GAME COMMISSION REPLIES TO REP. GODSHALL'S STATEMENT ON CITIZEN ADVISORY COMMITTEE PROCESS
HARRISBURG -- Pennsylvania Game Commission Legislative Liaison Joseph J. Neville today issued a reply to a recent column by state Rep. Robert Godshall (R-Montgomery) regarding the Game Commission's Citizen Advisory Committee process to solicit and obtain stakeholder input on the deer populations within a given Wildlife Management Unit (WMU).
"The Game Commission is pleased that Rep. Godshall sees merit in the process of developing public support through the use of Citizen Advisory Committees, recognizes the successes that New York has experienced with the process, and thinks that this process could work in Pennsylvania," Neville said. "Unfortunately, Rep. Godshall's statement misrepresented a few aspects of the CAC process, and thus I would like to correct the record.
"First, Rep. Godshall stated that Game Commission staff nominates all CAC members. Actually, CAC members are nominated both by Game Commission staff and other outside organizations, including county conservation districts, cooperative extension offices, statewide organizations, and others.   Specifically, for the 2007 CAC process, more than 60 outside organizations were contacted for nominations.
"Rep. Godshall referred to the CAC process as a "closed door" approach. The truth of the matter is that any citizen in Pennsylvania can volunteer to participate and provide input to their respective CACs. Information on how to participate is provided on the agency's website. Written reports that capture the conduct and content of the CACs are posted on the agency's website, as well as a whole host of other information related to the Game Commission's deer management program.
"Rep. Godshall stated that he believed the Game Commission must allow the deer herd to regenerate. Deer management recommendations are the product of biological measures, deer management goals, and citizen input. Where practical, deer populations can be increased. However, the Game Commission must manage deer within the context of its mission to manage wildlife and habitats for current and future generations. If increasing deer populations does not hamper our ability to meet our mission and wildlife management goals, then deer populations can be permitted to increase.
"Rep. Godshall also reported that the Game Commission's plan was to limit deer populations to five per square mile. Frankly, we have no idea where he obtained this figure, and there is no such statement or goal in the Game Commission's Deer Management Plan. In fact, the deer management plan does not give any deer density objective. Over the last two years, we have worked to stabilize deer populations and hunters have been harvesting eight deer per square mile across this state. Those results are impossible to sustain if our plan is to get to five deer per square mile.
"In closing, it is important to acknowledge that the Game Commission's deer management program is being guided by three goals: improve deer health; improve forest habitat health; and reduce deer-human conflicts. We have specific measures in place to chart our progress toward achieving our goals of improving deer and habitat health. The CAC process is but one means of determining our efforts to reduce deer-human conflicts."