The US Fish and Wildlife Service sponsors a National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation every 5 years. The questions are developed in concert with technical committee members from every state and with representatives of non-governmental organizations such as the Wildlife Management Institute and American Sportfishing Association . The next survey will be conducted in 2001. The US Fish and Wildlife Service supports fishing through over 60 Fish and Wildlife Resource Management field stations located in 33 states. In addition to the National Fish Hatcheries , the Service works in partnership with others to improve fish habitat and stream corridors .
Initiatives involve a number of fish passage projects and multi-agency showcase watersheds .
There were about 6 million fishing visits to refuges last year. The number of visitors engaged in saltwater fishing is growing, and freshwater fishing is holding steady. Sport Fish Restoration Program money is distributed for projects proposed by states and approved by the Service. Distribution of sport fish restoration funds to the states is based on the land and water area and the number of fishing license holders in each state. This fisheries management milestone was achieved by every coastal state from Maine to North Carolina working in partnership with the federal agencies over many years, allocating millions of dollars of their Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration apportioned funds for striped bass research and surveys and stocking programs.