March 15 deadline to help decide how wildlife is managed in Utah

Your chance to join one of Utah's wildlife advisory councils is almost over.

March 15 is the last day a group can nominate you to serve on one of Utah's five Regional Advisory Councils.

You can download a RAC nomination form or pick up a form at any DWR office.

What the RACs do

Each RAC holds about six meetings a year to listen to proposals from the Division of Wildlife Resources about hunting, fishing and wildlife management in Utah. The RACs also take input from the public about the proposals.

After voting on which proposals each RAC prefers, the chairperson for that RAC presents the RAC's recommendations to the Utah Wildlife Board. Members of the board consider the input. Then, the board makes the final decision regarding wildlife management in Utah.

The RAC meetings usually last from three to five hours. The meetings are held in the evenings, usually on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday night.

Applying to serve

RAC members represent one of six interests: hunters, anglers and trappers; those who don't hunt or fish; ranchers and farmers; locally-elected public officials; federal land managing agencies; and the public-at-large.

To fill one of the upcoming vacancies, you must live in the region of the state you wish to represent. Also, no later than March 15, the following must happen:

• If you want to represent the public-at-large, you must contact a group in your community and ask them to nominate you. Examples of groups that have nominated people in the past include political groups, town councils, animal sanctuary committees and recreational groups.
• If you want to fill one of the other positions on the RAC — except for the federal land managing agency position — you must contact a conservation group or organization in your region and ask that they nominate you to serve in the vacancy you'd like to fill.

For example, if you want to fill a sportsmen vacancy, you must contact a Utah sportsmen group and ask them to nominate you for the vacancy.

Nominating groups and organizations must submit their nominations by 5 p.m. on March 15.

To learn about wildlife or conservation groups in your area, contact the nearest DWR office.

Federal land managing agencies appoint their own representatives to the RACs.

Learn more

For more information, call the nearest DWR office, or send an email to Staci Coons, the DWR's Wildlife Board/RAC coordinator, at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .