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I understand there is information that has been put together that indicates what most of have said for years, that catch shares make a few wealthy while turning others into share croppers. This info may be public soon. Do not fall into this trap of being told that sector separation will allow you to fish more and anytime. As of 7-16 there were 1251 active charter reef fish permits, which does not include historical captains or the number of permits that can be renewed. This number does not include state licensed only vessels that also fish for red snapper and other reef fish. Sector separation will not do anything to improve data, the number of days you can fish, or anything else other than set the stage for catch shares in the for –hire sector. Remember, the edf sector separation supporters have already laid out a plan to lease and purchase commercial catch shares. This can only be done with their own catch share program.
MSSA Maryland Update Dave Smith, President dave.smith@mssa.net Maryland Saltwater Sportman’s Association works closely with the RFA and serves as our default chapter in that state.
Making Waves |
Aug/Sept 2012
The 2012 session for the MSSA was highly publicized and once again put the organization back into a position of action rather than reacting. The membership, recreational anglers and the Legislative Committee were re-energized this year with the introduction of Senate Bill 1032, which would prohibited the use of gill nets in Maryland waters. Sponsored by Senator Kathy Klausmeier, Senate Bill 1032 saw a rather unique journey as it ultimately ran out of time in the Senate Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs committee (EHEA). SB 1032 was developed by the MSSA Legislative Committee in response to what most believed was a lack of response and accountability on the part of the Department of Natural Resources. I don’t want to go into the specifics on what transpired between the egregious poaching cases we all witnessed in 2011, 2010, and 2009 and the regulation changes the DNR implemented in early 2012, but I will say that most of the “plan” has yet to see daylight and there have been numerous gill net violations in 2012, though not as heavily publicized. Having said that, MSSA is going to move forward and try to once again work with the DNR on how best to protect and utilize our fisheries resources. The MSSA continues to believe that gill nets are a detriment to our fisheries resources including the most sought after fish on the Atlantic Coast, striped bass or rockfish. SB 1032 is only the beginning of what is ahead for the MSSA and the Legislative Committee. With a re-energized committee and membership base we have already discussed our 2013 agenda and have scheduled numerous Legislative Committee meetings at our new Legislative headquarters in an undisclosed MSSA member’s law office in Annapolis.
The Sinking of the Boat Registration Fee Increase
MSSA and RFA share a deep concern about the health of striped bass stocks and have worked jointly for over 15 years on both the state and federal level to secure stock abundance for anglers now and in the future.
As you might know, the DNR attempted to increase our boat registration fees over the next three years, but to no avail. The reasons were legitimate but the amount of increase and execution were the downfall. Instead of approaching the boaters and anglers about this bill and trying to gain a consensus about the idea of increasing boat registration fees, the DNR surprised everyone with a proposed massive increase. The MSSA and its members acted quickly to squash the outrageous fee increases, in some cases over 500%. Over 4,000 emails were sent in opposition to the bill from MSSA members which proved to be very effective in killing it. The MSSA understands the dilemma the DNR is in and we value their efforts in keeping our waterways safe, however they must prove to us that the money taken in by boat registration fees will stay within the DNR and be used appropriately. Until that is done, we cannot support an increase of any amount.