Arkansas Game and Fish Commission Centennial

Floor Speech

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Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. President, I rise today to celebrate a
century of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, AGFC. Enjoying our
wildlife and outdoors is a way of life for residents of the Natural
State, and the efforts of AGFC help preserve this time-honored
tradition through management of our State's fish and wildlife
populations.

In the early 1900s, maintaining healthy wildlife populations was
desperately needed in the State. Elk, bison, and swan populations in
Arkansas were extinct, and deer, duck, quail, and fish species were
near extinction.

Following the leadership of President Teddy Roosevelt, Gov. George
Washington Hays signed Act 124 creating the Arkansas Game and Fish
Commission on March 11, 1915. One of the commission's first orders of
business was improving hunting, fishing, and trapping regulations.
Thanks to these efforts we have seen extinct animal populations
flourish, while creating an excellent environment for fishing and
hunting. This has allowed tourism to become a leading sector of
Arkansas's economy. Our State now has a thriving elk population with a
regulated hunting season. We have also seen growth in the deer
population. More than 200,000 deer are harvested annually in Arkansas,
up from just over 200 checked in the 1938 hunting season. Once known as
the Bear State, black bear in Arkansas neared extinction with fewer
than 50 believed to be in the State in the 1930s. Today there are more
than 5,000 bears in the State, making it one of the most successful
reintroductions of a large carnivore in history.

The AGFC laid the foundation for Arkansas to become the ``Duck
Hunting Capitol of the World'' in 1948 with the establishment of Bayou
Meto Wildlife Management Area. Today Bayou Meto WMA consists of 33,832
publicly owned acres, providing world class duck hunting that attracts
hunters from all over the world.

The AGFC's five fish hatcheries help stock some of finest lakes,
streams, and rivers in Arkansas that attract anglers from around the
world. More than 12.5 million fish are harvested from these hatcheries
annually.

While the mission is the same, the agency has experienced many
changes in the last century. The first nine game wardens were paid $80
a month and had to provide their own horse. Today the agency operates
an $88 million annual budget and employs thousands of Arkansans.

In the past 100 years, the AGFC has created policies that maintain
the natural beauty and abundance of wildlife in the Natural State so
Arkansans and visitors from across America and around the world can
enjoy the great outdoors. From restoring habitat, managing wildlife and
protecting the public, the men and women of the AGFC help preserve the
Natural State's beauty and natural resources. But this mission comes at
a cost: throughout its history AGFC has lost five brave officers in the
last line of duty. I thank them and all the men and women of the AGFC
for their service and commitment to making sure future generations can
experience the natural resources and outdoor activities that we enjoy
today.

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