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BFHOF Report
To assure future efforts to protect our fisheries are supported, the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame Board is instituting a college scholarship program for students seeking a degree in a natural resource field with an end goal of becoming a practicing fishery manager.
Up to $15,000 will be awarded in July 2023 to the selected applicants. Applications for the scholarship are now being accepted at https://www.bassfishinghof.com/scholarship.
“Within many fishery management agencies, there is a definitive need to fill vacant positions with qualified individuals who understand and have a passion for both the sport of bass fishing and the science needed to manage those fisheries,” said BFHOF Board president John Mazurkiewicz. “Spearheaded by Gene Gilliland, Casey Shedd, and our Conservation Committee, this new scholarship program fits in ideally with the Hall’s mission of celebrating, promoting, and preserving the sport by supporting those whose future career path will focus on healthy fisheries, needed access, and clean rivers, lakes and reservoirs.”
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BFHOF Report
Conservation project grants will again be offered by the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame.
Since 2020, the Hall has provided more than $50,000 in grants to fund conservation efforts focused on enhancing fish habitat, tournament fish care, better public access, cleaner water, and similar projects that promote stewardship.
“We are also encouraging youth-oriented conservation projects that benefit local fisheries,” said Gene Gilliland who chairs the BHFOF’s Conservation Committee. “Projects we will support with these grants must have the endorsement of local fishery management agencies and be the right type of investment that coincides with the Hall’s mission.”
Past BFHOF conservation grants recipient efforts have included habitat enhancement work on lakes within Tennessee’s Bill Dance Fishing Trail, at Lake Belton in Texas, and also in Goose Lake at the Mazonia-Braidwood State Fish and Wildlife Area in Illinois. Grant funds have also assisted in building a ‘mobile fish care trailer’ used at high school tournaments in Alabama. Additional grants over the years have been used for projects in Colorado, Iowa, Indiana, and Virginia.
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Boat U.S. Report
Boat Ramps
It’s a question that’s been asked a million times: “Is everyone paying their fair share?” When it comes to those who recreate on the water together non-motorized and motorized vessel operators who mutually benefit from the use of launch ramps, boating safety programs, conservation efforts and more, a recently released U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) study says that answer remains unclear.
Discussions on the equitability of contributions to the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund, a user-pay/user-benefit grant program administered by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, began from a mandate included in the Trust Fund’s 2021 Reauthorization from Congress.
Trust Fund revenue comes directly from import duties or excise taxes vessel operators pay on sportfishing equipment such as tackle boxes and fishing rods, but the single largest bucket of funding (49%) for the Trust Fund come from a special tax that only motorboat operators pay on fuel.
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BASS Report
Applications are being accepted until April 15 for the 2023 Noreen Clough Memorial Scholarship for Females in Fisheries. The two scholarships will honor female graduate students with a demonstrated commitment to pursuing a career in fishery management and conservation. The women selected will best reflect Noreen’s passion and commitment to the profession and to the sport of fishing.
This will be the seventh year that the American Fisheries Society Black Bass Conservation Committee and B.A.S.S. have awarded the scholarships. In 2022 the honors went to Iowa State University student Madeline Lewis of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., and Noel Schmitz, of Sparta, Wis., who is studying at The Ohio State University.
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AFTCO Report
AFTCO Pro Mark Zona
AFTCO's Pro Team is expanding in 2023 with the addition of one of the most dynamic media personalities in the fishing industry, Mark Zona.
The co-host of Bassmaster and host of Zona’s Awesome Fishing Show is a household name in the fishing and outdoors industry. Widely renowned and revered for his cunningly unscripted, unpredictable, and hilarious color commentary, Zona (aka “Z”) will join an already impressive lineup of anglers and outdoor personalities representing the AFTCO brand on and off the water. “I couldn’t be happier to partner with a company that has supported our industry for decades,” says Zona.
Known for being highly passionate, highly unpredictable, and highly entertaining, Zona will be outfitted with AFTCO’s wide range of technical fishing apparel including their ICAST award-winning outerwear, fleece, sun protection, and lifestyle gear throughout the 2023 season of Zona’s Awesome Fishing Show and on the set of the Bassmaster Elite Series.
When asked about his decision to partner with AFTCO, Zona states, “I fish in extreme conditions throughout the country from the bitter cold to the brutal heat and thankfully AFTCO apparel has EVERY situation covered – their gear is 100% made for fishermen.”