Current through Reg. 50, No. 187; September 24, 2024
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
recognizes that there are justifiable reasons to allow for the harvest,
collection, possession, or release of freshwater fish species that otherwise
would be in violation of one or more of the state's freshwater fisheries
regulations. Such activities include scientific research, education/exhibition,
management activities, and fishing tournaments.
(1) Definitions. As used in this rule:
(a) Education exhibition - means an organized
presentation or display of freshwater fish along with a selection of
educational materials to include interpretive signs, presentations, brochures,
handouts, or other materials which shall include information about the species
for the following:
1. Public aquaria -
permanent, fixed aquaria in which freshwater fish species are confined in such
a manner that the general public is able to view the fish during regularly
scheduled business hours with or without a fee.
2. Public exhibitor - a facility in which
freshwater fish species are confined in such a manner that the general public
is able to view the species during regularly scheduled business hours, either
through scheduled tours or general admission, with or without a fee.
3. Public zoological park - a permanent,
fixed facility in which freshwater fish species are confined in such a manner
that the general public is able to view the species during regularly scheduled
business hours with or without a fee.
(b) Management - means an activity that
conserves, enhances, or restores freshwater fish species, populations, or
habitats for conservation or public benefit.
(c) Research - means any activity that uses
freshwater fish to conduct one or more of the following:
1. Research activity that involves the
application of rigorous, systematic, and objective procedures of observation,
measurement, experimental design, controls, and data analysis to test a stated
hypothesis.
2. Monitoring
activities that involve making technical and scientific observations as a means
of gathering data according to a predetermined study plan.
3. Resource conservation or mitigation
activities that involve the removal or enhancement of freshwater fish and
include subsequent monitoring to measure the success of the effort.
(2) Freshwater
Fisheries Special Activity Permits (FSAP).
Allows for the take and possession of freshwater fish species
that may otherwise violate Commission rules. Permits may be issued to entities
engaged in research, education, exhibition, or management as defined in this
rule. This permit does not authorize possession of live non-native freshwater
fish species in accordance with Chapter 68-5, F.A.C., or take or possession of
State or Federal endangered or threatened freshwater fish species as defined in
Chapter 68A-27, F.A.C.
(a) FSAP
General Application Evaluation Criteria. All FSAP applications will be
evaluated based on the following considerations:
1. Eligibility of the applicant for the
requested permit, as established under subparagraphs (2)(b)1., (2)(c)1., or
(2)(d)1., of this rule.
a. Completeness of the
information submitted to the Commission through the application
process.
b. Potential impacts of
the gear, size of the gear or method of collection and harvest including
chemicals requested.
c. Biological
status of the species requested, based on the best scientific information
available. In the absence of scientific information, the Commission will use a
risk-averse approach until such a time that scientific information is
available.
d. Location of proposed
activities.
e. Number and/or size
of the proposed species being studied or harvested.
f. Proposed disposition of the requested
species following collection.
g.
Whether the requested activities can be reasonably conducted under a
recreational freshwater fishing license.
h. Potential detrimental effects of the
requested activity on the ecology of the state.
(b) Freshwater Fisheries Research and
Monitoring (FFRM).
Accommodates the need for the scientific community to conduct
research, monitoring, and resource conservation or mitigation activities that
enhance the greater body of knowledge in support of fisheries management and
resource conservation and enhancement.
1. Eligibility. An FFRM shall only be issued
to the following:
a. A principal investigator
of a proposed or ongoing scientific research project who is affiliated with an
accredited university or college.
b. A administrator or teacher from a middle
school or high school conducting research as part of a curriculum or
project.
c. A member of the
scientific or technical staff of a municipal, city, county, state, or federal
agency.
d. A principal investigator
of a proposed or ongoing scientific research project who is affiliated with an
environmental services or consulting firm.
e. A member of the scientific or technical
staff of a certified aquaculture facility that holds a valid aquaculture
certificate of registration issued by the Department of Agriculture and
Consumer Services pursuant to Section
597.004, F.S.
2. FFRM Evaluation Criteria. In
addition to the evaluation criteria set forth in subparagraph (2)(a)1., FFRM
applications shall be evaluated based on the following criteria, as applicable
to the request:
a. Completeness of project
specifications and methodologies.
b. Monitoring strategies and
design.
(c)
Freshwater Fisheries Education/Exhibition (FFEE).
Allows for the collection, harvest, display, and exhibit of
freshwater fish by businesses, academics, public aquaria, zoological parks, or
public exhibitors for the purpose of increasing the public's knowledge and
awareness of freshwater fisheries and resources.
1. Eligibility. An FFEE shall only be issued
to the following:
a. An instructor employed
by, or under the sponsorship of a university, college, secondary school,
elementary school, or governmental entity or a private institution or
organization that has an established aquatic or environmental education
curriculum.
b. A curator or
director employed by or under sponsorship of a public or private aquaria or
zoological park, museum, university, or business establishment that displays
freshwater fish and aquatic organisms for viewing by the public and whose
activities have a freshwater-related component.
c. The organizer of an outreach event whose
activities include the display of freshwater fish and includes a presentation
or educational materials.
2. FFEE Evaluation Criteria. In addition to
the evaluation criteria set forth in subparagraph (2)(a)1., FFEE applications
shall be evaluated based on the following criteria, as applicable to the
request:
a. Species requested for exhibit or
display.
b. The physical
environment in which the species will be maintained and any potential
maintenance or husbandry concerns or potential for escape.
c. The potential for disease or human health
concerns.
(d)
Freshwater Fisheries Management (FFM).
Allows for management activities on private natural waters or
man-made ponds, waters not readily accessible to the general public or on
public waters where the management activity provides a benefit to the resource
and the state.
1. Eligibility. An FFM
shall be issued only to the following:
a. A
member of the scientific or technical staff of a municipality, city, county,
state, or federal agency.
b. A
member of a recognized environmental services or consulting firm or pond
management company.
c. Persons
licensed in accordance with Section
379.363, F.S., for the
collection of largemouth bass for broodstock. Such persons must follow genetic
authentication standards as referenced in paragraph
68A-23.009(2)(d),
F.A.C.
d. An individual/s
performing fisheries management activities that provide a benefit to the
resource and the state.
e. Entities
or individuals owning ponds/waters not covered by subsection
68A-23.002(11),
F.A.C.
2. FFM Evaluation
Criteria. In addition to the evaluation criteria set forth in subparagraph
(2)(a)1., FFM applications shall be evaluated based on the following criteria,
as applicable to the request:
a. Whether the
proposed management activity provides a benefit to the public, the resource,
and the state.
b. Whether the
proposed management activity could potentially have adverse effects on
connecting waters of the state.
(e) FSAP Application Requirements.
A FSAP application which covers FFRM, FFEE, or FFM activities
must be completed by submitting to the Commission the Application for a
Freshwater Fisheries Special Activity Permit for the Collection of Fish for
Scientific Research, Exhibition, or Management Purposes, form FWC DFFM 01,
(03/24), incorporated herein by reference and available at
http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-16573,
or from the Commission, 620 South Meridian Street, Tallahassee, Florida
32399-1600.
(f) FSAP
Application Review Process.
1. FSAP
applications will be reviewed and approved by the Director of the Commission's
Division of Freshwater Fisheries Management, or their designee.
2. Applications may also be reviewed by
individuals outside the Division of Freshwater Fisheries Management that
possess the biological, technical, regulatory, or enforcement expertise
necessary to appropriately evaluate a requested activity.
3. The Director of the Commission's Division
of Freshwater Fisheries Management, or their designee, may request an FFRM
applicant to provide additional information in the form of a scientific
research or study proposal.
(g) FSAP Reporting Requirements.
Permittees must submit an activity report within 30 days
after the permit expiration date or upon renewing the permit. The activity
report must detail all permit related activities including the common and
scientific name of the species collected, number collected by species
(including sizes, if available), location of collection or Global Positioning
Systems (GPS) coordinates, county, gear used for collection, and the
disposition and/or possession of any collected species and any other reporting
requirements specified within the permit conditions.
(f) FSAP Permit Period. All FSAPs shall
expire on December 31 of the year the permit was issued, unless otherwise
specified within the permit conditions.
(h) FSAP Renewal.
1. To renew an FSAP, the permittee must
submit a new permit application at least 30 days before permit
expiration.
2. An FSAP shall not be
renewed unless all conditions of the prior permit held by the applicant were
met and reporting requirements for the prior permit have been
submitted.
(3) Black Bass Tournament Exemption Permit
(BBTP).
(a) Purpose. The BBTP allows fishing
tournaments with six or more participants to temporarily possess black bass not
meeting size restrictions, provided that all fish caught in the tournament are
live-released following weigh-in, that black bass are handled in accordance
with the Commission's scientific guidelines (incorporated under subparagraph
(3)(c)2.), and that the permit holder completes and submits all reporting
requirements to the Commission after the tournament.
(b) Eligibility. A BBTP shall be issued only
to the following:
1. A representative from an
organized bass club or angling group that is hosting a fishing tournament with
six or more tournament participants.
2. A representative from an organized bass
club or angling group that agrees to adhere to all permit conditions and
scientific guidelines incorporated under subparagraph (3)(c)2.
(c) Application.
1. An applicant for a BBTP must apply through
the Commission's online permit system:
https://public.myfwc.com/CrossDOI/PermitMe/Menu.aspx.
2. Application instructions and permit
requirements, including the Commission's scientific guidelines and instructions
for completing post-tournament reporting, may be accessed at
http://myfwc.com/license/freshwater/bass-tournament/, and are contained in a
document titled "Black Bass Tournament Exemption (Permit) Stipulations," Form
#BBTE rev 2024 (03/24), incorporated herein by reference and available at
http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-16577,
or from the Commission, 620 South Meridian Street, Tallahassee, Florida
32399-1600.
3. An application for a
BBTP must be submitted at least 1 day prior to the tournament.
(d) BBTP Application Evaluation
Considerations. The following shall be considered when determining approval of
a BBTP:
1. Whether the tournament may have
biological impacts on the resource or fish population.
2. Whether the applicant has complied with
tournament after-action reporting requirements for any BBTP previously issued
to the applicant.
3. Whether the
owner of the boat ramp or weigh-in location has approved of tournaments being
conducted at their location.
4. If
there are any risks to human health or safety.
(e) Reporting Requirements.
1. Within 30 days following a permitted
tournament, the permittee must complete and submit a tournament after-action
activity report to the Commission. Instructions for completing tournament
after-action reports are incorporated under subparagraph (3)(c)2.
2. Failure to submit a completed tournament
after-action report will result in denial of future permit
exemptions.
Rulemaking Authority Art. IV, Sec. 9, Fla. Const. Law
Implemented Art. IV, Sec. 9, Fla.
Const.
New 4-14-24.
