MISSISSIPPI WILDLIFE AND PARKS

STEVEN A. McCALEB
103 ALVERADO DRIVE
LONG BEACH, MISSISSIPPI 39560
PHONE & FAX: (228)-868-8428

WEB SITE: www.mississippiwebsite.com

The below United State Department of Interior bill will show how far Mississippi Legislatures will go to ensure that is misuses the peoples tax dollars.

Since WRANPS was destroyed during the hurricane and it is moving to the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, & Parks, (MDWFP) it has ensured itself that grant money to WRANPS will not have to stop.

Which means the Secretary of State, will still have the power to misuse the peoples money.

I have sent a request asking the United State Department of Interior to resend this bill in order to save the taxpayers of Mississippi money.

It is sad to see how far our elected officials will go to keep one organization in grant money, but that is the way of Mississippi.

REMEMBER: MONEY, POWER, & PERKS + FRAUD, WASTE, & ABUSE= CORRUPTION IN MISSISSIPPI

So I guess I shouldn't be so surprised when our Legislative Body does stupid things like this.

But what does surprises me is that the Governor of Mississippi, Haley Barbour, allows this type of action to go on during his watch.

This society has been provided untold amounts of taxpayers money and there is no stopping the money from flowing.

Hopefully the Department of Interior will review my request and resend the bill.

It is time for WRANPS to stand alone and not receive grant taxpayers dollars, there are several other wildlife groups in Mississippi but to my knowledge they do not receive grant dollars.

No, WRANPS, has become a political organization in Mississippi, why I do not know, perhaps its a place tax money can be shifted to another project. (bate and switch).

Your message has been received by the Department of the Interior, National
Business Center Webteam. Thank you for your interest.

I find it so convenient that WRANPS has to move from its present location, and not since it is moving to the MDFWP, on state owned property.

I have request a review for the action WRANPS is doing by now being able to receive grant/tax money from the taxpayers.

Mississippi always looking for a way around the law, like the laws our elected officials make, some we know about and others they don't want you to know about.

Try going to the Mississippi Code of 1972 at www.sos.state.ms.us, and don't be suprised if your computer locks up.

I received a phone call from Jackson (my phone ID said "out of area") and was told the web address to go to the Mississippi Code, luckily I have several defensives and mine did not lock up.

Third request

How does a non-profit society get to establish itself on State owned property?

How does this society WRANPS, able to establish a contract with the State owned MDWFP to help build there new Wildlife Rehabilitation Society?

There are several other Wildlife Rehabilitation Centers in Mississippi but it seems to me that WRANPS is treated special; why is that?

WRANPS has owed me money in the amount of $7,790.00 since JAN. 1991, and they have not paid me one penny.

So I believe WRANPS should be discontinued and no longer in operation.

Please provide me with any and all documents concerning WRANPS and its contracting with MDWFP.

Perhaps politics has gotten WRANPS everything it wants, in that case, I will need the names, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses on the WRANPS Board.

Sincerely,

STEVEN A. McCALEB

Cc: Governor of Mississippi, Haley Barbour

M ississippi's Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy (CWCS) is part of a nationwide
collaboration of state and federal agencies, non-profit organizations and individuals to address the
habitat needs of declining wildlife. These state strategies mark the first time in U.S. history that state
wildlife agencies and the broader conservation community have cooperated to design a conservation
blueprint for all wildlife species.

This national planning effort is an outgrowth of the efforts led by the Teaming with Wildlife Coalition.
Since the early 1990s, the 3,000-member nationwide Teaming with Wildlife Coalition has worked to
secure funding for state fish and wildlife agencies to take preventative actions keeping rare species from
becoming endangered and common species abundant. In 2001, Congress responded to this need by
creating the State Wildlife Grants (SWG) program and the related Wildlife Conservation and
Restoration Program (WCRP). From 2001 - 2005, over $300 million has been allocated to state wildlife
agencies using a formula based on population and land area.

In order to make the best use of the State Wildlife Grants (SWG) program, Congress charged each state
and territory with developing a CWCS. The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks
(MDWFP) is coordinating this effort on behalf of the State of Mississippi. These strategies will provide
an essential foundation for the future of wildlife conservation and a stimulus to engage states, federal
agencies and other conservation partners to strategically think about their individual and coordinated

CHAPTER I:
INTRODUCTION & PURPOSE

MISSISSIPPI’S COMPREHENSIVE WILDLIFE CONSERVATION STRATEGY
CHAPTER 1 : INTRODUCTION AND PURPOSE 14
roles in prioritizing conservation efforts in each state and territory.
Congress identified the required elements of this conservation strategy in the WCRP legislation and the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service adopted those same elements to also apply to SWG required conservation
plans, so that one document will satisfy both needs. Each state's strategy must identify and focus on
"species in greatest need of conservation", yet address the "full array of wildlife" and wildlife-related
issues.

1. Information on the distribution and abundance of species of wildlife, including low and
declining populations as the State fish and wildlife agency deems appropriate, that are indicative of
the diversity and health of the State's wildlife; and,

2. Descriptions of locations and relative condition of key habitats and community types essential to
conservation of species identified in (1); and,

3. Descriptions of problems which may adversely affect species identified in (1) or their habitats, and
priority research and survey efforts needed to identify factors which may assist in restoration and
improved conservation of these species and habitats; and,

4. Descriptions of conservation actions proposed to conserve the identified species and habitats and
priorities for implementing such actions; and,

5. Proposed plans for monitoring species identified in (1) and their habitats, for monitoring the
effectiveness of the conservation actions proposed in (4), and for adapting these conservation actions
to respond appropriately to new information or changing conditions; and,

6. Descriptions of procedures to review the strategy at intervals not to exceed ten years; and,

7. Plans for coordinating the development, implementation, review, and revision of the plan with
Federal, State, and local agencies and Indian tribes that manage significant land and water areas
within the State or administer programs that significantly affect the conservation of identified
species and habitats.

8. Congress also affirmed through this legislation that broad public participation is an essential
element of developing and implementing these plans, the projects that are carried out while these
plans are developed, and the Species in Greatest Need of Conservation (SGCN) that Congress has
indicated such programs and projects are intended to emphasize.

In addition to these required elements, the International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies
(IAFWA) provided a set of Guiding Principles for states to consider as they develop and implement
their strategies (Appendix I). The MDWFP has tried to apply these principles in the construction of our
CWCS and will continue to use these Guiding Principles as the CWCS evolves over the next decade.
MISSISSIPPI’S COMPREHENSIVE WILDLIFE CONSERVATION STRATEGY

CHAPTER 1 : INTRODUCTION AND PURPOSE 15
Mississippi's share of SWG funding since 2001 has been more than $3.5 million, which has been used to
help develop this strategy and to fund conservation efforts focused on black bear restoration, walleye
research and restoration, Partners in Flight coordination, fish and mussel inventories and many other
conservation and restoration efforts. This document represents the summary of a conservation planning
effort that officially began in 2003 in response to the congressional mandate, but which builds upon
many years of research and data accumulation by the staff of the MDWFP through the Mississippi
Museum of Natural Science (MMNS) and the conservation planning efforts of many other organizations
and agencies.

Mississippi's CWCS is a blueprint aimed at conserving wild species and their habitat. The
overarching goal of this planning effort is to provide a guide to effective and efficient long-term
conservation of Mississippi's biological diversity.

In order to achieve this long-term goal, we embarked on this multi-year, dynamic process to develop a
conservation strategy as directed by Congress. Our objectives were to base the CWCS on the best
currently available data on the distribution and abundance of wildlife species in the state, particularly
rare and declining species which are defined as Mississippi's SGCN. The strategy assesses the extent and
condition of habitats required by these species, as well as existing and potential threats and conservation
opportunities for these habitats. Further, this strategy addresses research and survey needs as well as
monitoring needs, and provides a plan for MDWFP and its partners to review and revise the CWCS
every ten years. While it builds on the work of previous planning efforts, it attempts to define a set of
broad conservation strategies that may be applied locally and statewide to achieve the ultimate goal of
protecting and improving Mississippi's diversity of native species and habitats. It indicates areas in
which resources should be concentrated and emphasis placed. Where data are currently lacking to
provide a clear picture of conservation objectives, research priorities are indicated. Where the data are
sufficient to provide direction for species and habitat protection, restoration or management, these
recommendations are stated.

Coordination with agencies, organization and corporations that manage land or administer wildlife
conservation programs in Mississippi was a key component of this effort. Because this strategy is not an
agency plan, but rather a guide for the entire state, MDWFP invited a broad cross section of
representatives to serve on its Advisory Committee to help develop and review this document. A
Technical Committee of MDWFP wildlife, fisheries and museum biologists worked with an Expert
Team of biologists with expertise on SGCN and their habitats to compile and synthesize the data for
review and input and coordinated their efforts with the Advisory Committee made up of a stakeholders.
An internal Steering Committee of agency managers ensured the process followed congressional
guidelines and met the eight elements required by law.

CHAPTER 1 : INTRODUCTION AND PURPOSE 16
This document is not intended to be an outline for land use ordinances or for a statewide land use plan,
nor is it an evaluation or indictment of land use practices by an entity. Every activity by humans on the
Mississippi landscape has positive or negative impacts on wildlife and their habitats. The idea behind
this strategy is to provide information and guidance that may help minimize negative impacts and
maximize positive impacts. The emphasis of this effort is not on developing new regulations, but on
more effective implementation of existing regulations and on development of new partnerships for
conservation in the future.

This CWCS represents a foundation on which our agency and many other partners hope to build a more
detailed conservation action plan for our state that further defines priority conservation areas and
combines the efforts and resources of many partners to achieve the overall goal of improving
biodiversity in Mississippi.

E-MAIL: mccaleb4thdist@aol.com

WEB SITE: www.mississippiwebsite.com