COEUR d'ALENE - A wildlife congress could be in Idaho's future, said Virgil Moore, the 13th commissioner of Idaho's Fish and Game Department.

Meeting with The Press editorial board, Moore discussed IDFG's stability and the agency's ongoing challenge to deal with falling revenues. He said the wildlife congress could produce plenty of good ideas.

"We want to know what people look for in a successful fish and game program," Moore said. "We are doing the best we can without asking for help from the Legislature or the federal government."

IDFG does not receive general fund dollars from the Legislature but relies instead on a variety of sources, ranging from wildlife license plates to fishing licenses and hunting tags. He said the wildlife congress could take place in August or September 2012 and likely would be held in Boise.

As time progresses Moore said he will be taking his congress plan to conservationists, sportsmen and other groups to gain feedback so everyone has a chance to be heard.

"When I first interviewed for the commissioner job, I brought up this idea of a congress," Moore said. "They (the committee) told me 'Yes, we want you to do that.'

"This is bigger than just dollars. It's what do you want your agency to look like in the future?"

But the dollars will be part of the conversation. In 2009, the Legislature increased non-resident IDFG fees expecting to bring in an additional $2.5 million for the agency. Instead, funding has gone the other direction, Moore said, forcing the agency to make do with less. Actual revenue fell almost $1 million in 2009, dropped almost half a million last year and is running behind even further so far this year.

"Our business model is not functioning the way it has in the past," he said, adding that he has no plans to ask for fee hikes anytime soon.

And Moore remains optimistic. He said his isn't a story of "gloom and doom" but one in which his department must continue to be fiscally responsible - and open to new ideas.

"We're managing this just fine and we'll continue to manage it just fine," Moore said.

Bringing more Idahoans into hunting, fishing and other outdoor experiences is a priority for that management, he said. He told the editorial board options like a hunting mentorship program for non-hunters to go hunting with a licensed hunter could help bridge the gap.

"Hunting has becoming a minority activityand it needs to be returned to an important and traditional activity," Moore said.

Moore was appointed as IDFG commissioner on March 31, after Cal Groen announced his retirement. Moore has been involved with Idaho's Fish and Game since 1977.

Prior to the directorship, Moore served Fish and Game as deputy director for field operations, fisheries bureau chief and information and education chief. He has served as a director once before - in 2005 - when he led the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, but only served one year before returning to Idaho.

Moore said that as a child growing up in Missouri he was exposed to hunting and fishing by his father and grandfather.

"I love it here, I am an avid hunter and fly fisherman, and my children and grandchildren are getting involved," Moore said.