill had five parts and we will go through each one of them individually but a lot of this bill is nothing new. Explain that.

CECIL: In most parts of this bill we are not reinventing the wheel or going into uncharted waters. In a lot of cases, we are just going back to what we originally had. In the past, some of what we have done has not worked. We have tried certain things and it did not necessarily work out for the best. It is now time to go back to what was working before.

PETE: Well, let s get into those five things and start off with the toughest one first. And that is reclassifying the mountain lion back to its original predator status. Why should this be done?

Continued from page 8. CECIL: This part will probably draw the most criticism. But prior to 1965, the mountain lion in the state of Nevada was a predator. It was made a big game animal that year and a tag was required in 1968 so that the Department of Fish and Game could collect a fee for selling mountain lion tags.

PETE: Well, that plan didn t work.

CECIL: It backfired because mountain lion tags produce very little revenue and the loss of our deer by increased lion numbers has cost the agency millions of dollars. In the last thirty years, we have averaged selling 386 lion tags a year compared to 31, 264 deer tags a year. Pete, you were at the December Wildlife Commission meeting and an NDOW biologist stated that we have not had drought in years, we have not had severe winters and our deer are still not rebounding. This leaves only one K problem and that is predators. A survey 'conducted by the Board of Wildlife Commissioners stated that nearly two thirds of the hunters agree that more needs to be done to control predators such as mountain lions and coyotes. As I said, we are not reinventing the wheel as Texas has had the mountain lion on predator status for years.

PETE: What effect has the mountain lion had on our sheep population?

CECIL: The lion has not only significantly reduced our deer population but in the Sheep Mountain Range where hunters were allowed 44 sheep permits, we are now allowed 4. When the lions have completely decimated the sheep there, they will move on to the Muddy and Mormon Ranges and nothing will be able to be done about it. Pete, right now, the lions can kill all the deer and sheep that they want and you can do nothing about it.

PETE: Are there more lions in the state now?

CECIL: In 1976, the estimated lion population was between 375 and 400

lions. By the way, Pete, when they were at this number, they were not considered endangered. Current estimates are between 3,200 and 5,000. We need to get back to that lower number to bring back our deer herds and keep our sheep from going the way the California desert bighorn sheep went.

PETE: That s right. Because of lion predation, in April 1999, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service assigned California s sheep Emergency Endangered Status. Cecil, you said that this part of the bill will draw the most criticism. Why?

CECIL: The biggest criticism will be that by returning the mountain lion to a predator status, they will be completely wiped out. This is simply not true. There are literally thousands and thousands of coyotes in Nevada. They are a predator status and they are certainly not being wiped out! In addition, they are far more accessible and for the most part the only way a lion can be killed is with the use of dogs. We need the ability to control lion numbers and that cannot be done while it is classified as a game animal. Thousands of lion permits could be issued in Clark County and the lion harvest would not increase. To prove this, in 1997-98, the Wildlife Commissioners approved making Clark County year-round lion hunting. How many lions were killed in 1999-2000? Zero. It has had no effect.

PETE: Time has proven that making the mountain lion a big game animal has been detrimental. Not only has it had a negative effect on our deer and sheep but all those lost revenues that could have gone back into game programs. To me, the next part is probably just as important, possibly even more important. And that is, to return to a Department of Fish and Game. What does this entail?

CECIL: Once again, we are not reinventing the wheel. In 1979, we went from a Department of Fish and Game to a Department of Wildlife. Then later to a Division of Wildlife. It got worse in 1993 when the Division was consolidated under the umbrella of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. It

went to a Department of Wildlife because the agency was to get more funding from the General Fund. This did not happen. Sportsmen still fund 95% of this agency. The real disaster was when the Nevada Division of Wildlife was one of the ten agencies under one boss. There is not a person alive who can properly manage ten state agencies with efficiency. This person did not have the time to scrutinize each agency. Therefore, the head of the agency did not have a boss because of this cumbersome structure. Currently the Wildlife commissioners set policy but they have no enforcement power to make sure that policy is carried out. A new structure is needed to alleviate this.

PETE: What is the organizational structure in the bill?

CECIL: It starts out naturally with the governor. The line then goes down to the nine member Wildlife Commission and from there to the Nevada Department of Fish and Game.

PETE: Do other states have this?

CECIL: Yes. Arizona has a structure like this. I may be wrong but I believe that their Wildlife Commissioners can actually fire the head of the Fish and Game. In our bill, the governor has that authority.

PETE: You keep saying that we are not reinventing the wheel. In the last session, Assembly Bill 103 pulled the Division of Agriculture from the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. It appears that was another state agency that did not work out under consolidation. How else has this consolidation hurt the sportsmen?

CECIL: Well, sportsmen s money paid for a helicopter to do game counts. That chopper is now being shared with the Forestry Division. Game counts are extremely important to gather data for seasons, dates and limits. In addition, the timing is also critical when game counts should be done. If both divisions needed a chopper at the same time, obviously a forest fire would take precedence over

game counts.

PETE: Again, it appears that going through all those structural changes has not been the best for sportsmen s interests. It s really important that we go back to a Department of Fish and Game. The third part is one that is near and dear to my heart. 1 am the first one to believe some serious predator control needs to be done. One of NDOW s excuses for years was that there was no funding available. Address that part of the bill. Cecil.

CECIL: If you return the mountain lion to its original predator status, you have the ability to regulate mountain lion numbers. To regulate, you must have the funding. This part of the bill will give you that funding. Anyone who draws a tag will be assessed an additional $5.00 fee for predator management. This money must, repeat, must be used only for predator management.

PETE: As you and my listeners know, 1 have been attempting to get the Wildlife Commissioners to approve a mule deer/bonus point management program. One part of my program would require some funding. This part of the HUNTER S ALERT bill would accomplish that. Part Four of the bill has to do with reapportionment. What is that all about?

CECIL: Every ten years, a census is taken and reapportionment is enacted. This is merely giving balance to the population whether is on a state or federal level. NRS 501.171 mandates how many wildlife commissioners can come from each county. This needs to be updated. Currently the second largest city in the state does not have a representative on the Wildlife Commission. Clark County has two thirds of the state population but only one third representation on the Wildlife Commission. Clark County has had some of the worst Wildlife commissioners ever appointed. However, Kenny Guinn has appointed some of the best and we feel he

will continue to appoint knowledgeable people to the Wildlife Commission.

PETE: Cecil, you re right about knowledgeable wildlife commissioners. In the few months that Tommy Ford and John Moran have served, there has been a more positive direction and a change in attitude in the Nevada Division of Wildlife. We need some more representation like that from Clark County or like Brad Quilici from Pershing County. What s the last part of the bill?

CECIL: Currently, no one approves the budget of the Nevada Division of Wildlife. We want the budget to be approved by the Wildlife Commission. As we said before, sportsmen fund 95% of this state agency. No one is looking out for where the money is being spent. It just doesn t make any sense to have a state agency with a $20 million budget and no accountability. It just makes good sense for someone to ask questions in this area. We have had this in numerous other bills and NDOW has always been able to get it removed. Doesn t that make one a little suspicious?

PETE: Well, any successful business needs some accounting. This should never be disputed. Well, all five parts of this bill make sense to me. Now, how do we get the bill passed and how can my listeners get involved?

CECIL: A legislative session is like a trial. Both sides present their case and in a trial, the jury makes the decision while our elected officials make the legislative decisions. Legislators have to weigh all the material presented to them. We feel we have a better chance to get this bill passed than the anti s do of stopping it.

PETE: Why do you think so?

CECIL: We are basing our testimony on facts. The anti s base theirs on emotion.

PETE: Then why do the antis win? CECIL: Because the antis will have 50 to

100 people with tears in their eyes and the hunters will have 1 or 2 people standing up for what they believe in.

PETE: How can we change that?

CECIL: Well, if you had a few thousand more like Pete Liakopoulos it would be a slam/dunk. But most sportsmen want someone else to do their fighting for them. They want to get involved when it s too late, when something is taken away from them or an important issue is lost.

PETE: Make it simple. What can sportsmen do to get this bill passed? Give me a 1, 2,3.

CECIL: Number 1: Phone call, or better yet, numerous phone calls all with an 800 number which means very little time and no expense. How s that for simple. Number 2: Write letters to the state senator or assemblyperson who represents your district. Once again, very little time and a total of 68 cents for postage for two letters. And the third thing is to actually testify. You can do that right here in Las Vegas via video monitors. Here again, a little time but no expense. Ideally, we would like to see sportsmen s organizations get involved and follow the 1,2,3 program. There is nothing that will help sportsmen in the state of Nevada more than getting this bill passed. If there is something that will benefit sportsmen and the natural resource any better than this, please inform me and HUNTER S ALERT will be more than happy to lend their support.

PETE: The bill will probably go to the first committee next month. That will be the Senate side Natural Resources. I will let all of my listeners know prior to this, the 800 number and what they should tell their representative. I had great support last session and I believe that there will be even more support this time around.

Hunters in the state of Nevada really need to get behind this bill and see that is passed.