State knots fishing license loophole

NORTHWEST FLORIDA - Twenty years ago, when the first saltwater fishing license was imposed in Florida, the legislature exempted state residents who fished from shore or a structure attached to shore.

That exemption was done away with this year. Everyone between the ages of 17 and 64 who is not indigent or disabled, will have to buy a license to fish by Aug. 1.

"No one wants an additional fee or tax," Half-Hitch Tackle owner Tom Putnam said. "But this is the best of the bad conditions that were going to be forced upon us."

He said the new restriction would impact a lot of his customers.

"We have a lot of people around here that fish from shore, or from the piers or the jetties," Putnam said.

Lee Schlesinger, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission spokesman, said federal authorities were going to implement their own license if the state didn't come into compliance with federal regulations on fishing licenses. The federal license would have been around $25.

The state license costs residents $17 and would cover all types of saltwater fishing from shoreline to boats. A special shoreline license, which does not include fishing from a boat, will cost around $9.

"The licenses are good for a year," Schlesinger said. "A lot can happen in a year. People really need to think about the license they buy. They could pay $17 and be covered no matter where they fish. If they buy the shoreline license, they'll only be able to fish off the shore."

He said it was probably smarter to buy the overall license, just in case. Schlesinger said the penalty for not having a license was a $50 fine, plus the cost of the license and an administrative fee. The cost could come out to about $70.

He said eliminating the exemption could impact a "couple hundred thousand" residents in the state.

Funding research, enforcement

Schlesinger said the first saltwater licenses came about on Jan. 1, 1990, and were at the request of recreational fishermen in an effort to gain more influence in fisheries management.

"They were seeing that, even then, there were problems with our fisheries," he said. "There was too much fisher pressure and with more and better boats and better gear, fish stocks were being depleted because of too much fishing pressure."

At that time, he said, there was little or no research into fish stocks and no management agencies.

He said the state makes $17 to $20 million a year off the sale of about 1.1 million fishing licenses. Schlesinger said all of that money goes to research and enforcement of fish regulations. He said he didn't know how much of FWC's budget was funded from fishing licenses.

"It funds marine law enforcement. It funds me," Schlesinger said of revenue from fishing licenses. "It funds hearings so our researchers can collect data, artificial reefs. It helps us do our educational programs."

Schlesinger said federal authorities with National Marine Fisheries informed state officials recently that the shoreline fishermen exemption made the state out of compliance with national regulations. He said one of the things federal officials want to do is have better information about fishing activities.

Schlesinger said the new license will bring a new level of sophistication to state researchers' efforts to track fish stocks.

"The databank we're been using up to his point has been the telephone book," he said. Licensees will now be added to the new National Angler Registry for researchers to use for better information compilation.

There remain exemptions to the license, he said. A person who is taking cash assistance from the state, notably in the form of Food Stamps, is considered indigent and is exempt. People younger than 16 or older than 64 are exempt, as are people who have been declared disabled.

Schlesinger said $17 is a "bargain" to enjoy one of Florida's best assets.

"Seventeen dollars is a pretty darn good deal for 365 days a year of fishing," he said.