Contact: Vernon Minton 251-968-7576
Effective June 1, 2008, no new recreational gill net licenses will be issued under legislation passed during the 2008 Legislative session and signed by Gov. Bob Riley.
Act 2008-467 limits recreational gill net licenses to those persons who hold or purchase current recreational licenses by midnight May 31, 2008.
Also included in the legislation is a provision that if a license holder fails to renew the recreational gill net license each year, the license will be retired. In other words, this means that if you don’t have a valid recreational gill net license as of midnight May 31, 2008 and you do not renew it each year, you will never be able to buy one again.
The legislation also included a restriction on deployment of a recreational gill net. The new provision stipulates that a recreational gill net may be a maximum of 300 feet in length and shall be set only by wading, which is defined as walking on the bottom, swimming, or treading water.
Also, by current regulation, the net may not be set more than 300 feet from the natural shoreline.
The legislation also created a surcharge of up to $8 in addition to the normal charge for annual resident and nonresident saltwater recreational hook and line licenses. The surcharge will be zero from June 1 to Aug. 31, 2008 and the surcharge for the 2008-2009 license year will be $8 per license. The legislation stipulates these monies will be collected for five years and placed into a Marine Resources Restoration Fund to administer a voluntary program to acquire and retire commercial gill net permits of commercial gill net fishermen.
The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources promotes wise stewardship, management and enjoyment of Alabama’s natural resources through five divisions: Marine Police, Marine Resources, State Parks, State Lands, and Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries. To learn more about ADCNR visit www.outdooralabama.com.
