Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 12, March 22, 2024
a) A Fishing Tournament Permit from the
Department is required for any fishing tournament event, which includes Hook
and Line Fishing Tournaments and Bowfishing Tournaments, that is held in any of
the waters listed in Section
810.45 or Section
810.15(d) and
in any public owned or Department-managed lake, river or stream in
Illinois.
b) The Fishing Tournament
Permit serves as the IDNR Site Activity Permit (17 Ill. Adm. Code
110.4).
c) Definitions
1) "Fishing Derby" - An organized event
conducted for children under the age of 16 who are attending primary school,
senior citizens (65 years old and older), sport fishermen with disabilities, or
other school-sanctioned groups when the principal purpose is education or
enjoyment, rather than competition among sport fishermen. Tournament Permits
are not required for a fishing derby.
2) "Fishing Tournament" - An organized event,
other than a fishing derby. An event will be considered a fishing tournament
when the following criteria are present:
A)
the event is sponsored or promoted by an individual or organization;
B) participants compete for trophies, cash,
prizes, citation or other recognition for participation in the event;
C) the event is conducted during a specified
time period; and
D) twenty or more
individuals participate in the event or an exemption to Site-Specific or
Statewide Regulations is requested.
d) The Department shall require the director
or organizer of a fishing tournament that is occurring at or on a Department
site to:
1) agree to indemnify and hold
harmless the Department, its officers, employees and agent for any damage to
property and persons as a result of the willful and/or negligent acts of the
group and/or its members and/or those in attendance. The Department will
provide the Release, Waiver and Indemnification form for the group to sign and
submit to the Site Superintendent; and
2) the tournament director or organizer
shall:
A) provide proof of liability insurance
of $1,000,000; or
B) require each
individual who participates in the event to sign a liability waiver that was
attached to the issued permit and turned back in to the Department site office
prior to the event.
e) A copy of the Fishing Tournament Permit
must be in the possession of the director or organizer at all times during the
event.
f) Special Length Limit
and/or Daily Harvest Limit exemptions are allowed when requested on the Fishing
Tournament Permit application, approved by the Department, and stated on the
Fishing Tournament Permit.
1) Special Length
Limit and Daily Harvest Limit exemptions to Site-Specific Regulations will only
be approved for:
A) catch, hold for weigh-in,
and release Black Bass Fishing Tournaments in Lake Michigan (Illinois Portion)
for which the Special Minimum Length Limit will be 14 inches and the Daily
Harvest Limit will be 3 fish daily;
B) youth-only catch, hold for weigh-in and
release Black Bass Fishing Tournaments, for which the Special Minimum Length
Limit will be 12 inches and the Daily Harvest Limit will be 5 fish per boat.
Youth-only is defined as 18 years old and younger;
C) catch, hold for weigh-in, and release
Muskie Fishing Tournaments (all waters), provided all fish are released
unharmed immediately after a quick weigh-in; and
D) catch, hold for weigh-in, and release
Black Bass Fishing Tournaments in the Mississippi River (between Illinois and
Iowa) and which are permitted by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, for
which the special Minimum Length Limit will be 12 inches and the Daily Harvest
Limit will be 5 fish per boat.
2) Daily Harvest Limit exemptions to
Statewide Regulations will only be approved for a common release boat utilized
immediately following a catch, hold for weight-in, and release
tournament.
g) The
statewide Daily Harvest Limit of no more than 6 largemouth, smallmouth or
spotted bass (black bass) that may be in possession is applicable while
participating in a Hook and Line Fishing Tournament, except:
1) as specified by Site Specific Regulations
in Section 810.45;
2) In streams
and rivers (excluding the mainstem of the Mississippi, Ohio (including the
Golconda Marina) and Wabash Rivers), the daily possession can contain no more
than 3 smallmouth bass; and
3) In
rivers and streams and their tributaries statewide (excluding the Mississippi,
Ohio( including the Golconda Marina), Wabash, and Illinois Rivers, Calumet
River, Lake Calumet Connecting Channel, Calumet Sag Channel and navigable
portions of the Grand Calumet River and Little Calumet River, all smallmouth
bass must be immediately released between April 1 and June 15.
h) Requests for a Fishing
Tournament Permit shall be made on applications provided by the Department of
Natural Resources, Division of Fisheries, available on the IDNR and
IFishIllinois websites.
1) Applications must
be fully completed with all required information and received by the Department
not less than 30 days prior to the tournament date.
2) Fishing Tournament Permit applications
will be accepted beginning November 1 of each year for the following calendar
year. Applications cannot be accepted before November 1 of the year the
application is made for any fishing tournament that is to be held the following
calendar year.
i) The
issuance or denial of a Fishing Tournament Permit by the Department shall be
based upon the following criteria:
1) The
capability of the fishery resource to absorb the tournament with minimal impact
to its well-being.
2) The need for
emergency protective procedures to protect the sport fisheries resources of the
State and the general health, safety and welfare of the general public as
provided for in Section
810.80.
3) The criteria and evaluation required for
approval of a Site Activity Permit, described in 17 Ill. Adm. Code
110.4.
j) Appeals of
denied permits must be made in writing to the Department within 10 days after
receipt of the denial. Any supplemental information requested must be included
in the appeal.
k) Required
provisions for holding, handling and releasing caught fish to protect fish
health in catch, hold for weigh-in and release Hook and Line Fishing
Tournaments:
1) Tournament officials must be
able to certify that all boats will be required to possess a livewell (except
Muskie Fishing Tournaments) fitted with a functioning aerator and water
pump.
2) Individual boats and sport
fishermen returning their catches of fish back to a release site must adhere to
Daily Harvest Limits for the waterbody or the Special Daily harvest Limit
listed in the Fishing Tournament Permit.
3) For catch, hold for weigh-in, and release
Muskie Fishing Tournaments, all boats must have a fish cradle (made from
netting) to temporarily hold the muskie in the water while an official
determines the length or weight of the fish prior to release. Muskies may not
be transported to a weigh-in site.
l) Bowfishing tournaments may be held in any
of the public waters open to bowfishing listed in Section
810.45 or public waters listed
in Section 810.15(d).
Bowfishing tournaments are subject to the following additional rules:
1) All non-native species legal to harvest
with bowfishing methods listed in Section
810.45 have unlimited harvest.
No possession of live Asian carp is permitted.
2) No exemptions will be granted for the
wanton waste and fish abandonment provisions in Section
810.14.
m) Failure to comply with the rules of this
Section is a violation of Section 20-35 of the Fish and Aquatic Life
Code.
n) During the months of July
and August, anglers competing in catch, hold for weigh-in, and release Black
Bass Fishing Tournaments must be off the water between 1:00 p.m. and 4:00
p.m.