Law enforcement personnel needs of a state natural resource agency

Abstract

In this study, we assess personnel needs of the Law Enforcement Division (LED) of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD). The LED's mission is to enforce Texas’ laws and regulations regarding hunting, fishing, and other uses of wildlife resources for recreational and commercial purposes. Texas is a leading state nationally in outdoor recreational use of natural resources. It ranks second in the number of anglers and hunters, fourth in the number of boaters, fourth in size of the population, and fifth in the number of citations issued per warden in the southeastern United States. Operational, demographical, and ecological data were obtained from several Texas state agencies and from a mail—out survey of all Texas game wardens (n = 397) and their captains (n = 33). Maximum R‐square variable selection and general linear model procedures were conducted to estimate the numbers of game wardens needed per county. The regression model explained 78% of the total variation in the distribution of game wardens and estimated that there was a statewide excess of 17 game wardens. In a mail survey conducted in May of 1997, TPWD game wardens expressed a perceived need for 157 more game wardens. Over half (59%) of the differences between observed and perceived needs occurred in three of 10 LED regions. Differences between the model and perceived estimates for game warden personnel indicated the difficulty of determining where and how many game warden personnel are to be assigned and a need for additional consumer and other demand types of data at the county level.