HARRISBURG - In presenting the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission's 2011 annual report to the House Game and Fisheries Committee, executive director John Arway stressed the agency is remaining steadfast in achieving the goals of its five-year strategic plan, including finding ways to identify alternative funding sources in order to sustain the agency.

Arway delivered his report as the PFBC began preparing for the Southeast Region opening of the trout season, Saturday, March 31, telling the legislation could benefit the agency by ensuring greater revenue stability and predictability. He urged the General Assembly to support several pending pieces of legislation, including Senate Bill 1049, which would provide the PFBC with the flexibility to creatively market the fishing and boating experience."My hope is that we can work together to find supplemental funding so we can eventually lower the cost of a general fishing license," Arway said. "This will get more people fishing, which will also add revenue to the Commonwealth's General Fund."This bipartisan legislation is critical for the agency's survival," Arway said. "It takes the innovative approach of allowing us to sell multi-year fishing licenses and experiment with creative marketing packages."Arway also thanked legislators and Gov. Tom Corbett for passing Marcellus shale impact fee legislation, which allocates $1 million annual to the PFBC for efforts related to permit reviews. While securing the PFBC's financial future is a top priority, he said that the agency remains committed to fulfilling other strategic goals, including protecting and conserving aquatic resources and habitats.Last October, Arway said the PFBC joined Trout Unlimited, the Department of Environmental Protection and other partners in celebrating improvements to the West Branch Susquehanna River and its many tributaries. Ongoing projects has resulted in the overall health of the watershed has improved greatly as compared to 25 years ago.Also last year, the PFBC added nearly 100 new waters to the state's list of wild trout streams, raising the total number of documented waterways which support naturally reproducing populations of trout to more than 3,500. These changes resulted from recent stream surveys undertaken as part of the Unassessed Waters Initiative, a collaborative effort among the PFBC, local colleges and universities, and conservation groups."The wild trout stream designation has regulatory significance because wetlands that are located in or along the floodplain of the reach of a wild trout stream are considered exceptional value wetlands by DEP and are entitled to the highest level of protection," Arway said. "Additionally, our Class A Wild Trout Streams, which represent the best of our best, are protected by DEP as High Quality-Coldwater Fisheries."During his remarks, Arway asked committee members to sign on as co-sponsors on a proposed bill that would create a new category of offenses within the Fish and Boat Code for serious poaching violations. This proposed bill would also increase the duration for which the PFBC's board of commissioners would be permitted to revoke an individual's fishing or boating privileges.Arway also provided legislators with updates on the list of high-hazard, unsafe dams across the state and with recent changes to annual stocking schedules. In closing his testimony, he welcomed the new class of waterways conservation officers and thanked legislators for their support of House Bill 1417, which increases the penalty for assaulting an officer."These men and women face potentially dangerous situations every day and they deserve the best protection we can provide," Arway said.For the complete text of the PFBC 2011 Annual Report, access the agency's website at

www.fishandboat.com/ promo/annualreport/2011ann_rpt.pdf.