Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, March 1, 2024
RELATES TO:
KRS
150.010(32),
150.450(2)
NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY:
KRS
150.025(1) authorizes the
department to regulate the size or type of devices and methods used to take
fish and wildlife, including the places where they may be taken.
KRS
150.175(3), (4) authorizes
the department to promulgate administrative regulations regarding the issuance
of commercial fishing licenses, commercial fishing gear, and commercial fishing
gear tags. This administrative regulation establishes restrictions on the use
of gill and trammel nets at Kentucky and Barkley Lakes.
Section 1. Definitions.
(1) "Bar mesh size" means the distance
between two (2) knots on a line of a net.
(2) "Immediate family" means the person's
spouse, mother, father, grandparent, son, or daughter.
(3) "Permit" means a special commercial
fishing permit.
(4) "Roe-bearing
fish" means paddlefish, shovelnose sturgeon, and bowfin.
(5) "Rough fish" is defined by
KRS
150.010(37).
(6) "Whip set" means a gill net or a trammel
net rigged so it is free-floating.
Section 2. Permit Requirements.
(1) A person shall possess a valid Kentucky
commercial fishing license to obtain or retain a permit throughout the special
commercial fishing season.
(2) The
department shall not issue more than twenty-five (25) permits.
(3) A permit holder shall submit a completed
permit application to the department, along with the appropriate permit fee
established in
301 KAR
3:022, postmarked on or before November 1 to retain
the permit privilege.
(4) The
ability to purchase a permit shall only be transferred to immediate family
members.
(5) New permits shall not
be issued until the total number of permits is less than twenty-five
(25).
(6) A lottery drawing shall
be used to select new permittees if the total number of permits is less than
twenty-five (25).
(a) A person applying for a
vacant permit shall submit to the department a completed Application for a
Special Commercial Fishing Permit postmarked on or before November 1, along
with the appropriate fee established in
301 KAR
3:022.
(b)
The maximum number of permits issued to nonresidents shall be seven
(7).
Section
3. Permit Requirements.
(1) A
person shall possess and carry a valid permit and a valid commercial fishing
license:
(a) If using a gill net or trammel
net to take rough fish:
1. From November 1
through March 31 at both Kentucky and Barkley Lakes; and
2. In the portions of Kentucky and Barkley
Lakes open to commercial fishing as established in
301 KAR
1:150.
(b) If transporting a gill net or trammel
net; and
(c) If selling fish taken
with a gill net or trammel net.
(2) A person shall:
(a) Tag a gill net or trammel net as
established in
KRS
150.175(4);
(b) Not use a gill net or trammel net with a
bar mesh size smaller than three and five-tenths (3.5) inches or larger than
four and five-tenths (4.5) inches, except:
1.
A whip set may have a minimum bar mesh size of three (3) inches; and
2. Beginning on November 15 and running
through March 31 at both Kentucky and Barkley Lakes, gill and trammel nets with
a bar mesh size larger than four and five-tenths (4.5) may be used in
stationary sets only;
(c) Not fish a stationary set net with the
top of the net or float line shallower than three (3) feet below the
surface;
(d) Tend each net, except
whip sets, at least once every twenty-four (24) hours;
(e) Not leave whip sets unattended;
(f) Affix a decal supplied by the department
to each side of the boat or motor used for fishing under this permit so that
the decal is clearly visible while fishing with a gill net or a trammel
net;
(g) Not dispose of any
commercially caught rough fish at public boat launch areas; and
(h) Not harvest paddlefish at both Kentucky
and Barkley Lakes during the special commercial fishing season if the
paddlefish are less than thirty-eight (38) inches, as measured from the
beginning of the eye to the fork of the tail fin.
(3) A permit holder may be accompanied by two
(2) unlicensed helpers, who shall be:
(a) In
the same boat with the permit holder if fishing with a gill net or a trammel
net; or
(b) Accompanied by the
permit holder if transporting or selling fish taken under the permit.
(4) A permit holder shall:
(a) Maintain an accurate record of daily
fishing activity; and
(b) Submit a
completed monthly report to the department by the tenth day of the following
month on the Monthly Report of Commercial Fish Harvest in Kentucky form
provided by the department.
Section 4. Paddlefish Harvest Requirements.
(1) A person who possesses a valid permit
shall be allowed to harvest paddlefish flesh or roe during the special
commercial fishing season without the need to purchase a Commercial Roe-bearing
Fish Harvester's Permit.
(2) A
person who harvests paddlefish roe during the special commercial fishing season
shall follow all Commercial Roe-bearing Fish Harvester Permit reporting
requirements established in
301 KAR
1:155, Section 4(4).
Section 5. Permit Suspension, Revocation, and
Renewal.
(1) The department shall suspend the
permit of a person who fails to complete and submit to the department a Monthly
Report of Commercial Fish Harvest or a Daily Commercial Roe Harvest Report for
each transaction involving a buyer permittee by the following methods:
(a) The first time during the season a report
is not received or, if mailed, not postmarked by the tenth of the following
month, the licensee or permittee shall receive by mail a courtesy reminder
letter.
(b) The second time during
the season a report is not received or, if mailed, not postmarked by the tenth
of the following month, the licensee or permittee shall receive a warning
letter.
(c) If a third or
subsequent time during the season a report is not received or, if mailed, not
postmarked by the tenth of the following month, the license or permit shall be
suspended until all reports have been received.
(2) The department shall not renew the
commercial fishing license or harvester's permit of a person who fails to
complete and submit to the department all reports required by this
administrative regulation.
(3) The
department shall revoke or not renew a person's permit for a period of two (2)
years, for the following state violations involving commercial fishing:
(a) Use of illegal commercial fishing
gear;
(b) Knowingly placing
commercial fishing gear in a restricted area;
(c) Harvesting prohibited species of
fish;
(d) Commercially fishing, as
established by
301 KAR
1:150, in waters not open to commercial fishing;
or
(e) Knowingly falsifying
commercial harvest data.
(4) A person whose permit has been revoked or
denied shall be eligible to enter the lottery drawing following the revocation
period only if a permit is available based on the twenty-five (25) permit
restriction established in Section 2 of this administrative
regulation.
(5) A person whose
permit has been revoked or denied may request an administrative hearing
pursuant to KRS Chapter 13B.
(6) A
request for a hearing shall be in writing and postmarked or delivered in person
to the department no later than thirty (30) days after notification of the
denial or revocation.
(7) Upon
receipt of the request for a hearing, the department shall proceed according to
the provisions of KRS Chapter 13B.
(8) The hearing officer's recommended order
shall be considered by the commissioner and the commissioner shall issue a
final order pursuant to KRS Chapter 13B.
Section 6. Incorporation by Reference.
(1) The following material is incorporated by
reference:
(a) "Application for a Special
Commercial Fishing Permit", 2007;
(b) "Monthly Report of Commercial Fish
Harvest in Kentucky", 2008; and
(c)
"Daily Commercial Roe-Bearing Fish Harvester's Transaction Report",
2008.
(2) This material
may be inspected, copied, or obtained, subject to applicable copyright law, at
the Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, #1 Sportsman's Lane, Frankfort,
Kentucky 40601, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
STATUTORY AUTHORITY:
KRS
150.025(1),
150.175(3),
(4)