New Mexico Department of Game and Fish
Public contact, Information Center: (888) 248-6866
Media contact: Karl Moffatt: (505) 476-8007
karl.moffatt@state.nm.us
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, April 8, 2016:
Donate part of your state tax refund to help wildlife
SANTA FE – Want to help wildlife in need of conservation? It’s as easy as filing out a line on your state tax return to donate some or all of your refund to the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish Share with Wildlife program.
The Share with Wildlife program funds many projects and organizations, including the nonprofit New Mexico Wildlife Center in Espanola, where injured animals receive veterinary care and rehabilitation before being released back into the wild.
The program also funds research, including the study of natural defenses that bat species in New Mexico may have against white-nose syndrome, a devastating disease wiping out many bat colonies in the eastern United States.
Another project involves developing a genetic test to detect species of fish in a stream or river by simply sampling the water instead of having to manually catch and identify them. Also funded this year is a project to study a type of salamander found only in the Sacramento Mountains of southern New Mexico.
“People who contribute to the Share with Wildlife program make all these wildlife projects possible,” said Ginny Seamster, the department’s Share with Wildlife program coordinator. Donations to the program are matched by federal dollars to maximize the effort. More than $1 million has gone to research, habitat enhancement, education and rehabilitation projects in the past 10 years. Many of those projects benefit nongame species in need of conservation. All donations fund projects, not program administration.
The program is reliant upon donations, especially through tax refund contributions. To donate part of your state tax refund, fill out line two of PIT-D, the voluntary contributions schedule. Visit the state Taxation and Revenue Department at www.tax.newmexico.gov for tax forms and instructions.
Donations also can be made directly to the program or by purchasing a Share with Wildlife license plate. Please visit the department’s website at www.wildlife.state.nm.us/share for more information or contact Seamster at (505) 476-8111 or virginia.seamster@state.nm.us.
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