On June 28, the Supreme Court issued its decision on a case relating to federal agency expertise in interpreting and implementing laws through the regulatory process. The court’s decision came in the Loper Bright Enterprises, Inc. v. Raimondo case (together with Relentless, Inc., et al. v. Department of Commerce, et al.) questioning whether regulated commercial fishing operations are responsible for paying the onboard professional observers...
In 2023, a project was funded through the Multistate Conservation Grant Program (Grant F23AP00472) to examine the costs associated with human-wildlife conflict (HWC). The project was conducted by the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (AFWA) and the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA), with the assistance of Southwick Associates and the Wildlife Management Institute. The purpose of this project was to survey state wildlife professionals on how wildlife conflict is mitigated, funded, and staffed to gain a comprehensive understanding of HWC management strategies in all 50 states. The objective was to determine the current status of staffing, expenditures, statutes, regulations, and policies related to HWC for 50 state wildlife agencies and provide recommendations that increase effectiveness and delivery of programs nationally. The intended outcome was a comprehensive resource that individual states can use as a reference to guide decisions.
