The main thrust of this grant is to implement the washington department of fish and wildlife (wdfw) hunter education program

The Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) received a $2.67 million formula grant from the Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service under the Wildlife Restoration and Basic Hunter Education and Safety program (CFDA 15.611) for the period of July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. The primary deliverable is implementation of the WDFW Hunter Education Program, which certifies 10,000–13,000 students annually through approximately 700 classroom and online courses. Grant funds support Hunter Education Division staffing, supplies, equipment, and technology infrastructure including student registration systems and web-based course platforms. Additional funding supports recruitment, training, and retention of over 1,000 volunteer Hunter Education instructors.

Beyond core hunter education delivery, the award funds supplemental wildlife education and recruitment initiatives. These include conducting 5–10 hunting clinics covering various game species, implementing the National Archery in the Schools Program in 10 additional Washington schools, providing advanced hunter education training to WDFW staff, and completing development and implementation of a comprehensive Hunter Recruitment, Retention, and Reactivation Plan. The grant directly supports Washington's mandate requiring hunter education certification for all first-time hunters born after January 1, 1972.

Successful completion of a hunter education course is required in washington for all first time hunters born after january 1, 1972. Wdfw certifies between 10,000 and 13,000 students each year through approximately 700 classes offered by over 1,000 volunteer hunter education instructors. Grant funds will be used to fund hunter education division staff, acquire necessary supplies and equipment, maintain on-line student registration and records management systems (for both classroom and on-line courses), as well as the online portion of the web-based course, and recruit, train, and retain volunteer hunter education instructors. In addition to implementing the hunter education program, the grant will also be used to conduct 5-10 hunting clinics on a variety of game species, implement the national archery in the schools program in 10 additional washington schools, provide advanced hunter education to some wdfw staff, and complete the development and begin implantation of a hunter recruitment, retention, and reactivation plan.