Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Adopts a NOI to Increase the Possession Limit for Black Bass in Saltwater Areas of the State

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries 03.07.14

The Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission adopted a Notice of Intent to increase the possession limit for black bass up to three times the daily limit in areas below the saltwater line: http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/fishing/saltwater-freshwater-line-0.

This amendment is designed to allow fishermen to transport bass to the boat launch after being at a remote camp or on the water for multiple days at a time. An angler would be allowed to transport two times the daily creel limit if out for two consecutive days or three times the daily limit if out for three consecutive days.

Anglers would only be covered under this provision if they comply with the following:

Anglers must hold and be in possession of a basic recreational fishing license.
Anglers must be in possession of a receipt from a boat launch located south of the saltwater line that verifies the angler has been on the water for multiple consecutive days.
Fish must be kept whole or whole gutted, and each day’s catch must be packaged separately. Packages must be labeled with the angler’s name, fishing license number, date caught, species of fish and number of fish.
Anglers must only be in possession of his or her own fish.
Anglers must not actively fish while transporting more than their daily creel limit.

This provision would only apply in areas south of the saltwater line.

To view the full notice, please visit http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/action-items.

Interested persons may submit related comments regarding the proposed rule through June 4, 2014, to Mike Wood, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, Office of Fisheries, P.O. Box 98000, Baton Rouge, LA 70898-9000 or via email at comment@wlf.la.gov.

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries – Enforcement Division(LDWF) is the fish & game regulatory agency of Louisiana. It has jurisdictionanywhere in the state, and in state territorial waters. The agency enforces both state and federal laws dealing with hunting, fishing, and boating safety. The agency also enforces criminal laws in rural areas including DWI enforcement both on highways and waterways. Most of the Department’s Wildlife Agents also carry Federal law enforcement commissions issued from the United States Department of the Interior - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and United States Department of Commerce - U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). These federal commissions allow these state officers to enforce federal migratory waterfowl laws and federal marine fisheries laws in state and federal waters off the coast of Louisiana. Besides their traditional role as a “game warden”, Louisiana Wildlife Enforcement Agents also have a number of other responsibilities, including conducting board of health inspections on some portions of the state’s commercial fishing industry. Agents are trained in and conduct numerous search and rescue operations, both in remote land areas and on the state’s waterways. Agents ensure that hunters, anglers, boaters, dealers, breeders, farmers, and transporters are in compliance with regulations governing equipment, quotas, licenses, and registrations. Agents also assist other State departments and law enforcement agencies in the coordination of educational and professional endeavors, as well as national and state emergency alerts by the Federal Office of Emergency Preparedness. In addition, agents perform search and rescue missions alone or in conjunction with other local, state, and federal agencies.