BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) - Top state officials want the National Park Service to clarify a proposal to reduce the bloated elk herd in southwestern North Dakota's Theodore Roosevelt National Park, including whether volunteer shooters would be able to keep the meat.

Game and Fish Director Terry Steinwand said he and Gov. John Hoeven plan to meet with park officials on Monday to try to resolve the issues, so the state officials can decide whether to formally support the plan.

"This is certainly a step in the right direction; much, much better than what they had earlier," Steinwand said Wednesday. "But we still have some questions."

The Park Service's proposal calls for teams of shooters including volunteers - a method similar to one pushed by Hoeven, Steinwand and Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D.

Dorgan has praised the plan as a victory for common sense in a state with a rich hunting heritage, but Hoeven and Steinwand say they are not yet convinced the plan is acceptable. One of the issues is whether volunteers could keep the meat - something the state advocates.

The Park Service's proposal says the meat would be donated to state agencies, American Indian tribes or charities. Acting National Park Service Director Dan Wenk said in an Aug. 10 letter to Dorgan that "If the state then wanted to give some of the meat to the volunteers that helped in the removal effort, that would be their decision."