Voting Members
Phil Dyskow
239-821-7698
State: Florida
2nd Term: 2020 – 2023
Sector: Recreational/At large
Former President of Yamaha Marine Group, Phillip Dyskow is a life-long recreational angler with experience in both fresh and salt water. Throughout his adult life he developed a passion for fishing the Gulf of Mexico, both inshore and offshore. Over the past decade he has focused his fishing efforts in the 10,000 Islands area of Southwest Florida operating out of his waterfront home on Marco Island, Florida. Phil pilots his own 24 foot bay boat, and enjoys the solitude of a day on the water in a very remote part of Florida. Phil is active in Marine Conservation and is a Legacy Member and a Life Member of the Coastal Conservation Association.
Thomas Frazer, PhD
727-553-3360
State: Florida
3rd Term: 2022 – 2025
Sector: Other/At large
Dr. Tom Frazer is Dean of the College of Marine Science, Biological Oceanography at University of South Florida. He has spent his career conducting research in both freshwater and marine ecosystems around the globe.
His life-long passion for fisheries began in the coastal waters off Southern California. That passion led him to pursue a bachelor’s degree in marine fisheries at Humboldt State University. Tom subsequently earned a master’s degree in fisheries and aquatic sciences from the University of Florida. He then returned to the west coast to earn a doctoral degree at the University of California Santa Barbara.
Robert “Bob” Gill
352-302-0600
State: Florida
1st Term: 2021 – 2024
Sector: Commercial/Obligatory
For most of his career, Mr. Gill owned and operated Shrimp Landing, a dockside wholesale and retail seafood business in Crystal River, Florida. Interestingly, Bob didn’t start life in the fishing industry. After serving in the U.S. Navy, he earned a Master’s in Ocean Engineering from MIT. He worked at various companies as an engineer before uprooting everything to buy his fish house, despite his complete lack of knowledge of seafood or fish processing. As Bob’s business grew, he started getting involved in fisheries management so that he could understand and react to regulations as a businessman. Eventually, he earned a seat on the Council serving as a Council member from 2006-2010 and as chair from 2011-2012.
Beyond his fish house and Council involvement, Bob is always busy finding ways to contribute his time and expertise to nurture the industry. He is most enthusiastic about his regional and national involvement with the Marine Resource Education Program (MREP). He also co-founded the Gulf Commercial Fisherman’s Program which aims to create and cultivate new entrants into the commercial fishery.
Texas
Greg Stunz, PhD
Vice Chair
361-825-3254
State: Texas
3rd Term: 2020 – 2023
Sector: Other/At large
Greg Stunz, Ph.D. is a marine biologist that specializes in fisheries ecology and sport-fisheries. He holds the Endowed Chair of Fisheries and Ocean Health at the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies. He is a Professor of Marine Biology at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi and acts as the Director of the Center for Sportfish Science and Conservation. He received both his M.S. and Ph.D. in Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences from Texas A&M University and a B.S. in Biology from the University of Texas at San Antonio.
A major focus of Dr. Stunz’s research program is to provide scientific data for sustainable management of our marine fisheries and ocean resources to ensure healthy environments. Greg’s research program is diverse, but currently focuses on migration patterns of marine life using a variety of state-of-the-art electronic tracking devices, how marine animals interact with their habitats, and the vital role that estuaries and near-shore waters play in sustaining marine populations. Specifically, his research includes understanding the roles of apex predators (i.e., sharks) in Gulf ecosystems and tracking their movement patterns, dolphinfish migration patterns and life history studies, red snapper ecology and management, methods to reduce discard mortality, and several projects dealing with many estuarine fishes such as spotted seatrout and red drum and their sustainable management.
Troy Williamson
troy.b.williamson.II@gmail.com
State: Texas
2nd Term: 2022 – 2025
Sector: Recreational/Obligatory
Troy Williamson is an attorney in private practice in Corpus Christi, Texas. Troy earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Chemistry and a Doctor of Jurisprudence degree. He chose a career in civil law and channeled his scientific interest into fisheries advocacy. Troy is currently a Commissioner (Texas) on the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission and serves on the Executive Committee of the Center for Sportfish Science and Conservation, Harte Research Institute at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. He has served on numerous Advisory Panels for the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council. Troy is a recreational fisherman who primarily enjoys saltwater fly-fishing for different species across the U.S. and beyond.
Alabama
Susan Boggs
251-747-4169
reelsurprisecharters@gmail.com
State: Alabama
2nd Term: 2021 – 2024
Sector: Recreational/Obligatory
Susan Boggs is the acting Chief Operations Officer of Reel Surprise Marina, a full-service marina and fuel dock in Orange Beach, Alabama. She also manages her husband’s charter business that offers both inshore and offshore trips on a variety of headboats and charter vessels. Mrs. Boggs served as the Vice Chair of the Marine Trades Committee of the Coastal Alabama Business Chamber for five years. She currently serves as a member of the Gulf Shores/Orange Beach Tourism Board. Susan has fished her entire life, targeting bass in ponds as a kid and saltwater fishing with her husband later on. She enjoys spending time outdoors and cooking with her family.
Bob Shipp, PhD
251-454-7481
State: Alabama
2nd Term: 2020 – 2023
Sector: Other/At large
Bob Shipp is professor Emeritus in the Department of Marine Sciences at the University of South Alabama, which he chaired for 20 years. He served on the Gulf Council from 1992-2000 and 2005-2013, during which he was elected chair three times. His primary research areas are artificial reef habitats and the biology of red snapper, on which he has published numerous peer reviewed papers and has testified before Congress three times. He is currently a board member of the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GOMRI), the 500 million dollar research program created to study the impacts of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. He served on the Gulf Council’s Scientific and Statistical Committee before he was reappointed to the Council. He is author of “Dr. Bob Shipp’s Guide to Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico” in its second edition and has served as judge for 35 years for the Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo, the largest and oldest fishing tournament in the world.
Louisiana
Billy Broussard
337-737-2396
State: Louisiana
1st Term: 2021 – 2024
Sector: Commercial/At large
Born and raised in coastal Louisiana, Mr. Broussard has been fishing since before he can remember. He has devoted his entire life to being on or near the water, and in the times he wasn’t making a living off of commercial or charter fishing, Billy spent every free moment recreational fishing. Billy is currently a commercial blue crabber. He also works as a land manager for Vermilion Corporation selling access to land for recreational fishing purposes. In his free time, Billy likes to take multi-day trips offshore to fish recreationally.
Mr. Broussard served as a Commissioner for the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF). He also served on the LDWF Commission Legislative Committee, the LDWF Artificial Reef Committee, and as a voting Board Member on Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority.
Jonathan “JD” Dugas
337-254-0508
State: Louisiana
2nd Term: 2021 – 2024
Sector: Recreational/Obligatory
JD Dugas owns and operates a suite of home care businesses that provide hospice, home health, and personal care services. He also owns a marine logistics business that services the oil and gas industry. Mr. Dugas is a lifetime member of the Coastal Conservation Association and has served in each officer role (secretary, treasurer, vice president, and president) of his local chapter. Prior to being appointed to the Council, he served on the Gulf Council’s Ad Hoc Red Snapper Private Angler Advisory Panel. JD has been recreational fishing since he was a kid. In recent years, he has turned his attention towards marlin fishing, competing in billfish tournaments across the Gulf. JD also enjoys saltwater fishing with his wife and daughter in Grand Isle, Louisiana. He relishes the opportunity to share the outdoors with his daughter by teaching her to fish and deer hunt.
Mississippi
Michael McDermott
228-374-2100
State: Mississippi
1st Term: 2022 – 2025
Sector: Recreational/Obligatory
Michael is a lifelong resident of Biloxi, Mississippi where he practices law and operates a dry storage marina housing over 200 boats. Raised in a family of fisherman, Michael has fished and traveled throughout the Gulf of Mexico, Atlantic and Caribbean. He has followed and participated in fisheries management issues for over a decade.
Dale Diaz
Chair
228-861-3190
State: Mississippi
3rd Term: 2021 – 2024
Sector: Other/At large
Dale Diaz, the Chair of the Gulf Council, obtained his B.S. degree in Biological Science in 1996 from William Carey University. Dale has spent his entire career working with Marine Resources of the Gulf of Mexico. He retired as the Office Director of the Office of Marine Fisheries for the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources in 2013. During his career, he worked as an owner/captain of a 52-ft. commercial shrimp and oyster vessel, a Marine Law Enforcement Officer, a Fisheries Scientist, and a Fisheries Administrator. Dale lives in D’iberville, Mississippi and enjoys camping and boating with family and friends.
State and Federal Voting Members
Andy Strelcheck
Regional Administrator
National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)
727-551-5702
Mr. Strelcheck is serving as the Regional Administrator (RA) for NOAA Fisheries Southeast Regional Office. Prior to becoming the RA in August 2021, he served as the Deputy RA and then the Acting RA of NOAA Fisheries’ Southeast Regional Office. In these roles, he guided regional priorities related to broad-ranging environmental laws to ensure sustainable fisheries and fishing communities, conservation and restoration of fisheries habitat, and protection and recovery of endangered and threatened species. He began his career working with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Division of Marine Fisheries in 2001 before taking a job as a fishery biologist at NOAA Fisheries in 2004. From 2008-2015 he served as chief of the Limited Access Privilege Programs Data Management Branch before becoming the Deputy RA. In this capacity, he oversaw catch share programs analytical work used to support fisheries management.
His interest and passion for fisheries management began after learning how to dive as a teenager. He went on to study fisheries science and biology at Florida State University, and later earned a master’s degree in Marine Science from the University of South Alabama. He enjoys fishing, scalloping, boating and hiking with family and friends.
Kevin Anson
Alabama State Representative
Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
251-968-7576
(Designee for Scott Bannon)
Kevin Anson has been an employee of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources / Marine Resources Division (AMRD) since 1998. He served as a biologist overseeing various recreational data collection programs, administering federal grants, and was AMRD’s coordinator for boating access and the artificial reef coordinator. In 2011, Kevin became the Fisheries Section Chief responsible for coordination and development of AMRD biological programs. He has served as proxy member of the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council for the AMRD since 2008.
Kevin received a B.A. degree in Anthropology from Florida Atlantic University and a M. S. degree in Fisheries and Allied Aquacultures from Auburn University. He also has five years of aquaculture experience working for a private aquaculture company in Belize, Central America.
Patrick Banks
Louisiana State Representative
Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
225-765-2370
(Chris Schieble, designee)
Patrick Banks currently serves as the Assistant Secretary for the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) and is responsible for the administrative operation of all fisheries management activities in Louisiana. He has been with LDWF since 2001 and has worked within the Marine Fisheries Section his entire career, most recently serving as the Biologist Director of that section. He also served as the statewide oyster program manager for over a decade where he oversaw management of the largest oyster fishery in the country. He received a B.S. in Environmental Science from Mercer University and an M.S. in Zoology from Louisiana State University.
During his time off, Banks is an avid recreational angler who enjoys chasing redfish, speckled trout, and green trout (largemouth bass) in the coastal marshes, especially around Delacroix, Louisiana. He is also an avid hunter and enjoys duck hunting along the coast, and deer and duck hunting in central Louisiana. He lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with his three children.
Jessica McCawley
Florida State Representative
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission – Division of Marine Fisheries Management
850-487-0554
(Christopher (CJ) Sweetman, designee)
Jessica McCawley serves as the Director of the Division of Marine Fisheries Management for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). She has a B.S. in marine biology from Spring Hill College and an M.S. in marine science from the University of South Alabama. She began working for the FWC’s Division of Marine Fisheries Management in 2003 and was promoted to Division Director in 2011. In this role she oversees a broad variety of issues such as federal fisheries management, fisheries regulation development, outreach and education, state artificial reef coordination, agency commenting, trap retrieval, issuing special activity licenses, and audits of wholesale dealers.
Robin Riechers
Texas State Representative
Texas Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
512-389-4636
(Dakus Geeslin, designee)
Robin Riechers, Director of Coastal Fisheries of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department began his career in the Coastal Fisheries Division in 1988. Robin has served in various roles within the coastal fisheries division and served as the Science and Policy Director for 7 years prior to being named Director. In his early years, Robin served as the economist for coastal fisheries but was largely responsible for implementing and managing the human dimension program’s that are critical to our fishery program efforts today. Robin has been recognized for his efforts in working with the shrimping community on the passage and implementation of the Shrimp Limited Entry Program. He also played a key role in the passage of the crab and finfish limited entry programs in 1997 and 1999. He has served on the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council since 2000 and served as Chairman of the Council in 2006 and 2007. In February of 2010, Mr. Reichers became the Director of Coastal Fisheries Division for Texas Parks and Wildlife. Shortly after being named Coastal Fisheries Chief, Robin assumed the role of Texas representative on the Deepwater Horizon Early Restoration Trustee Council and served as chair of that body in 2015-16.
Gen. Joe Spraggins
Mississippi State Representative
Mississippi Department of Marine Resources
228-523-4171
(Rick Burris, designee)
Brigadier General Benjamin J. Spraggins is the Executive Director for the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources. In addition to his duties as Executive Director, he serves on the Executive Committee of the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission, the Mississippi Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act Committee, Executive Committee for the Gulf of Mexico Alliance and the Go Coast 2020 Board. Gen. Spraggins served as Chief Operations Officer for MDMR from October 2013 to December 2017. He also is a Commissioner on the Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport Authority. He served in the military for 34 years and was the Commander of Combat Readiness Training Center Gulfport, Commander of 186th Air Refueling Wing, Meridian, MS and Chief of Staff Tennessee Air National Guard. Gen. Spraggins is married to Judy Phillips Spraggins and has one son.
Non-Voting Members
Glenn Constant
Designee for Leopoldo “Leo” Miranda
US Fish and Wildlife Service
225-578-4243
LCDR Lisa Motoi
Designee for RADM John P. Nadeau
Eighth Coast Guard District
504-671-2058
Dave Donaldson
Executive Director
Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission
228-875-5912
Deirdre Warner-Kramer
Designee for David Hogan
Foreign Affairs Officer
202-647-2335