Quote:
Originally Posted by Flaptail
I don't know, I mean I grew up fishing and the saltwater element is the last free frontier. Will the funds generated go to the right causes?
Can it be enforced? Given the undermanned EPO force now in place will it stretch it too thin, more than that department is now?
Can we really license something where the resource is really a national one rather than inherent to the state as in the case of the Striped Bass?
Do we really need it? Take for example the guy who comes down to the Cape for one week a year and traditionally would spend one or two evenings casting for Bluefish at West Dennis Beach with his children or buy a box of seaworms and sit with his son on the jetty at Menahaunt for one morning of thier vacation.
Should a license be required so the two of them could spend a little time together just sitting and talking about things a Dad and his kid speak of when alone and just enjoying something a bit different than life back in the city and it really doesn't matter what they catch?
Should they have top pay to enjoy that memory? Most people, the overwhelming majority are casual or better yet occasional at best fishermen. The local shops rely heavily on that type of business to get by each season. The local pros are not the ones that sustain thier business. A license requirement would only impare thier ability to stay in business as opposed to the #^&#^&#^&#^&'s, Bass Pro, Cabela's and Wally world stores.
How would this benefit the stocks of fish we have left?
There are way too many negatives as opposed to positives.
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Lots of good points Steve.
But, remember, there is already a license in place from Maryland south around through the gulf. Would be interested to hear if these issues presented themselves down there and how they were dealt with.
I'm not one for more EPO's either, but if the license revenues were to be directed by a collective voice, the potential impact is huge. Right now the recs are highly fragmented and unorganized in the northeast. A small, but organized group of commercial interests basically controls the bulk of our saltwater (MA) fishery now. Why? Because they are licensed, serve as a data source, and pay fees. Government knows who they are.
Right now nobody knows for sure who the recs are, how large their numbers, or what they really contribute(or take). The federal registry will be the first step in reversing this scenario. With the federal license a probable certainty within several years, I'm saying we get ahead of the curve and consider manging on a state/regional level before the feds(who cater to special interest $$ in many cases) do it for us.