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Fisheries Management: Administration of the Sport Fish Restoration Program

RCED-94-4 Published: Nov 08, 1993. Publicly Released: Dec 08, 1993.
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Highlights

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Fish and Wildlife Service's (FWS) Sport Fish Restoration Program, focusing on: (1) FWS management of program funds; (2) whether FWS use of program funds assists program goals; (3) whether states have adequately funded freshwater and marine projects; and (4) the extent to which states use program funding to restore and enhance fish habitat.

Recommendations

Recommendations for Executive Action

Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of the Interior To improve administration of the Sport Fish Restoration Program, the Secretary of the Interior should direct the Director, FWS, to require that FWS headquarters and regional offices thoroughly document and support all costs associated with the administration of the Sport Fish Restoration Program.
Closed – Implemented
FWS implemented a new budget review process to ensure that all headquarters and regional office budget proposals include documentation and justification for all direct administrative costs. In addition, FWS has implemented a new direct cost recovery policy that has resulted in a lower indirect cost assessment for the Sport Fish Restoration Program.
Department of the Interior To improve administration of the Sport Fish Restoration Program, the Secretary of the Interior should direct the Director, FWS, to ensure that the costs of initiatives that benefit FWS or the Department of the Interior as a whole are equitably allocated among all applicable programs.
Closed – Implemented
FWS reviewed initiatives funded under the Sport Fish Restoration Program to determine if the program was paying more than its fair share of the costs of such initiatives. On the basis of this review, funding for one initiative was terminated and other programs are being charged for services that benefit them.
Department of the Interior To improve administration of the Sport Fish Restoration Program, the Secretary of the Interior should direct the Director, FWS, to ensure that: (1) established special investigation review-and-approval policies and procedures are followed; (2) priority needs of the states are considered when selecting special investigations to be funded; and (3) a monitoring system is established to track the progress of special investigations and ensure that the intended results of such investigations are attained and properly disseminated.
Closed – Implemented
A revised review and approval policy for special investigations was published in the Federal Register on May 31, 1994. FWS' Manual will be revised to incorporate changes in the special investigations program. The revisions are scheduled to be completed by March 1995.

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Topics

state relationsFishery legislationFishing industryFunds managementMarine policiesMarine resources conservationOceanographic researchProgram managementState-administered programsWildlife management