An independent study of the operations of the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) and Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) revealed Tuesday, Sept. 1 that both agencies may exhaust all of their reserve funds by 2034 if changes are not made.
The two agencies contracted with Wildlife Management Institute, a non-profit organization that provides expert advice, research and advocacy for sound wildlife management policies, on a $49,000 study of their operations. The study evaluated opportunities for efficiencies and collaboration between the agencies for the long-term benefit of the agencies’ staff, customers and the resources the agencies are entrusted to serve.
With Pennsylvania being the only state to have independent, separate agencies for fish and wildlife, the study revealed most administrative functions exist in both commissions and are candidates for shared services.
With a combined workforce of about 1,298, the study determined the two agencies have roughly 221 more positions when benchmarked against agencies of a similar size. The study did not recommend a merger into one agency, but sharing responsibilities and removing their duplicate services.
“After careful agency analysis and evaluation, it is possible that the combined workforce could potentially be reduced by about 17% through unified law enforcement and reductions in overlapping executive, legal and engineering functions, generating on the order of $34 million a year savings,” the report said.
For recommendations, the report suggests the two agencies unify their law enforcement into a single structure.
Other recommendations include consolidating overlapping bureaus and administrative functions and study roles to flatten the structure.
The agency may also reduce and co-locate field offices.
“Comparable state wildlife agencies contain less than half the number of field offices that Pennsylvania currently has,” the report states.
Other recommendations address putting finances on a sustainable footing and clearing the legal path on certain fund use restrictions and asking the General Assembly to authorize a joint, shared services framework.
In response to the report, the PFBC released a statement saying “WMI’s assessment included a review of PFBC and PGC operational structures, physical assets, fiscal and demographic realities, and input submitted by hundreds of employees. This data was also broadly compared to a subset of other state fish and wildlife agencies and used to generate a list of recommendations for consideration.
“It is important to note that the recommendations presented are not mandates. Moving forward, consideration of any recommendations will require detailed analysis of additional factors that are unique to Pennsylvania, as well as potential action by the Pennsylvania General Assembly.
“While no timeline has been established for additional action, the PFBC remains committed to working toward a sustainable path to implement our mission to protect, conserve and enhance Pennsylvania’s aquatic resources and provide fishing and boating opportunities.”
The Game Commission also released a statement on the study’s findings.
“The Pennsylvania Game Commission takes its fiscal responsibility seriously, and that includes being good stewards of every dollar entrusted to us. In part, that is why we chose to do this study now, when the Commission is in solid financial standing. Our focus will always be on making thoughtful decisions and investments that will protect the interests of Pennsylvania hunters,” PGC executive director Steve Smith said in the statement.
“It is of the utmost importance to note that the recommendations within this study do not reflect any imminent or immediate action from the Game Commission.
“This robust report warrants meticulous review and in-depth communication with our constituents, our board of commissioners, legislators, stakeholders and the Fish and Boat Commission.
“We appreciate the extensive amount of effort that WMI put into this study to locate potential areas of improvement that could ultimately benefit the Game Commission, the Fish and Boat Commission and Pennsylvania’s hunters, anglers and wildlife resources,” Smith said in the statement.
One of the cost savings recommendations in the study has already been completed. The report recommended the elimination of the deputy law enforcement program for both agencies and that was approved effective Sept. 1. The PGC had 140 deputies and the PFBC had 36 to help wardens and waterways conservation officers.
