I’m sure I will be chastised for daring to suggest that the majority of the Maine Warden Service should be funded by general tax dollars rather than by license fees paid by Maine’s outdoor sportsmen. This isn’t a commentary on how well the Maine Warden Service does its job or how necessary or not the functions that they take on are. I take no issue with the head of the Maine Warden Service, Col. Joel Wilkinson or anyone in his staff. No, really! Some of my best friends are Maine Wardens (I just had to get that in there.)
Regardless that I have taken the time to clarify what I’m not trying to do, I will be demonized because I’m suggesting a different method of funding a Maine law enforcement agency, that has grown beyond “game wardens”, to a point where enforcing game laws is not the main function of this agency, or so it appears to me. Because I oppose how the department is funded, I will be accused of having a bone to pick with the Maine Warden Service or some other ridiculous notion. Let’s get beyond that.
I reader sent me a link to an article that appeared this morning in the Kennebec Journal. The piece was about efforts undertaken by two members of the Maine Warden Service to police illegal dumping by morons on private property. Illegal dumping can be an issue in some areas and especially with strict guidelines for refuse disposal and fees attached with it. But again, this is not the issue here for me. The issue is, why are my hunting and fishing license fees being used to pay the salaries of two or more agents of the Maine Warden Service to police private property in hopes of catching the idiots who are dumping garbage there?
The article has one of the Wardens explaining it this way.
“What concerns me is, as this keeps shaping up, owners of the land will post the property so there will be loss of access for people to use it for recreation,”
That’s a commendable concern but it still doesn’t answer my question. The same sentiment could probably be found in nearly every community throughout Maine. I should also point out at this time that the article continues informing readers about the efforts underway, many through volunteers, to clean up old dump sites and better monitor areas that seem prone to illegal dumping. These efforts should be commended.
The Maine Warden Service is part of the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. There once was a day when the wardens took care of poachers, checked sportsmen for licenses and enforced the fish and game laws. A visit to the website of the Warden Service and we quickly see this is not the case any longer.
Col. Wilkinson writes that things have changed in the 128 years the Maine Warden Service has been operational. He also says that “demands from the public” have increased the Service’s responsibilities. Who could disagree? The problem is, the general public, and through the State Legislature, have dumped all these demands on the Service without providing the funding to do the job. As a result, they have sucked the money out of fish and wildlife funds, license fees, etc., and wildlife management has suffered while Game Wardens are out chasing down people ignorant and uncaring enough to get rid of their garbage on private land.
In the “Mission” of the Maine Warden Service we begin to get a picture of just how the responsibilities have grown from enforcement of “fish and game” to the “protection and conservation of Maine’s natural resources” and “public safety”. Here’s a list of many of those responsibilities.
1. Search and Rescue (More than 350 search and rescue missions each year.)
2. Fish and Wildlife law enforcement
3. Recreational Vehicle law enforcement
4. Policing the Whitewater rafting industry
5. Investigation and enforcement of environmental laws
This is a broad overview and upon examination of the written purpose and function of the Service, their responsibilities are so broad they could pretty much include everything.
But probably most or all of these functions require somebody’s oversight and perhaps the Maine Warden Service is the best group to do it. But search and rescue, recreational vehicle law enforcement, patrolling dump sites, investigation of environmental law infractions and policing the whitewater rafting industry should not be paid for through fees collected by hunters, fishermen and trappers. Losing those fees are directly responsible for the loss of quality fish and game management. At a time when Maine is facing a serious whitetail deer management crisis (yes, it is a crisis) it kicks you in the guts when you read that two game wardens are spending their time monitoring a dump site. As important as it is to stop the dumping and to bring those responsible to justice, this law enforcement activity has to be paid for through general taxation.
For those who have read me before, you know where I stand on how to fund the Maine Department of Fish and Wildlife. If you would like to read more specifics, start at this link and also follow the related links at the bottom of the page.
There are some advocating that things should remain being run the way they are only that funding be shared between license and registration fees and a percentage of tax dollars. Gov. Baldacci has tried unsuccessfully to create a super department cramming fish and game, conservation and other departments all into one. I oppose both these formulas and advocate a complete restructuring of the Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, moving all non game programs into the Department of Conservation and/or Law Enforcement and pay for dump site monitoring, for example, through general tax money. Fish and game would be pared back to what should be their function and that’s managing the state’s fish and game. Perhaps, just perhaps, Maine wouldn’t be faced with an extirpation of whitetail deer in the northern half of the state.
Tom Remington
