Legislature(2017 - 2018)BUTROVICH 205
03/06/2017 03:30 PM Senate RESOURCES
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Confirmation Hearings: Board of Game | |
| Big Game Commercial Services Board | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
CONFIRMATIONS ADVANCED ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE RESOURCES STANDING COMMITTEE
March 6, 2017
3:30 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Cathy Giessel, Chair
Senator John Coghill, Vice Chair
Senator Natasha von Imhof
Senator Bert Stedman
Senator Shelley Hughes
Senator Kevin Meyer
Senator Bill Wielechowski
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CONFIRMATION HEARINGS
BOARD OF GAME
Ted Spraker
Lawrence van Daele
- CONFIRMATIONS ADVANCED
BIG GAME COMMERCIAL SERVICES BOARD
Adam Trombley
- CONFIRMATION ADVANCED
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
TED SPRAKER
Soldotna, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Appointee to the Board of Game.
LAWRENCE VAN DAELE
Soldotna, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Appointee to the Board of Game.
ADAM TROMBLEY,
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Appointee to the Big Game Commercial
Services Board.
BOB MUMFORD, representing himself
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported Mr. Spraker's and Mr. van Daele's
appointments to the Board of Game, as well as Mr. Trombley's
appointment to the Big Game Commercial Services Board.
MARK RICHARDS, Executive Director
Resident Hunters of Alaska (RHAK)
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported Mr. van Daele's appointment to
the Board of Game.
MICHAEL CRAWFORD, Chairman
Kenai-Soldotna Fish and Game Advisory Committee
Kenai, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported Mr. Spraker's appointment to the
Board of Game.
SAM ROHRER, President
Alaska Professional Hunters Association
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Strongly supported Mr. Spraker's and Mr.
Van Daele's appointments to the Board of Game.
DICK ROHRER, representing himself
Kodiak, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported Mr. van Daele's and Mr. Spraker's
appointments to the Board of Game.
JASON BUNCH, representing himself
Kodiak, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported Mr. van Daele's and Mr. Spraker's
appointments to the Board of Game.
PAUL CHERVENAK, Chairman
Kodiak Fish and Game Advisory Committee
Kodiak, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported both Mr. van Daele's and Mr.
Spraker's appointments to the Board of Game.
DOUG MALONE, representing himself
Homer, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Heavily supported Mr. van Daele's
appointment to the Board of Game.
VIRGIL L. UMPHENOUR, representing himself
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported both Mr. Spraker's and Mr. van
Daele's appointments to the Board of Game.
BRIAN SIMPSON, representing himself
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: He supported Mr. Spraker's and Mr. van
Daele's appointments to the Board of Game. Wanted a more
experienced person than Mr. Trombley on the Big Game Commercial
Services Board.
ACTION NARRATIVE
3:30:33 PM
CHAIR CATHY GIESSEL called the Senate Resources Standing
Committee meeting to order at 3:30 p.m. Present at the call to
order were Senators Stedman, Coghill, Von Imhof, Hughes, Meyer,
Wielechowski, and Chair Giessel.
^CONFIRMATION HEARINGS: BOARD OF GAME
CONFIRMATION HEARINGS: BOARD OF GAME
3:31:01 PM
SENATOR GIESSEL announced the hearing for the Board of
Game appointees and an appointment to the Big Game Commercial
Services Board. She noted a fact sheet from the Board of Game
that says the purpose of the board is conservation and
development of the game resources of the state. This board takes
action in establishing open and closed seasons, setting areas
for the taking of game, setting bag limits, and regulating
methods and means of taking game. The board has an important
role in setting policy and is a regulatory body. Members serve
staggered three-year terms and the board generally meets three
times a year. Occasionally they meet jointly with the Board of
Fisheries. Compensation for members of the board is standard
travel plus per diem in a range of 20 A for regulatory meetings.
3:32:41 PM
TED SPRAKER, appointee to the Board of Game, Soldotna, Alaska,
said he has lived with his wife in Soldotna for many years and
has three grown children. He retired after 28 years as a
wildlife biologist with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game
(ADF&G). His wife works for U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan.
MR. SPRAKER said he was raised in Wyoming and attended the
University in Laramie. He received a Bachelor's degree in
wildlife management in 1970 and a Master's degree in range
management in 1973. His dream career was to move to Alaska as a
wildlife biologist and he was eventually offered a permanent
position with Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) in
1974, providing an opportunity to be involved in a developing
and growing fish and game department. In that capacity he
learned to work with the public, which is important now that he
is on the board.
This will be his sixth and final term on the board if he is
confirmed, Mr. Spraker said. He is currently the chairman. He
has been in the fish and wildlife management business for over
40 years and has thoroughly enjoyed being part of the Board of
Game process and hopes to serve one more term to give what he
can back to the state that has given him and his family so much.
3:37:16 PM
SENATOR COGHILL said he appreciated Mr. Spraker's willingness to
serve on the board. However, he had heard that he pushed a
personal agenda more than other chairs and asked if he could
easily defend that.
MR. SPRAKER replied that he has always tried to listen to the
public and has a strong respect for the advisory committee
process, but he also has strong opinions about conservation and
active management based on good science and solid evidence. He
wasn't sure that that qualifies as a personal opinion. He
believes in getting things done in a timely manner and based on
good science.
SENATOR COGHILL said the two issues that he hears most about are
intensive management and management of Dall sheep and that a lot
of people are saying that conversation is largely ignored by the
board. He wanted to know if that is the case and if it is, is it
a science problem or who speaks the loudest problem. Senator
Coghill asked what his perspective is on these two issues.
3:39:36 PM
MR. SPRAKER answered he has always been a strong supporter of
active management based on good science, and the board has a
good record of supporting good science brought to it by the
department to improve caribou and moose populations, and to
provide for more animals to take for subsistence. He has been
criticized by people who don't support active management. The
Denali buffer was a recent issue that has quite a divergence of
opinion and the board did a good job of dealing with that and
justifying its decisions.
MR. SPRAKER said there is no questions that he played a major
part in some of the sheep management decisions. One issue was to
close the 207 area due to a lot of complaints about people using
aircraft in an unethical manner. He found that about 86 percent
of resident sheep hunters do not use aircraft to spot sheep and
about 14 percent do. There were a lot of complaints about guides
and non-resident clients and so forth taking such a large number
of sheep; probably 60-70 percent of those use aircraft to spot
sheep. He thought it was a good decision, because it levels the
playing field among sheep hunters and addresses the complaint of
competition. He has always said he truly believes that a sheep
can get away from a hunter on the ground, but it can't get away
from a super cub. This proposal promotes good ethics and works
well since it has been implemented according to public comments.
The sheep hunt is now a quality hunt rather than a foot race to
get to the sheep.
SENATOR COGHILL said that was a reasonable solution. He has
heard about the tension between guides - especially out of state
hunters - and in-state hunters, especially from a new group in
the state. Their concern is that the board seems to favor
outside guides. He asked Mr. Spraker to explain what that looks
like from the board's perspective.
MR. SPRAKER said he has heard those criticisms, as well, and in-
state hunters have a priority for some species in Alaska, but
not for sheep. He thinks the board does a good job in making
sure residents have a first shot at game in general and there
are literally hundreds of examples where residents get a benefit
over non-residents. The board in 2007 developed a policy for
dealing with allocation and permits for non-residents, which
really benefits residents. A couple of sheep hunts they have
authorized provide 10 percent of the animals to non-residents.
He said this new group was organized to try to get more benefits
for residents, but the board already does a good job of
providing a substantial amount of opportunity for residents.
3:45:32 PM
SENATOR COGHILL said a drawing is actually a way of weeding out
applicants whereas permitting out-of-state applicants seems to
favor a quota. He asked if there is a difference in quantity for
out-of-state permits or what residents get by either drawing or
other permitting.
MR. SPRAKER explained that he would like to go through the book
with him, but in most cases residents have the benefit. When the
board issues permits to non-residents it looks at the historical
use by non-residents and allocates permits based on that
equation.
Most of the areas have a limited number of animals for non-
residents and a more generous number of permits for residents.
Many times non-residents are on a drawing permit whereas
residents are on a registration hunt, and there are several
cases across the state where resident hunts start five days
earlier than for non-residents, especially for moose. Non-
residents are restricted to 50-inch and four brow-tines. Spiked
or forked moose are not allowed to be taken anywhere in the
state.
SENATOR COGHILL thanked him and said he would be in touch as
things percolate up to his office.
3:48:49 PM
SENATOR HUGHES also thanked him for his service and added that
some things have percolated up to her office, as well. She often
hears it seems like the pie is shrinking on places for good
Alaskans to go to hunt. Access to land is tougher, especially
for people who have been in the state for years and think about
how it was when they were kids.
One of her concerns is the Nelchina Basin community subsistence
harvests and Senator Hughes asked Mr. Spraker to explain why
that is needed. She hears that even the people for which it was
created want to do away with it as well as some folks in her
area.
MR. SPRAKER said he remembers when the regulation book was the
same size as a tide book and agrees that things have really
changed. The demand for harvest has increased along with the
competition. He appreciates that people can't hunt where they
used to. To the second part of her question, the board will
convene a meeting on March 18 in Glennallen on Unit 13 community
subsistence harvest issues. He has reviewed the proposals
several times and a couple of them will lead to quite a bit of
change in that unit. He is concerned about providing a
reasonable number of animals for subsistence. The number of
animals in Unit 13 are there because the department started
active management back in 2004, and it has been very successful.
All the subsistence issues have changed since then and things
are much more positive now. The board uses a term "tier 1-plus,"
which means there are sufficient numbers of animals in the
population to allow for a greater harvest and still sustain the
population. He couldn't predict where the board will go, but in
reading the public and department comments, it seems pretty
clear that the majority of the people - certainly the MatSu
Advisory Committee - would like to do away with the community
subsistence harvests and replace it with something new.
SENATOR HUGHES thanked him for that and noted that Article 8,
Section 3, of the Constitution, says folks have a right to that
game and her understanding is that about 70 percent of the folks
that hunt up there are actually from Big Lake to Palmer, to
Chugiak, to Anchorage, and they rely on that game. Filling a
freezer is really becoming more important now than ever with the
budget difficulties the state is facing.
3:53:39 PM
SENATOR HUGHES asked him to talk about how the Ahtna agreement
with the Department of Interior impacts the board's authority to
manage and allocate game.
MR. SPRAKER replied he isn't familiar with all the details, but
he has looked it over and if it goes too far in letting the
Ahtna Corporation set their own seasons and bag limits on their
lands - and they own over 1 million acres - it could have quite
a profound impact on the board, the ADF&G, and that 70 percent
of the public from the MatSu Valley that hunt there. Those
decisions haven't been finalized yet, and he is paying close
attention.
3:55:24 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL thanked Mr. Spraker for being on line with them
and invited Mr. van Daele, a new appointee, before the
committee. He is replacing a partial term of a member who
resigned and that term would expire at the end of 2018.
LAWRENCE VAN DAELE, appointee to the Board of Game, Soldotna,
Alaska, said he was born into an Air Force family in Okinawa.
His dad was a fighter pilot and they moved every three years or
so. Three things were very consistent in his life: his family,
his church, and the fact that they would go hunting, fishing and
camping wherever they were assigned. His dad had remote
assignments in Galena and King Salmon and would always come home
with stories about Alaska and bays full of King salmon or crab.
When it came time for him to leave the nest, Mr. Van Daele said
he headed toward Alaska. He got a Bachelor degree, a Master's
degree, and a wife in Idaho, and they came to Alaska in 1981
where he worked on version 1 of the Susitna Hydroproject. In the
next 34 years of working as a wildlife biologist for ADF&G he
was stationed in Kodiak, Dillingham, and Anchorage, and they
have selected Kodiak as their home town.
During his time with ADF&G Mr. Van Daele said he had the good
fortune of living in both rural and urban locations working with
elders, both Native and non-Native, and a wide variety of
people. He managed the Round Island Walrus Sanctuary, the
Mulchatna caribou herd, Kodiak brown bears, deer, goats, and a
whole variety of different animals. He worked with the Northern
Forum Brown Bear Workgroup, which took him to Siberia, Sweden,
and Japan where he represented the state and its management
system and often bring them over here to exchange management
system practices. He also wrote a book on the history of Kodiak
bears on the Kodiak Archipelago and earned a PhD on 25 years of
bear research that he did with his colleagues on the management
of Kodiak bears. The last three years of his career he worked as
a regional supervisor for the South Central part of the state,
based in Kodiak but commuting to Anchorage every other week. He
retired in 2015.
3:58:46 PM
MR. VAN DAELE said his wife, Hilary, shifted her profession in
1985 from a biologist to a full time mom. Their son, Matt,
graduated from Kodiak High School and got a Master's degree from
the University of Idaho in Zoology and returned to Kodiak where
he works as a lands manager for a Native Corporation. He has
been elected as an assemblyman with the Kodiak Island Borough
and is becoming a politician.
Since his retirement, Mr. Van Daele said he has worked part time
for Kodiak Native Corporation to help them in developing a bear
viewing program; he has also volunteered for Kodiak Electric
Association in helping them analyze the impacts of expanding the
capacity of their hydro project on bears and other wildlife. He
is the vice chairman of the Kodiak State Parks Citizens'
Advisory Board and helped a friend write a book on photographing
bears, which has just been published and is on the Rebuild the
Bear Committee, a citizens group that is putting up a
commemorative bronze bear statute and several other projects
around home since he retired.
Because of his positions with ADF&G, he has opted to refrain
from having memberships or positions in any organizations
directly impacted by his decisions in working for ADF&G. He
dropped his memberships in the NRA, Ducks Unlimited, and Rocky
Mountain Elk, not because he was opposed to what they were doing
but because he felt that could possibly sway his decisions in
some peoples' minds. However, he is an active member in the
Wildlife Society and the International Bear Association where he
was selected as a co-chair on the North Asian Brown Bear Expert
Team, and many other organizations listed in his resume.
MR. VAN DAELE said when he was asked to put his name in for the
Board of Game, he had to think about it seriously, because he
knows how contentious the position is. But it is an "incredible
honor and an awesome responsibility," because everything they do
is going to impact people's lives. The more he thought about it
the more he realized that Alaska has provided him with an
education, opportunity, and a very secure retirement, and he
would like to offer his talents and services to the board as a
way of giving back to the people of Alaska and the wildlife of
the state.
As a board member, his primary goals will be: 1. food security,
2. economic opportunity (including guiding, tourism, and filling
the freezer), 3. a return of state management, and 4.
revitalizing the trust by all groups in the Board of Game
process. He has seen wide polarization in recent years, and
wishes to reinstate trust and respect for these institutions.
4:03:28 PM
SENATOR COGHILL thanked him and said his work with Alaska
National Interest Land Claims Act (ANILCA) and Native
Corporations will be very valuable. As a biologist, though, one
of the questions that has arisen in his area is about antlerless
moose hunts. He grew up in Nenana, so antlerless moose hunts
were the thing you just didn't do. So, he has a natural
prejudice.
MR. VAN DAELE responded that antlerless moose hunts are an
important management tool. When he managed the moose in
Dillingham they didn't have antlerless hunts, but that is
because they were trying to build up the populations. In certain
times, there are more moose than a range can handle. In that
situation, you have to look at alternative ways to allow the
herd to stay at a stable high population that is sustainable,
but also allow people to get meat in their freezer. The best way
to do that is to take some of the cows.
He knows there is a strong bias against taking cows, because
they are the producers, but it's an easy sell because there are
times when using this tool keeps the population healthy and puts
meat in the freezers. It works the same for brown bears. When he
modeled the Kodiak brown bear for his PhD thesis he found out
that in order to have enough big trophy bears you have to take a
certain portion of the females. Taking some females produces a
healthier population. His opinion was that having the checks and
balances of having an annual reauthorization of antlerless hunts
and forcing the department to prove that these are viable and a
necessary tool is a good way to continue.
SENATOR COGHILL said he would be open to that discussion, but in
his neck of the woods partly the discussion is because some
areas have easy access and others not so easy. However
antlerless moose are authorized within a complete unit, which
distorts the science. He asked if he had been involved in that
discussion.
MR. VAN DAELE said he is very aware of those concerns -
especially from the Laundry House Gang - during a board meeting
in Fairbanks a couple of weeks ago, but at this point he didn't
have any answers.
SENATOR COGHILL said the Interior has places with huge black
bear populations that don't have a natural predation. And yet
some areas don't have as many, and asked if he had done any
study on the movement and over-population of those black bear.
MR. VAN DAELE answered no, but he is familiar with what has been
done. Last week the board specially asked the department how
they will spend some of the new found money. Will some be spent
on bears and the impacts of bear predations on ungulates,
specifically moose and caribou? Another thing they need to
recognize with black bear in particular and brown bears to a
lesser degree, this is an important food item. These bears
should be considered as much for food security as they should as
predators. He thought more could be done to encourage folks to
take bear for food maybe through recipes or working with co-ops
and meat processing plants. His dream is that at some point in
time they won't be talking about bears as predators but about
how to slow down the bear harvest because people like to eat
them so much.
SENATOR COGHILL said he appreciated him being willing to look
into it.
4:10:05 PM
SENATOR HUGHES said she noticed on his resume under special
skills and qualifications that he has extensive experience with
aerial surveying and taking censuses and asked if he has had any
experience in using drones for counts. Is it a better tool than
manned aircraft?
MR. VAN DAELE replied that he has no experience with drones, but
flying them when people are flying super cubs is dangerous. He
is "old school" in that he thinks a lot more information can be
gained from looking around than by remote sensing.
SENATOR HUGHES said she will keep an open mind, but her
understanding is that those who have done both have found that
using drones actually is beneficial because you get better
imagery and more accurate counts; they are so quiet that the
animals don't scatter.
SENATOR HUGHES said she was curious, because his notes say he
has had frequent appearances on TV and film.
MR. VAN DAELE replied that his most infamous appearance was on
the Grizzly Man, because he led the investigation on the Timothy
Treadwell incident. He has done hunting videos with Jack Frost
and others. He can't remember every time he has been on TV or
radio or given presentations, but it's quite common in his
career. He was bear safety coordinator during the Exxon Valdez
oil spill and was in two videos they did on bear safety and
electric fences.
CHAIR GIESSEL thanked him for his service and for being there
today.
^BIG GAME COMMERCIAL SERVICES BOARD
BIG GAME COMMERCIAL SERVICES BOARD
4:13:00 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL announced the appointment to the Big Game
Commercial Services Board (BGCSB). She said the purpose of BGCSB
is the license and regulating activities of providers of
commercial services to big game hunters in the interest of the
state's wildlife resources. The board regulates hunting guides,
assistants, and transporters. Members serve four-year terms and
have a diverse membership including outfitters, transporters,
etc., as well as two public members. She invited Mr. Trombley to
the table.
4:13:33 PM
ADAM TROMBLEY, appointee to the BGCSB, Anchorage, Alaska, said
the main reason he wants to be on the board is because it is
imperative that Alaskans aren't placed at a disadvantage to
access. He likes hunting and it's important that guides and
outfitters who break rules should have strict penalties.
SENATOR COGHILL thanked him for being willing to serve and said
many who were born and raised here agree that there has to be a
balance between serving residents and those who want to come in.
He asked if he had been involved in any of the controversy
between guides and transporters.
MR. TROMBLEY answered that he didn't have any specific
experience in that arena, but he knows it exists and doubted
there was an easy answer.
SENATOR COGHILL said many are concerned that transporters have
very little accountability and asked him to watch for ways to
solve this issue.
MR. TROMBLEY responded that he also serves on the Board of
Governors for the Bar Association and has noticed that attorneys
are hard on each other when they break the rules. He guessed
this board would also be hard on those who break the rules.
CHAIR GIESSEL said his application indicates that this board is
his fourth choice in terms of appointments behind three other
boards that have more of a judicial focus and asked how the Big
Game Commercial Services Board come to his mind, because it is
so different that the other choices.
MR. TROMBLEY answered that goes back to being a hunter and
caring about management of and access to game. He is not an
attorney, but enjoys the legal aspect of things. He also wants
game to be around in the future for his children.
4:18:31 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL said her next question has to do with the way the
board administers its process: its fiscal matters. As he may be
aware, boards and commissions are required to be self-
supporting; that is the license fees need to cover the cost of
the board's administration of the regulatory process. The Big
Game Commercial Services Board is rather renowned for having a
large outstanding debt and she asked his feelings about
balancing its budget.
MR. TROMBLEY answered that having served on the Anchorage
Assembly he certainly understands managing the budget. At the
end of the day, you need to look outside the box and while he
didn't know all the reasons for the debt, his guess is that
travel is a huge component. Maybe they can conduct business on
line rather than travel for all the meetings.
4:20:42 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL opened public testimony.
4:21:45 PM
BOB MUMFORD, representing himself, Anchorage, Alaska, supported
Mr. Spraker's and Mr. van Daele's appointments to the Board of
Game. He had worked with both of them and he couldn't pick two
better men to be on this board. Dr. van Daele is "exceptional"
and probably has a worldwide reputation for his work with bears
and wildlife management. If he did nothing he would still bring
a lot of respect to it. He has worked a lot with Ted Spraker who
is also an exceptional board member. What separates these guys
from some other people is that they bring a "pure heart" and a
statewide perspective to wildlife management in making sure the
ethics are there and that wildlife management is done with
science. They don't have an agenda and are well versed in the
Alaska Constitution.
He also wished Mr. Trombley well if he should get appointed to
the Big Game Commercial Services Board. It is a challenging
board.
4:24:46 PM
MARK RICHARDS, Executive Director, Resident Hunters of Alaska
(RHAK), Fairbanks, Alaska, supported Mr. van Daele's appointment
to the Board of Game.
4:26:08 PM
MICHAEL CRAWFORD, Chairman, Kenai-Soldotna Fish and Game
Advisory Committee, Kenai, Alaska, supported Mr. Spraker's
appointment to the Board of Game. He advised that AC is a unique
group and they very rarely agree on things, but they are
unanimously in support of his reappointment. He has the
experience of a field experienced biologist. As chairman of the
board, he is a fair and patient person with different user
groups. They are lucky to have such a qualified person who wants
to stay on the board.
4:27:46 PM
SAM ROHRER, President, Alaska Professional Hunters Association,
Anchorage, Alaska, strongly supported Mr. Spraker's and Mr. Van
Daele's appointments to the Board of Game. Mr. Spraker has
always shown himself ready to put Alaska's game resources first.
His more than 28 years of experience as an ADF&G biologist is
invaluable to his work on the board. Not only does he understand
the data side of wildlife management, he understands the social
side, as well. He asks probing questions and makes himself
available after hours to answer more questions and to learn from
the users. That really adds an important dimension when it comes
back to the BOG deliberating on issues.
He said that serving as chairman of the BOG is a time consuming
and often thankless job, however Mr. Spraker is dedicated to it.
It's hard to think of a better choice to fill this important
role.
MR. ROHRER said he also supported Mr. van Daele's appointment to
the Board of Game. He is extremely knowledgeable on wildlife
issues throughout the state and will be invaluable on the board.
Over his long history with the state, he has worked with federal
advisory councils, state fish and game advisory councils, Native
Corporations, the Fish and Wildlife Service, and various work
and study groups. He's also an internationally recognized bear
expert. More importantly, throughout his career he has shown
himself to be a consensus builder. Few individuals possess the
ability to work through controversial issues, bridge divides,
and come to fair conclusions like Mr. van Daele. He is
approachable, knowledgeable, and fair.
4:31:05 PM
DICK ROHRER, representing himself, Kodiak, Alaska, supported Mr.
van Daele's and Mr. Spraker's appointments to the Board of Game.
He has been on more boards and in more meetings with Mr. van
Daele in Kodiak than he can count. He doesn't come with an
agenda, but he doesn't give up the farm to build consensus if he
feels strongly about an issue.
MR. ROHRER said he had interacted with Mr. Spraker on the board
and though he doesn't always vote the way he would like him to,
there is never a question about whether he will hear his
testimony and give fair consideration to it.
He didn't know anything about Mr. Trombley, but wished him well
on the Big Game Commercial Services Board.
4:32:58 PM
JASON BUNCH, representing himself, Kodiak, Alaska, supported Mr.
van Daele's and Mr. Spraker's appointments to the Board of Game.
He has worked with Mr. van Daele as a Coast Guardsman, an
Advisory Council (AC) member, and as a citizen of Kodiak. He can
attest to his knowledge and ability to bring people together.
He said that Mr. Spraker has gained the respect of many
different user groups around the state as an effective member of
the Board of Game. He has proven himself to be a valuable asset
and an integral part in solving many of the challenges around
the state. His experience and values are second to none.
4:34:10 PM
PAUL CHERVENAK, Chairman, Kodiak Fish and Game Advisory
Committee, Kodiak, Alaska, supported both Mr. van Daele's and
Mr. Spraker's appointments to the Board of Game. Both men are
very knowledgeable about the BOG process, the ADF&G the
resources, and the state's issues. When they don't know
something they are willing to learn about it. Additionally, both
men are very articulate and interact well with the public. They
are both experienced and work out compromises.
4:35:36 PM
DOUG MALONE, representing himself, Homer, Alaska, heavily
support Mr. van Daele's appointment to the Board of Game. He has
known him for over a dozen years and has always been very
impressed by his knowledge of not only Kodiak wildlife, but
issues outside of his direct purview. He possesses a very well-
rounded wildlife education. He recently had the opportunity to
observe him for eight full days at the just concluded Interior
Region BOG meeting, and what he saw and heard was very positive.
He witnessed Mr. van Daele's genuine interest and willingness to
hear and interact with the public, his diverse and far-reaching
knowledge of statewide game issues, and, best of all, the
leadership qualities he portrayed there.
4:37:03 PM
VIRGIL L. UMPHENOUR, representing himself, Fairbanks, Alaska,
supported both Mr. Spraker's and Mr. Van Daele's appointments to
the Board of Game. He personally served three terms on the Board
of Fisheries and at times referred to his job as a referee,
because there many contentious issues. He said the resident
versus non-resident issue was started by people in Fairbanks who
wanted to restrict non-residents from sheep hunting. Their big
complaint was that the guided sheep hunters have a higher
success rate than the unguided sheep hunters. Subsequently, they
introduced numerous proposals to the BOG, which caused the
department, the board, and the legislature to come up with a
couple hundred thousand dollars for the University of Alaska
Fairbanks (UAF) to do a study on sheep hunting. Then the board
scheduled a special meeting for sheep and then since he is on
the Fairbanks Fish and Game Advisory Committee he scheduled a
meeting. But everything backfired on those people. The UAF study
and special meetings indicated that a majority of the residents
complained about being harassed by airplanes. That resulted in
Proposal 207, which resulted in a lot of criticism of Mr.
Spraker, but he conducted himself with a "very high degree of
integrity" throughout the whole process.
4:39:55 PM
BRIAN SIMPSON, representing himself, Fairbanks, Alaska, said he
is a licensed guide in the Northwest Arctic. He supported Mr.
Spraker's and Mr. van Daele's appointments to the Board of Game.
He has testified before Mr. Spraker many times over the years
and found him absolutely fair, ethical, and knowledgeable. He
also supported Mr. van Daele due to his experience.
The one he questioned a little bit was Mr. Trombley for the Big
Game Commercial Services Board, his only concern being that it
is a very complicated and contentious board. He would prefer
someone who is well versed on the board's issues.
4:41:54 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL thanked the appointees and read the following:
In accordance with AS 39.05.080, the Resources
Committee reviewed the following and recommends the
appointments be forwarded to a joint session for
consideration: Big Game Commercial Services Board:
Adam Trombley; Board of Game: Ted Spraker, Lawrence
Van Daele. This does not reflect an intent to vote for
or against the confirmation of the individuals during
any further sessions.
4:43:09 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL adjourned the Senate Resources Committee meeting
at 4:43 p.m.