The governor has no position on it, Turner said.

"It's Rep. Baker's" resolution, he said.

Baker said he has discussed the measure with Dunleavy.

"He wished me luck and encouraged me to make sure that" people are aware and state and federal subsistence managers are involved, Baker said.

The measure, presented to the House in February, has been the subject of three hearings this month in the House Resources Committee with invited speakers. Also, leaders with the Alaska Federation of Natives are expected to present at a legislative "Lunch and Learn" in Juneau early next month, Baker said.

Alaska Department of Fish and Commissioner Doug Vincent-Lang has spoken to the committee at hearings to argue for a single management system. He said it could resolve multiple conflicts between state and federal managers, including on the Kuskokwim River.

The federal government has created a regulatory structure that usurps state authority, he said. It's led to increased conflict over fish and wildlife management, he said.

He said the rural priority prevents Alaska Natives who moved to urban areas from returning to their village to participate in federal harvests.

John Sturgeon, who heads the Alaska chapter of Safari Club International, won a landmark case before the U.S. Supreme Court that's key to the state's argument over federal subsistence authority in the Kuskokwim River.

Sturgeon also spoke at one of the committee hearings in support of unified state management. He said the state government has more flexibility in taking steps to manage game than the federal government, such as using predator control to provide more caribou.

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