The Mississippi Department of Marine Resources is a state agency of Mississippi headquartered in the Eldon Bolton State Office building in Biloxi, Mississippi. It was created by the legislature as a new state agency in 1994 to manage Mississippi's coastal resources through the authority of the Commission on Marine Resources. The MDMR is dedicated to enhancing, protecting and conserving the marine interests of Mississippi for present and future generations. Through the several offices and bureaus comprising the MDMR, the agency, together with the CMR, provides public services and plays a role in administering and enforcing Mississippi Seafood Laws, the Mississippi Coastal Wetlands Protection Act, the Public Trust Tidelands Act, the Boat and Water Safety Act, the Derelict Vessel Act, the Non-Point Source Pollution Act, the Magnuson Act, the Wallop-Breaux Sportfish Restoration Act, Marine Litter Act and other state and federal mandates.
The Commission on Marine Resources
The CMR is composed of five members appointed by the governor for four-year terms to represent the following areas: commercial seafood processors, nonprofit environmental organizations, charter boat operators, recreational fishermen and commercial fishermen. The Commission enacts rules and regulations within its jurisdiction, and indirectly selects the director of the agency, proposing three candidates to the governor.
Richard Gollott
Edgar "Richard" Gollott is the acting Chairman of the CMR. A Biloxi native reappointed to the CMR by Governor Phil Bryant on July 17, 2012 to represent commercial seafood processors. He is owner of Golden Gulf Coast Packing Company where he works as a packer, supplier, ice-house runner, oil dock runner, shrimp unloader and advocate.
Ernie Zimmerman
Representing nonprofit environmental organizations, Ernie Zimmerman was appointed by Governor Phil Bryant on November 12, 2014. Zimmerman has been a member of the Coastal Conservation Association since 2002 and currently serves as president of the Bay St. Louis chapter, a position he also held from 2002-2007. He also is a member of the Mississippi Wildlife Federation.
Steve Bosarge
A third generation Jackson County commercial fisherman, Steve Bosarge was reappointed to the Commission on Marine Resources on July 1, 2012. Bosarge was first appointed by Governor Haley Barbour in 2008. He is owner of Bosarge Boats Inc. and B & B Boats Inc. He is a member of the Shrimp Advisory Panel for the Gulf of Mexico Fisheries Management Council and member of the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources Blue Crab Task Force. Bosarge also works with the National Marine Fisheries Service and the University of Mississippi on shrimp gear testing and volunteers his expertise to the Gulf and South Atlantic Fisheries Foundation on shrimp gear protocols. He has also cooperated with Johns Hopkins University in testing sonar equipment in the Gulf of Mexico and with dredging companies to relocate endangered marine life.
Shelby Drummond
Shelby B. Drummond of Gautier represents recreational sports fisherman. He was first appointed to the CMR by Governor Phil Bryant for a four-year term beginning on July 1, 2012. Drummond has been a fisherman for all his life, and has more than 40 years professional experience as a fisheries biologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Marine Fisheries Service.
Ron Harmon
Sworn inMay 2015, Ron Harmon of Captain Ron's Charters in Harrison County is the newest Marine Resources Commissioner, and is representing the charter boat industry
Corruption
In 2014, the previous director of the agency, Bill Walker, was convicted of public corruption and sentenced to five years in prison. Under Walker's leadership, the DMR spent almost $1.4 million on recreational fishing boats leased from Walker's private foundation. A former DMR employee said Walker used the boats 95 percent of the time for entertainment.
