Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is a Florida government agency founded in 1999 and headquartered in Tallahassee. It manages and regulates the state's fish and wildlife resources, and enforces related laws. Officers are managers, researchers, and support personnel, and perform law enforcement in the course of their duties.

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
Common name	Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
Abbreviation	FWC
Agency overview
Formed	July 1, 1999
Preceding agencies	Marine Fisheries Commission Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission
Employees	2,112.5 full-time[1]
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdiction	Florida, United States
Size	170,304 km^2
Population	21,000,000+
Governing body	Florida Legislature
Constituting instrument	Constitution of the State of Florida
General nature	Civilian police
Operational structure
Headquarters	Tallahassee, Florida
Law enforcement officers	853 (2018)
Agency executive	Robert A. Spottswood, Chairman
Website
myfwc.com

History

In 1998, an amendment to the Florida Constitution approved the establishment of the FWC with a headquarters in Tallahassee, the state capital, on July 1, 1999. It resulted from a merger between three former offices, namely the Marine Fisheries Commission, Division of Marine Resources, the former Florida Marine Patrol, and the Division of Law Enforcement of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and all of the employees and commissioners of the former Florida Game and Freshwater Fish Commission.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection since then serves as the environmental regulatory agency for the state, enforcing environmental legislation regarding air and water quality, for example.

In 2004, the Florida Legislature approved to integrate parts of the Division of Wildlife, Division of Freshwater Fisheries, and the Florida Marine Research Institute to create the Fish and Wildlife Research Institute (FWRI) in St. Petersburg, Florida. It has over 600 employees.[2]

As of 2014, the FWC had over 2,000 full-time employees, and maintained the FWRI, five regional offices, and 73 field offices across the state.[1]

Organizational units

As of 2013, the FWC had six divisions:

• Fish and Wildlife Research Institute
• Division of Hunting and Game Management
• Division of Habitat and Species Conservation
• Division of Freshwater Fisheries Management
• Division of Marine Fisheries Management, which oversees the state's artificial reef program[3]
• Division of Law Enforcement

The FWC has 11 offices for administrative purposes:

• Office of the Executive Director
• Office of Information Technology
• Office of Community Relations
• Office of Public Access and Wildlife Viewing Services
• Office of Policy and Accountability
• Office of Finance and Budget
• Office of Human Resources
• Office of the Inspector General
• Office of Licensing and Permitting
• Legal Office
• Legislative Affairs Office

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission building in Tallahassee

Commissioners

The Florida Constitution authorizes the commission to enact rules and regulations regarding the state's fish and wildlife resources for their long-term well-being and the benefit of people. To do this, the seven Governor of Florida-appointed commissioners meet five times each year to hear staff reports, consider rule proposals, and conduct other business. Because stakeholder involvement is a crucial part of the process, the commission meets in different locations across the state, giving citizens the opportunity to address the commission about issues under consideration.[4]

The seven commissioners of the FWC are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Florida legislature for five-year terms. Typically, commissioners come from different geographical areas of the state to ensure that the FWC adequately protects the entire state of Florida, but multiple commissioners from the same city or region are not unusual. Their constitutional duty is to exercise the "...regulatory and executive powers of the state with respect to wild animal life and freshwater aquatic life and shall also exercise regulatory and executive powers of the state with respect to marine life, except that all license fees and penalties for violating regulations shall be as provided by law."[5] The Commissioners as of 2018:

Member	Current term	Began original appointment	Term expires
Robert A. Spottswood, Chair	January 12, 2018	September 2, 2015	January 6, 2023
Michael W. Sole, Vice Chair	May 12, 2017	May 12, 2017	August 1, 2021
Rodney Barreto	July 19, 2019	July 19, 2019	January 5, 2024
Steven Hudson	July 19, 2019	July 19, 2019	August 1, 2022
Gary Lester	January 12, 2018	January 12, 2018	August 1, 2022
Gary Nicklaus	December 1, 2017	December 1, 2017	August 1, 2022
Sonya Rood	December 1, 2017	December 1, 2017	January 2, 2022

Bear management

In 2012, the FWC adopted a plan on how the Florida black bear should be managed over the next 10 years. It created bear management units based on seven geographically distinct bear subpopulations. In June 2015, the FWC approved "a limited bear hunt to take place beginning October 24, 2015, in four of the seven bear management units".[6]

Wildlife management areas

Wildlife management areas (WMAs) conserve nearly 6 million acres of Florida's natural habitat. The WMAs exist to protect fish and wildlife resources, and provide recreational opportunities such as hunting and wildlife-viewing.[7]

The first wildlife management area, Fred C. Babcock/Cecil M. Webb WMA, was established in 1941 with Pittman-Robertson Act funds. Since that time, 45 lead properties (see below) have been added to this system. FWC also manages a number of other cooperative properties in conjunction with other agencies.

In 2017, the 75th anniversary of the WMA system was noted. Events were held statewide and included a kickoff event on January 21, 2017, at Fred C. Babcock/Cecil M. Webb WMA, several bioblitzes, and a final event at Tosohatchee WMA on December 2, 2017.[8] #WMAzing was the tag created for the event and is still in use today.

Properties

• Andrews Wildlife Management Area
• Apalachee Wildlife Management Area
• Apalachicola River Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Aucilla Wildlife Management Area
• Bell Ridge Longleaf Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Big Bend Wildlife Management Area
• Box-R Wildlife Management Area
• Branan Field Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Caravelle Ranch Wildlife Management Area
• Chassahowitzka Wildlife Management Area
• Chinsegut Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Crooked Lake Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Dinner Island Ranch Wildlife Management Area
• DuPuis Management Area
• Escribano Point Wildlife Management Area
• Everglades and Francis S. Taylor Wildlife Management Area
• Fisheating Creek Wildlife Management Area
• Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Fort White Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Fred C. Babcock/ Cecil M. Webb Wildlife Management Area
• Guana River Wildlife Management Area
• Half Moon Wildlife Management Area
• Herky Huffman/Bull Creek Wildlife Management Area
• Hickey's Creek Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Hilochee Wildlife Management Area
• Holey Land Wildlife Management Area
• J.W. Corbett Wildlife Management Area
• Joe Budd Wildlife Management Area
• John C. and Mariana Jones/Hungryland Wildlife and Environmental Area
• L. Kirk Edwards Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Lafayette Forest Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Lake Wales Ridge Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Little Gator Creek Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Moody Branch Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Okaloacoochee Slough Wildlife Management Area
• Perry Oldenburg Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Platt Branch Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Rotenberger Wildlife Management Area
• Salt Lake Wildlife Management Area
• Spirit-of-the-Wild Wildlife Management Area
• Split Oak Forest Wildlife and Environmental Area
• Suwannee Ridge Wildlife and Environmental Area
• T.M. Goodwin Wildlife Management Area
• Tenoroc Fish Management Area
• Three Lakes Wildlife Management Area
• Tomoka Wildlife Management Area Union-Camp Tract
• Tosohatchee Wildlife Management Area
• Triple N Ranch Wildlife Management Area
• Watermelon Pond Wildlife and Environmental Area

See also

• List of law enforcement agencies in Florida
• Florida state forests
• Florida state parks
• Florida water management districts
• List of State Fish and Wildlife Management Agencies in the U.S.

References

1. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (September 2014). "Overview - Fast Facts". State of Florida. Retrieved 24 February 2015.
2. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (n.d.). "Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, History". State of Florida. Retrieved 24 February 2015.
3. Horn, W; Maher, T; Dodrill, J (2000). "Fish census data from scientific divers of the Florida Artificial Reef Program". In: Hallock and French (eds). Diving for Science...2000. Proceedings of the 20th Annual Scientific Diving Symposium, American Academy of Underwater Sciences. St Pete Beach, Florida. Retrieved 2013-03-11.
4. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (n.d.). "About The Commission". State of Florida. Retrieved 24 February 2015.
5. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (n.d.). "About The Commissioners". State of Florida. Retrieved 24 February 2015.
6. "Florida black bear". Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. n.d. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
7. "Enjoying Your Wildlife Management Areas". myfwc.com. Retrieved 2016-12-05.
8. "Enjoying Your Wildlife Management Areas". myfwc.com. Retrieved 2016-12-05.

External links

• MyFWC.com: official Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission website
• Official FWC Hunting Regulations
• Official FWC Freshwater Fishing Regulations
• Official FWC Saltwater Fishing Regulations