Ask Outdoor Girl

Bruce Miller of Dundalk writes: Nice column about Natural Resources Police (Dec. 6: "Effort to boost state's Natural Resources Police"). I appreciate what these people do and enjoy reading about them. However, in your column you wrote: "Groups will be working on a bill to spell out the issues and potential solutions to set the stage for more sweeping assistance. ... " What groups? What issues? What solutions? You whetted my appetite for more information.

Outdoors Girl replies: Thanks, Bruce, for giving me the opening to use all the stuff I couldn't cram into last Sunday's column. The groups include, but are not limited to: Maryland Bowhunters Association, Coastal Conservation Association Maryland, Maryland Saltwater Sportfishermen's Association, Trout Unlimited, Ducks Unlimited, the Maryland Waterfowler's Association and the Maryland Trappers Association.

The main issue is how to enforce increasing laws and territory in an era of diminishing cash and manpower.

The solutions include tapping into existing funds (the Waterway Improvement Fund was mentioned as an example) to help with law enforcement.

Bill Miles, a lobbyist for the Maryland Legislative Sportsmen's Foundation, the guiding organization in this effort, has started drafting a bill. He welcomes "everyone who wants to put their fingerprints on this" to contact him with their ideas at [e-mail].