See the September 2022 Fishing Report HERE.
Applications are currently being accepted for FY 2023 Clean Vessel Act (CVA) grants. The CVA program provides grant funding for the construction, renovation, operation and maintenance of facilities such as pumpouts, dump stations or restrooms used by boaters, in order to maintain and improve water quality throughout Arizona’s boating waterways.
The deadline for CVA grant applications to be physically received by the Department is 5 p.m. Monday, October 31, 2022. All grants awarded must comply with the provisions of the Build America, Buy America Act which was enacted as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act on November 15, 2021.
To access the grant manual and the grant application form, visit https://www.azgfd.com/boating/facilities/.
Learn about Arizona Game and Fish Commission Chairman James Goughnour in this one-on-one Q&A in Arizona Wildlife Views magazine. Find out what he’s fishing for and why fall is his favorite time to cast a line in Arizona. Goughnour also discusses the Commission’s goals and how he got involved in efforts to support and promote outdoor recreation.
“Being appointed to the Arizona Game and Fish Commission is the highest honor a volunteer can achieve as recognition of a lifetime of passion for and dedication to the outdoors,” Goughnour says.
- View the article.
News release from the Office of Governor Doug Ducey
PHOENIX — The Governor’s Office is now accepting applications to fill an upcoming vacant seat on the Arizona Game and Fish Commission. Residents knowledgeable and passionate about Arizona wildlife and conservation in eligible counties are welcome to apply.
The five-member Game and Fish Commission establishes policy for the management, preservation and harvest of wildlife and fishery resources, as well as watercraft and off-highway vehicle operations. The commission also serves in an advisory role to the Arizona Game and Fish Department.
The Arizona Game and Fish Department is responsible for the conservation and protection of more than 800 species of wildlife in Arizona. The department is also responsible for efforts that range from wildlife habitat improvement projects to mentored hunt camps, family campouts, fishing clinics, and other activities designed to get people involved with the outdoor recreational activities that Arizona has to offer.
The commission is structured to ensure geographical and political representation from across Arizona. According to statute, no two members can be from the same county, so the upcoming opening must be filled by a resident of Apache, Cochise, Coconino, Graham, Greenlee, La Paz, Mohave, Navajo, Pinal, Santa Cruz or Yuma counties who is not a registered Republican. Three Republicans currently serve as commissioners – the maximum from one political party as stated in statute. Applicants must not have changed party registration within the past two years in order to be eligible.
Applications must be received no later than 5 p.m. on September 30.
Individuals interested in applying or learning more can click HERE.
For more information about the Arizona Game and Fish Commission and its mission, please click HERE. Individuals also may contact the Governor’s Office of Boards and Commissions by emailing bc@az.gov.
PHOENIX — The Arizona Game and Fish Commission announced 14 recipients of the 2022 Commission Awards at its Sept. 9 meeting in Pinetop, Ariz.
The awards recognize Arizonans who have contributed significantly to the conservation of the state’s wildlife, its outdoor heritage, and the mission of the Arizona Game and Fish Department.
This year’s recipients are:
- Award of Excellence – Brian McIntyre, Cochise County Attorney’s Office
- Youth Conservationist of the Year – Gila Ridge High School FFA Agricultural Mechanical Team
- Media of the Year – Robbie Kroger, Blood Origins
- Conservation Organization of the Year – Arizona Desert Bighorn Sheep Society
- Conservationist of the Year – Don McDowell
- Natural Resource Professional of the Year – Scott Feldhausen
- Volunteer of the Year – Doug Beach
- Educator of the Year – Kathy Balman
Mentor of the Year – Gabriel Paz - Advocate of the Year – Senator David Gowan
- Business Partner of the Year – KUIU
- Buck Appleby Hunter Education Instructor of the Year – Jim Rich
- Wildlife Habitat Steward of the Year – Scott and Dawn Dunton, Dunton Ranch
- North American Model Commissioner’s Award – Kelly Alkhoury
The awards will be presented at the Commission’s Annual Awards Banquet on
Saturday, Jan. 21, 2023, at the Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort, Grande
Ballroom, 11111 N. 7th Street, Phoenix, Arizona 85020. See form below for banquet tickets and sponsorship opportunities.
Registration and Sponsorship Form
The first Commission Awards event was held in January 1991. Since then, nearly 400 recipients have been recognized for their dedicated work toward securing Arizona’s wildlife for generations to come.
The Arizona Game and Fish Department was informed today that Governor Doug Ducey has appointed Marsha Petrie Sue, an Arizona business woman and avid outdoorswoman, to the Arizona Game and Fish Commission. Marsha will replace Kurt Davis on the Commission.
Marsha is a longtime hunter and angler, dedicating nearly 25 years to wildlife conservation. She is an Arizona Antelope Foundation Life member, Arizona Deer Association volunteer, Arizona Desert Bighorn Sheep Society conservationist, and past Women’s Outdoor Media Association Chair. She also serves on the NRA Women’s Leadership Forum Executive Committee. InBusiness Magazine recognized Marsha as a 2022 Woman of Achievement. She has received the Margie Herndon Conservation Award and the Daughters of the American Revolution Community Service Award.
“Thank you to Governor Ducey for this honor and opportunity. As a conservationist, my goal is to continue hands-on work for our beautiful state and its wildlife. Bringing all groups and entities together through open communication and helping continue the amazing work being done by the Game and Fish Commission and department will be the focus I have. I look forward to working with my fellow commissioners,” said Marsha.
Marsha has called Arizona home for more than 32 years. She is a retired Corporate Executive who founded Communicating Results. She is currently a professional speaker, author, and executive coach. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University at Long Beach and her Master of Business Administration from the University of Phoenix. She and her husband, Al Sue, reside in Scottsdale.
AZGFD continues innovative public-private collaborations to help fund wildlife conservation
Join Canyon Coolers in supporting AZGFD’s Send Water program, delivering life-saving hydration to 3,000 wildlife waters across the state. Now through Sept. 30, Canyon Coolers will donate 15% of online sales of its Outfitter 75 and 125 quart coolers and its entire drinkware collection to AZGFD’s Send Water program. Visit www.canyoncoolers.com to take part in the promotion.
We are proud to announce this unique collaboration with Canyon Coolers, a premium cooler company headquartered in Flagstaff, as part of our ongoing efforts to find innovative ways to fund wildlife conservation. With strong local ties and a deep-rooted interest in the great outdoors, Canyon Coolers is eager to support the department’s mission.
This collaboration exemplifies the governor’s emphasis on embracing innovation to promote small businesses while expanding opportunities to fund conservation of the state’s natural resources. The Arizona Game and Fish Department conserves and protects the state’s 800-plus species of wildlife, and this critical wildlife conservation work is done without any general fund tax dollars. Your support makes all the difference in our combined success.
For more information, contact the Arizona Game and Fish Department at 602-942-3000.
See the August 2022 Fishing Report HERE.
PHOENIX — If you were thinking of nominating someone for an Arizona Game and Fish Commission award but haven’t yet submitted it, there’s still time. Nominations can be submitted online up through Aug. 24, 2022.
The purpose of these awards is to recognize Arizonans who have contributed significantly to the conservation of the state’s wildlife, its outdoor heritage, and the mission of the Arizona Game and Fish Department.
Nominations may include individuals, organizations, clubs, foundations or government agencies. Arizona Game and Fish Department employees are not eligible for nomination.
The Arizona Game and Fish Commission will select the 2022 Commission Award recipients at its Sept. 9, 2022 meeting. The awards will be presented at the annual Arizona Game and Fish Commission Awards Banquet on Saturday, Jan. 21, 2023, at the Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort, 11111 N. 7th Street, Phoenix, Arizona 85020.
- Online Nomination Form
2022 AWARD CATEGORIES
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE:
Any individual, group, organization, club, foundation, or agency that has excelled in efforts to benefit wildlife, wildlife habitats, or programs of the Arizona Game and Fish Department.
YOUTH CONSERVATIONIST OF THE YEAR:
Any individual, 18 years of age or younger, who has excelled in efforts to benefit wildlife and the mission of the Arizona Game and Fish Department.
MEDIA OF THE YEAR:
Any media source (radio, television, magazine, newsletter, or periodical) that has published articles or materials beneficial to public interest about wildlife or wildlife related topics and the mission of the Arizona Game and Fish Department.
CONSERVATION ORGANIZATION OF THE YEAR:
Any organization, group, foundation, or agency that has excelled in efforts to enhance the welfare of wildlife, wildlife related recreation, and the mission of the Game and Fish Department.
CONSERVATIONIST OF THE YEAR:
Any individual, not associated with a professional agency, which has excelled in efforts to enhance, conserve, and manage wildlife or their habitats.
NATURAL RESOURCE PROFESSIONAL OF THE YEAR:
Any individual who through a professional agency affiliation has excelled in efforts to enhance, conserve, and manage wildlife or their habitats.
VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR:
Any individual who, as a registered volunteer with the Department, has excelled in efforts to support and benefit the mission of the Arizona Game and Fish Department.
EDUCATOR OF THE YEAR:
Any individual whose educational activities have advanced and supported the welfare of wildlife, wildlife related recreation, or the mission of the Arizona Game and Fish Department.
MENTOR OF THE YEAR:
Any individual who has acted in the role of a mentor and whose efforts have resulted in the promotion and support of future wildlife conservation efforts and the development of future wildlife conservation leaders in Arizona.
ADVOCATE OF THE YEAR (Two Nominations):
Any individual that has engaged in political advocacy for the betterment of wildlife conservation and in the support of the mission of the Arizona Game and Fish Department.
BUSINESS PARTNER OF THE YEAR:
Any business partner that actively promotes Game and Fish through innovative approaches, community involvement and a customer service focus that benefits the citizens of Arizona and supports the Game and Fish’s mission of wildlife conservation.
BUCK APPLEBY HUNTER EDUCATION INSTRUCTOR OF THE YEAR AWARD:
Any hunter education instructor who actively participates in hunter education activities and demonstrates the highest level of customer service, dedication and professionalism during these activities. Award category recently approved by the AZGFD Commission in honor of Buck Appleby, a long time hunter education instructor who passed away in 2010.
Past Award Recipients
2021 Award Recipients
1990-2020 Award Recipients
HB 2130 goes into effect on Sept. 24
PHOENIX — New legislation recently signed into law by Governor Doug Ducey ensures that landowners and lessees of private or public land can avoid liability for injuries or damages sustained by recreational users for unknown conditions on their property or when the owner or lessee provides warning of a dangerous condition.
The bill, HB 2130, provides that a recreational user accepts the risks created by his or her activities on the property and that the user must exercise reasonable care in those activities. In addition, the bill holds recreational users liable to an owner for any damage to the land, property, livestock or crops that the user may cause while on that land.
A stakeholder group consisting of the Arizona Game and Fish Commission, Arizona Farm and Ranch Group, members of the Arizona Legislature, executive agency staff, and others worked collaboratively to advance this bill in response to concerns that the increase in recreational activities and a growing number of lawsuits filed by outdoor recreationists created an unfair liability situation for landowners and lessees.
The bill helps mitigate the concerns and ensures continued reasonable access and responsible use of State Trust Lands by authorized sportsmen and other recreational users while fairly distributing accountability and liability such that no landowner, lessee, or taxpayer assumes all costs for defending against lawsuits.
The bill also furthers the joint missions of the Arizona Game and Fish Commission and the Arizona State Land Department (ASLD). Encouraging greater responsibility among recreational users on State Trust Land will prevent damage to wildlife habitat, discourage trash dumping, and allow for more efficient management of the roughly 8-million-acre rural land footprint managed by ASLD.
HB 2130 was sponsored by Rep. Gail Griffin (R-District 14) and was formally supported by the Arizona Game and Fish Commission. It was signed into law by Gov. Ducey on May 20. The bill becomes effective Sept. 24, 2022.
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