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OSP veteran appointed to ODFW position By Mark Freeman The head of the state�s police force patrolling Oregon�s woods and waters will shift from wildlife enforcement to natural resource management as the new interim head of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Capt. Lindsay Ball, who has commanded the Oregon State Police�s Fish and Wildlife Division for the past seven years, was appointed Tuesday to run the ODFW for the next six months while the search for a permanent director is conducted. Ball, 49, will begin his new job Feb. 16. During the coming months, Ball will steer the agency�s $102 million annual budget through a Legislature full of department critics who want the agency more responsive to Oregonians� natural-resource needs. A veteran of OSP budget wars and a well-known face among Oregon legislators, Ball said he will make the ODFW budget and the agency�s responsiveness to the public priorities for his new job. "I don�t have much time to do anything more than that � help create that cooperative relationship with the Legislature and the public," Ball said. Ball was chosen during a brief meeting in Portland of the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission, a seven-member body that sets natural-resource policies for the department. He will be on loan from the state police to the ODFW for up to six months. Ball will begin directing the agency and its 1,100 full- and part-time employees Feb. 15, when former director Jim Greer�s tenure officially ends. Under pressure from Gov. John Kitzhaber and some legislators, Greer resigned Jan. 15, saying that he felt he could no longer effectively lead the agency. Greer was a 25-year veteran of the ODFW, moving up the agency�s Wildlife Division before being appointed director three years ago. "We are in a situation where we need someone who can lead the agency through the legislative process while we begin the search for a permanent director," said Paul McCracken, commission chair. "Lindsay�s experience made him the logical choice to take on the task." Ball is a 25-year veteran of the OSP, with a wildlife science degree from Oregon State University. Ball said he has not yet decided if he will ask to be considered for the permanent job. The Ball appointment could be the commission�s last. The state Senate approved a bill Monday giving the governor, not the commission, the power to appoint the ODFW director. Kitzhaber requested that power, saying he wants to appoint someone better able to promote the state�s salmon recovery program and to communicate the agency�s goals to the public. Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 776-4470, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.