Fish Hatchery Maintenance Program

The Fish Hatchery Maintenance Program provides funding to Tribes to maintain, enhance, and upgrade fish hatcheries.

The Branch of Fisheries, Wildlife and Recreation (BFWR) provides competitive funding to federally-recognized Tribes to maintain and enhance fish hatcheries. Fish hatchery facilities are any structure used to spawn, hatch, rear, hold, care for, or stock fish and/or shellfish.

How to Apply

BFWR is not currently accepting project proposals for funding. Please check back regularly as the 2025 Request for Funding Proposals (RFP) and application dates will be posted soon.

Federally-recognized Tribes may submit project proposals to the Fish Hatchery Maintenance Program contact at their Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Regional Office. Project proposals are scored according to published ranking criteria, with the highest-scoring projects receiving funding.

All project proposals must include (1) a hatchery facility description form and (2) a hatchery maintenance project proposal form for each hatchery that is part of the proposal. Both forms are included in the annual application.

Detailed information on what to include in your project proposal, ranking criteria, and information on BIA Regional Office Fish Hatchery Maintenance Program contacts can be found in the annual application linked below.

Previously Funded Fish Hatchery Maintenance Projects

Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians

Aerial view of Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians fish hatchery

Aerial view taken in 2021 of the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa's Tribal fish hatchery rearing facility. The Tribe's fisheries operation stocks 261 reservation lakes and 71 miles of creeks, rivers and streams throughout Wisconsin.

Hatching jars containing walleye eggs managed by the Lac du Flambeau Tribal fish hatchery program.

Hatching jars containing walleye eggs managed by the Lac du Flambeau Tribal fish hatchery program.

Summit Lake Paiute Tribe

Adult Lahontan cutthroat trout caught during fall 2021 sampling.

The image shows an adult Lahontan cutthroat trout caught during fall 2021 sampling. The Summit Lake Paiute Tribe manages the Lahontan cutthroat trout inhabiting waters within the Summit Lake Paiute Reservation through their Lahontan Cutthroat Trout Recovery Plan. Lahontan cutthroat trout are revered for their food value and cultural value.

Regional Contact Information

Alaska

Rosalie Debenham; Fish & Wildlife Biologist

rosalie.debenham@bia.gov

Great Plains

Diane Mann-Klager; Natural Resources Officer

diane.mann-klager@bia.gov

Southern Plains

Crystal Keys; Water Program Manager

crystal.keys@bia.gov

Eastern

Leonard Rawlings; Water Resources Branch Chief

leonard.rawlings@bia.gov

Midwest

Drew Becker; Regional Branch Chief of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks

drew.becker@bia.gov

Eastern Oklahoma

Brad Peak; Natural Resources Specialist

bradley.peak@bia.gov

Rocky Mountain

Frank (Desi) Rollefson; Wildlife Biologist

frank.rollefson@bia.gov

Navajo

Calvert Curley; Natural Resources Manager

calvert.curley@bia.gov

Western

Catherine Wilson; Supervisory Water Rights Specialist

catherine.wilson@bia.gov

Pacific

Peter DeJongh; Regional Biologist

peter.dejongh@bia.gov

Northwest

Ashton Harp; Fisheries Biologist

ashton.harp@bia.gov

Additional Information

Contact Us

Branch of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Recreation Central Office
1001 Indian School Road
Albuquerque, NM 87104
8:00 am - 4:30 pm MST, Monday–Friday.