By now you have heard effective January 1, 2006 the new Executive Director of the PGC is Mr. Carl Rowe.  I only met him briefly once, so I can’t tell you much about him or predict his management direction.  I will say many insiders speak very highly of Carl Rowe.  Frankly, everyone who has contacted me is praying Mr. Rowe takes the Agency in a new direction.  Most of our sporting class is currently in a disgusted state of mind.

            Realizing the Agency is currently packed with political hacks that created our current course for demise, Mr. Rowe would help himself enormously by cleaning house.  We see this frequently in business and government.  Why do battle with those entrenched when a new course will be far easier if there were to be a round of retirement announcements?  I believe Mr. Rowe’s defining moment will be the first 4-6 weeks of his tenure.  Our politicians will be watching him very closely, too.

            To hope Mr. Rowe can plot a new course without making substantial personnel changes defies the definition of “unlikely”.  The Alt program has its disciples’ solidly in place and they aren’t going anywhere unless they are forced to go.  It is quite possible this entire debacle was planned years ago and the end games are merger and confiscation by the State of our State Game Lands.  Let’s be honest.  People will do bad things for 5 billion dollars worth of land.

            If Mr. Rowe can single-handedly turn around this politically corrupted Agency, I think we should nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize.  However, what if he can’t?  What if “he” is muscled around by the entrenched political hacks within the Agency?  What if his tenure becomes a mirror image of the ineffectiveness of Vern Ross?  None of us wish that to happen, but what if this agenda is bigger and more powerful than any “new” Executive Director?

            Before we discuss the alternative that will resolve our problems for many years to come, we and the PGC must come to accept three truisms.  First, the PGC is not going to get a license increase without the support of our sporting class.  Second, our sporting class is not going to grant a license increase unless the PGC fixes deer management.  Thirdly, it is time for the PGC to be subjected to quarterly legislative review for every decision they make.  These three actions must occur before we can begin to address their impending insolvency and collapse.

            Now, for the good news.  How do we protect our hunting heritage and the 5 billion dollar industry that hunting creates?  How do we strengthen our rights and protect our license dollars.  How do we secure our ownership and control of State Game Lands and block any attempts to usurp our authority and destiny?

            It is quite simple.  Dissolve the PA Game Commission and turn managerial authority over to a private management company.  That is precisely what the State did when the politicians reached their limit with our previous state-managed prison system.  Granted it is not perfect, but the waste and ineffectiveness of bureaucrats managing the prison system is no more.

            Furthermore, we could eliminate our corrupt Commissioner System in the process.  We could develop a “Sporting Council” to meet and make suggestions to the private management company.  Our politicians could hand down their mandates or merely insist the company comply with current, existing law.  If the management company does not perform satisfactorily, we could cancel their contract and hire a new company.  Anti-hunters and environmental extremists would find it impossible to infiltrate a private company.  State Game Lands would be managed at least at break-even.  A truly competent company would turn a profit on our 1.5 million acres for additional cash flow.  We would get “real” habitat improvements across the landscape.  (BTW, I did find out our SGL’s costs us $28 million a year to own and $11 million is our return on our investment.  Negative cash flow – a mere $17 million per year.  Hmmmm?)         

            In short order we would all come to realize privatization is the way of our future.  With that confidence we could go ahead and privatize the PA Fish and Boat Commission and DCNR.  Of course, DCNR would be managed as a separate entity.

            Let us wish Mr. Carl Rowe the best of luck in every way.  However, let us put him on a timetable.  If Mr. Rowe can’t get this Agency standing tall in one year, we will then need to explore our options.

            I say privatization just might be our only plausible option to protect our future.

Jim Slinsky is the host and producer of the “Outdoor Talk Network”, a nationally syndicated, outdoor-talk radio program. For a station near you or to contact Jim, visit his website at www.outdoortalknetwork.com