Gov. Bob Ferguson has authorized an investigation into the conduct of members of the Washington State Fish and Wildlife Commission after recently revealed public records raised questions about their actions.

Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Director Kelly Susewind requested the inquiry in a letter to Ferguson earlier this month.

“The governor takes concerns from an agency director very seriously. The governor has directed Washington State Human Resources to conduct an investigation,” a spokesperson for Ferguson’s office said in an email on Friday.

In a letter dated Aug. 5 and released by Columbia Insight on Thursday, Susewind said he believed further investigation was warranted due to the content of documents obtained by the Sportsmen’s Alliance in May via public records request.

Susewind wrote that an independent investigation into the commissioners’ communications, and possibly removing members if they are found to have acted inappropriately, would “demonstrate the standard of accountability necessary to allow WDFW to maintain a level of service that the public expects and deserves.”

The commission is unable to do its job without the public’s trust, he said, adding, “It is simply not reasonable to expect that level of trust under the cloud of uncertainty created by the current controversy.”

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Sportsmen’s Alliance, an Ohio-based fishing and hunting rights organization, requested emails, texts and other communications of commissioners following their vote in November 2022 to stop recreational hunting of black bears in the spring. The alliance opposed the decision.

The group filed suit against the commission in January 2025 for allegedly delaying the release of those records for nearly two years. A Thurston County Superior Court judge ruled Friday in favor of the commission, with Sportsmen’s Alliance announcing that same day that it plans to appeal the court’s decision.

The records were released to Sportsmen’s Alliance in May 2025. After reviewing the records, the group claimed that four commissioners violated state open meeting and public records laws ahead of the vote. Sportsmen’s Alliance soon filed a petition asking for those commissioners — Barbara Baker, John Lehmkuhl, Lorna Smith and Melanie Rowland — to be removed from office.

The commissioners have reportedly responded to Susewind’s letter by sending separate letters to Ferguson defending their actions ahead of the controversial vote and expressing disappointment in the director for calling for an investigation.

According to Columbia Insight, the commissioners have asked for the governor’s help in leading a broad-based conversation with several state agencies to re-examine the role of the state in natural resource management.

Following Ferguson’s decision to conduct an investigation , several environmentalists and animal rights activists criticized Susewind during public comment at the Fish and Wildlife Commission meeting on Friday in Bellingham.

In a news release, Dr. Francisco J. Santiago-Ávila, science and advocacy director for Washington Wildlife First, called for Susewind to be removed from office.

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Santiago-Ávila was also among those who spoke at the commission’s meeting.

In the news release, Santiago-Ávila said he understood why Ferguson believed he needed to pursue an investigation, but said his organization hopes “he will not limit his investigation to the commissioners targeted by the hunting lobby, but will expand it to include the entire commission and, especially, Director Susewind.”

Others, including hunting advocates, spoke out in favor of an investigation into the commissioners’ conduct and a need for the commission to be more accountable.

“The recent public disclosure documents leave us with one question above all others: where is the accountability for what is going on here?” said Douglas Boze of the American Bear Foundation.

The commission has been the subject of much scrutiny in recent years. A report prepared for the state Legislature in December 2024 found the organization’s structure was dysfunctional and needed reform.

The report’s findings sparked legislation in the recent legislative session to change the appointment process and to dissolve the commission altogether.

Lawmakers did not make a decision regarding the commission’s structure last session, but expressed that they would consider taking action in future sessions.

In February, Ferguson pulled back two Gov. Jay Inslee administration appointments to the Fish and Wildlife Commission, in response to concerns from “individuals, tribes and other entities expressing a desire for a more extensive process for these appointments.”

The act was one of Ferguson’s first as governor.

Meanwhile, the commission’s leadership formally changed Friday, with commissioners unanimously electing outdoor enthusiast Jim Anderson as chair replacing Barbara Baker, who held the post for five years and did not seek to be reelected as chair.

Anderson acknowledged that the commission is having a difficult time “for external reasons,” and vowed to bring the commission together “as a body.”

The commission voted 5-4 to install retired U.S. Forest Service wildlife biologist John Lehmkuhl as vice chair, filling a seat that has been vacant since Ferguson rescinded the reappointment of Tim Ragen.

Lehmkhul narrowly defeated Molly Linville, who was reappointed to the commission by Ferguson this past spring.

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