April Game Commission Re-cap

The New Mexico State Game Commission held their first fully virtual meeting today. The agenda was rather routine which was probably the best way to begin the experiment of hosting a successful public meeting that is 100% virtual. If a member of the public wanted to provide comment during the meeting, they needed to pre-register with the Dept. so that the Dept. could facilitate participation on a virtual platform. The meeting went surprisingly well and our hats off to Lance Cherry (NMDGF Chief of Information & Education) for doing a great job managing all the technology ins and outs.
 
FINAL HEARING ON AMENDMENTS TO THE HUNTING AND FISHING MANNER AND METHOD RULE
 
The Department proposed and the Commission approved to delete Subsections DD and EE in the Hunting and Fishing Manner and Method Rule to prohibit licensed trappers and cougar hunters from using traps and foot snares to harvest cougars. The proposed deletion from the Manner and Method rule was necessary to align with the new Bear and Cougar Rule. In November 2019, the State Game Commission passed a new Bear and Cougar rule (which was effective April 1, 2020) which prohibits using traps or foot snares to harvest cougar.  
 
SUBSEQUENT DISCUSSION ON THE MIGRATORY BIRD RULE
 
Dept. Wildlife Chief Stewart Liley provided a presentation on the Migratory Bird Rule. The rule is amended annually, ensuring compliance with Flyway recommendations and Federal guidelines. In New Mexico, season selections and bag limits are determined in conjunction with the Central and Pacific Flyways and the
USFWS. The Dept. is considering making the following changes to the Migratory Bird Rule for the 2020-2021 season. If you would like to provide comment on this item please send an email to DGF-Waterfowl@state.nm.us
 
Season selections and bag limits are determined in conjunction with the US Fish and Wildlife Service working through the Central and Pacific Flyway Councils. Please note that seasons are not considered final until they have been published in the Federal Register. Proposed amendments for the 2020–21 season include:
• Changes to regular waterfowl season dates TBA, based on public comment and calendar dates
• Possible changes to sandhill crane allocation, based on fall population data
• Bag limit for northern pintail to remain at 1 per USFWS regulatory framework
• Move youth crane hunt to November
 
Proposed Central Flyway Seasons. Includes falconry, youth waterfowl days, and a 9-day September teal season.
 
Species                                
Ducks and Mergansers:    
North Zone          Oct. 10- Jan. 13
South Zone          Oct. 28- Jan. 31
Geese:
Dark Geese          
MRGV                Dec. 19- Jan. 31
Rest of State        Oct. 17- Jan. 31
Light Geese         
North and South Oct. 17- Jan. 31

Proposed Pacific Flyway Seasons. Includes falconry and youth waterfowl days.

Species                                
Ducks and Mergansers:    
North and South  Oct. 17- Jan. 31
Scaup                                
North and South  Oct. 17- Jan. 2
All Geese:                        
North 1                 Sept. 19- Oct
North 2                 Nov. 2- Jan. 31
South                    Oct. 17- Jan. 31

COMMISSION BUSINESS
 
In an effort to increase transparency among the Commissioners Chairwoman Hickey proposed establishing several work groups to facilitate collaboration between department personnel, the Commission, and the public. The committees are to report on their efforts during each Commission Meeting. The definitions and overall intent of each of these committees is still a bit fuzzy, but we should learn more about their role during the Commission meeting in June. Committees are as follows:
 
Finance Committee
Commissioner Salazar-Henry – Chair, Members – Commissioner Bates & Commissioner Vesbach
 
Customer & Stakeholder Committee
Commissioner Cramer – Chair, Member – Commissioner Lopez
 
Organizational Profile Committee
Commissioner Soules – Chair, Members – Commissioner Salazar-Henry & Commissioner Cramer
 
Hunt Structure Committee
Commissioner Vesbach – Chair, Member – Commissioner Salazar-Henry & Commissioner Soules
 
PUBLIC COMMENT
 
The usual suspects provided public comment during the Commission meeting (Brandon Wynn, BCHA, & NMWF). They voiced the same tired comments that they always do; their general opposition to the stream access law and their numerous gripes relating to how the Dept. manages hunter opportunity.
 
Next Commission Meeting – June 19th (Possibly Santa Fe – Possibly Virtual)

COMMISSIONER CONTACT INFORMATION
(You are welcome and encouraged to contact the Commissioners any time to voice your opinion)
 
Sharon Salazar Hickey - Chairwoman
District 4: Santa Fe, Taos, Colfax, Union, Mora, Harding, Quay, San Miguel, Guadalupe and Torrance counties
S.Salazar-Hickey@state.nm.us
 
Roberta Salazar-Henry – Vice Chairwoman
District 2: Catron, Socorro, Grant, Hidalgo, Luna, Sierra and Doña Ana counties
R.Salazar-Henry@state.nm.us
 
Gail Cramer
District 1: Curry, De Baca, Roosevelt, Chaves, Lincoln, Otero, Eddy and Lea counties
Gail.Cramer@state.nm.us
 
Jeremy Vesbach
District 3: San Juan, McKinley, Cibola, Valencia, Sandoval, Los Alamos and Rio Arriba counties
Jeremy.Vesbach@state.nm.us
 
Jimmy Bates
District 5: Bernalillo county.
Jimmy.Bates@state.nm.us
 
David Soules
Appointed At-large – Conservation Position
David.Soules@state.nm.us
 
Tirzio Lopez
Appointed At-large
Tirzio.Lopez@state.nm.us