Management Services

What this funds

Funding Table: Office of Subsistence Management Office of 2025 2026 Fixed Internal Program 2027 Change The Office of Subsistence Management (OSM) administers Title VIII of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA), which guarantees that hunting and fishing on Federal public lands and waters are prioritized for rural Alaskans.This program provides the subsistence priority for the take of fish and wildlife across 222 million acres of Federal public lands and waters in Alaska.OSM's work is critical to ensuring reliable access to wild foods for approximately 130,000 residents.Each year, rural Alaskans harvest about 37 million pounds of wild food - an average of 316 pounds per person - with an estimated replacement value of $170-340 million. Fish makes up about 56 percent of this harvest statewide. Nowhere else in the United States is there such a heavy reliance upon wild foods, a core and driving foundation for preserving Native and non-Native cultures across Alaska. In tune with Executive Order 14153 "Unleashing Alaska's Extraordinary Resource Potential" Section 3(b)(xxii), the program eases potential opposition to resource development by ensuring food resources remain healthy, abundant, and available.Strategies include establishing and enabling rigorous processes to understand and propose solutions to complex resource challenges, including changes to existing regulatory activities in Alaska.Success of the program is grounded in meaningful engagement and cooperation among all stakeholders, including the State of Alaska, Tribes, and Alaska Native OSM, established in 1992, administers activities of the Federal Subsistence Board (Board), the Subsistence Regional Advisory Councils (Councils), and the public process.OSM coordination now encompasses all fish and wildlife resources on Federal lands and waters in Alaska.Federal and State legal and regulatory issues have become significantly more complex with industry and economic interests and threats to fish and wildlife populations, as well as conflict among users competing for limited resources. Office of the Secretary FY 2027 Budget Justification Strategic outcomes include publishing wildlife regulations, fisheries regulations and special actions.The number of special action requests has grown in recent years and continues to rise in need and complexity due to changes in migration patterns, low stocks, industry, and economic competition. OSM manages two grant programs to strengthen Alaska Native and rural Alaskan involvement in Federal subsistence management.Title VIII ANILCA (16 USC ' 3122) states that the Secretary, in cooperation with the State and other appropriate Federal agencies, shall undertake research on fish and wildlife ... and make the results of such research available. After the Federal government assumed responsibility for management of subsistence fisheries on Federal public lands in waters in Alaska in 1999, the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture fulfilled the ANILCA requirement through the creation and continued operation of the Fisheries Resource Monitoring Program (FRMP) and the Partners for Fisheries Monitoring Program (PFMP) that are housed within OSM. Since 2000, the FRMP has distributed funding to provide information needed for management of subsistence fisheries on Federal public lands and waters, including information on fish stock status, subsistence harvest and use patterns, and collection/analysis of traditional knowledge.While Tribal, Federal, University, and other researchers participate in the program, more than 65% of project funds go to the State of Alaska's Department of Fish and Game.These funds complement research the State of Alaska is already doing, allow for collection of necessary data to support management decisions, and provide opportunities for State and Federal researchers to collaborate.Since 2002, the Partners for Fisheries Monitoring Program has built capacity in Alaska Native and rural organizations. Program funding strengthens their ability to participate in Federal subsistence management and research. In 2027, OSM will assist the Secretary's Office on Alaska Affairs to conduct a review of the Federal Subsistence Management Program. Among several other review topics, the review includes a public scoping on recent changes such as a complete transition of operations from USFWS to the Office of the Secretary initiated by 2024 Congressional appropriations and the addition of 3 new Federal Subsistence Board members. New requirements and additional workload associated with Congressional, Administrative and Board priorities will be assessed and integrated into program plans. OSM will continue to conduct all necessary programmatic work that supports the Board, Councils, public process, and regulatory updates.The 2027 anticipated activities and associated outcomes include: ' Wildlife and fisheries regulatory proposal analyses to change existing hunting and fishing ' Research and review fish and wildlife biology, population and health, and anthropological studies ' Assessments and studies on fisheries through research funding programs ' Facilitating public comments on proposals and analyses ' Consultation and coordination with the State of Alaska Department of Fish and Game at multiple Office of the Secretary FY 2027 Budget Justification ' Administration of Councils and the Board, liaising with Federal, State, industry, and community ' Hunting and fishing changes and public meetings awareness campaigns ' Developing news releases of hunting and fishing changes and meeting announcements, providing comments on State of Alaska Boards of Game and Fisheries proposals, assisting Councils with developing annual reports to the Board, and assisting the Board with replies to those reports OSM has two competitive grant funding programs, the Fisheries Resource Monitoring Program (FRMP) and the Partners for Fisheries Monitoring Program (PFMP). Authority for these programs comes from the Alaska National Interest Land Claims Act (ANILCA) Title VIII (16 USC 3119 and 3122). ' The FRMP provides information for management decisions on subsistence fisheries on Federal public lands in Alaska.The 10 Councils provide priority information needs used as part of the solicitation for proposals.Researchers propose projects on the priority information needs, which are reviewed by a technical review committee comprised of State and Federal subject matter experts. Projects are evaluated using five criteria: strategic priority, technical and scientific merit, investigator ability and resources, partnership and capacity building, and cost- benefit.Project scores are tabulated by Alaska geographic region and suggested funding allocations are applied. Final project selection is made by the OSM Director. ' The PFMP was established to strengthen Alaska Native and rural Alaskan involvement in Federal subsistence management by providing salary funding for biologist, social scientist, or outreach/coordinator positions to develop capacity in Alaska Native and rural non-profit organizations.Proposals are evaluated by a technical review committee of government professionals with a history of partnership and capacity building.Scores are based on seven criteria: proposed work, strategic priority, capacity to complete work, collaboration, youth mentoring, sustainability, and cost-benefit. Final project selection is made by the OSM Director.

Extracted from Office of the Secretary, p. 22. Verbatim; nothing here is paraphrased.

Ask this budget line

Answers come from the figures on this page and nothing else. These dollars are parsed from Interior's Congressional Justification and are approximate — confirm anything that matters against the cited page.