Oct. 2007 - Volume 68, Issue 10
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In this issue
NextGEN Departments
Making the Rules continued...
Usually all three concerns, biological, social and enforcement, come into play as a regulation develops.
I am often asked where does public input enter into the regulation equation? Who has or can have input? As you might imagine, public input comes in many ways, and balancing the interests of all and the interests of some is not always easy. The key is that we are always listening.
Missouri has more than 400,000 deer hunters. If we were to get letters or e-mails asking for a certain regulation change from 50 hunters, that would be a substantial number and it would get our attention. It would also raise the question, “How does the average hunter feel about the change?”
John Lewis, MDC’s former wild turkey biologist, my mentor and for many years my supervisor, used to ask me when a regulation change was being considered: “How does the one-gallus hunter feel about this?”
Now, for those of you decked out in the latest state-of-the-art hunting gear, the gallus is the strap holding up one’s bib overalls. John’s reference to the one-gallus hunter, the guy with a broken strap on a worn pair of bibs, was his way of asking how a change would impact the average hunter.
If you have ever been selected for a hunter survey you know how we check the pulse of the average hunter. We ask. Surveys give us the big picture about how people view regulations. E-mails, phone calls, letters, public meetings, one-on-one contacts, all the way to scheduling a hearing with the regulations committee, give people a chance to express their personal opinions. Personal opinions and group opinions are both vital.
We listen to what people say, and we let our biologists, conservation agents and other experts pick apart any new proposed rule. Only then does a recommendation take form. But, now what happens? Who makes the final call?
Essentially, Missourians get that option. The system our citizens put in place in 1936 to “protect and manage the forest, fish and wildlife of the state” ensures that the conservation commissioners, four citizens asked to serve six-year terms by Missouri’s governor, make the final call.
The Conservation Commission reviews and takes action on regulation recommendations at their monthly meetings. The recommendations must first be approved by the Department’s Regulations Committee and our director, but the Commission’s four citizens are charged with making the final decision.
As was the case with the gentleman from the Piedmont area (I never got his name), ideas for regulation changes often come from our citizens, and in the end it is four citizens who approve or disapprove changes. In between, as it should be, are a lot of biology, substantial social science, questions of enforceability and many, many, many opinions.
So the next time you have an idea for a regulation don’t be shy. Sometimes all it takes is the willingness to ask. 
About This Article
Author
ERIC KURZEJESKI has worked on regulations issues for most of his 30 years with MDC, but come fall, you’ll find him in a tree stand. His wife, Lori, suggested changing his name to “Sits-in-Tree.”
