Report: MA gamefish bill meeting

[DarkSkies]

CCCHFA:

(In this pic the CCCHFA are seated on the bench behind the table. You can see them to the extreme right. The pics are terrible, sorry)



The ccchfa and Exec Director Sue Nickerson got to the table and explained their opposition, basically job loss and financial hardship.


I thought they did a decent job of explaining their issues. Some of them I may not agree with, but I agreed with the way they presented them. It was hard for the legislators not to pay attention with person after person on the Comm side willing to testify, AND stacks of letters and e-mails presented to them.



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Most of the rest of the comments are from Comms. They far outnumbered the Recs. I estimated approx 80 Comms showed up.

The Recs, inclluding the SF group, numbered around 30-40 at most.

I had heard that sf was supposed to have 55 of its own members there. Additionally, I hoped there would be others to balance things out. It was kind of sad to see so many people talk about this stuff on internet sites. Then when it's time for them to show up, very few do.

If you ever think you want to oppose the Comms, you must realize that they will turn out in full force. They will go to meetings and voice their opinions. I realize a lot of people had to work that day, things happen. My impression was that it was a poor turnout for the Recs, considering how many there are out there.

[DarkSkies]

There were so many I can't post them all or my fingers will fall off.

I'm just gonna post the ones that seemed to offer a different perpective. These are all paraphrased as I heard them:



1. Willie Hatch, cf, Falmouth
"The ASMFC 11-19-09 report says the resource is in good condition. Female sb are at 148% and 180% over target. If there is an availibility problem, maybe it is the fault of the seals, less bait, or more pollution.
Since 2004 there has been a slight decline in my catches. To blame cf is unjust.
sf is a special interest group that wants the fish all to themselves. The stock is not overfished, it is sustainable. "


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2. Dean Carton, rf,


"I used to be a cf, now my thinking has changed. sb should be protected from commercial exploitation like other animals, like the deer and waterfowl are."
Mr Carton presented letters from -

a. Arthur Brownell, a Commissioner of Mass F&G from 1968-76. Mr Brownell said the rec value of striped bass far exceeded the comm value. The tourists will no longer come to MA if the bass stocks collapse.

b. Ted Williams - Ted Williams has a well-known article, reviewed here, Striper Signals, beginning with post #20:
http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/...p?t=760&page=2

c. Capt Jimmy Elliot

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3. Richard _____, cf,
former member of MA legislature, now a cf:
"I have been cf since I left the legislature. This bill takes away from the ability of cf to earn a living. Commercial mortality is very low and should be regulated by the DMF. If any further regulation is needed, you should go to the DMF and demand stricter regs."





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4. David Halbinson, rf, and charter captain, Halston, MA, speaking in support of the bill
"60 yrs fishing... there has been a precipitous drop in rf catches since 2006 according to NOAA and NMFS.
DMF striped bass permit breakdown:
What is the distribution of those who sell fish?
a. Only 453 reported they actually sold fish. That means approx 9% of permit holders sold 73% of all fish.
b. The total income brought into MA by all cf license holders is approx $3.4mm before taxes. This translates to approx $2800/yr. Assuming costs of doing business, I find it hard to believe these guys who are cf are making around $2800/year or substantially less on selling bass.

Are these figures and reported income accurate? Someone needs to look at this. "



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5. Dennis Gebrallis, cf, Hyannis -
"No one makes 100% of their income striped bass fishing. Leave us alone, we are only a small part of the catch."

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6. Peter Budryk, rf, free lance Author - fishing 50 yrs


I am "for" the gamefish bill. Most commercial fishermen are honest, I agree with that statement.

However, the commercial permit system is being abused, and it is time the gov't or some governing body looks into it.
Remember the demise of the buffalo? At one time they were all over the land. Bluefin tuna now have a similar situation. Market fishing for these bluefin is extremely lucrative. The sizes are geting smaller and smaller every year. The same thing is happening to our striped bass. It's time to stand up and do something about it.
I'm a writer on Cape Cod, and have been writing for 60 years. I have seen that there are individuals on both sides who are abusing this system, BOTH commercial and recreational.
Therefore, it can be said that BOTH groups are stealing this shared resource form the American public."


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7. John Creed, cf, Sandwich Mass
"I've been fishing since I was 10 years old. Why are you worried about the catches of 23 people?
The fish are all offshore now where the food is.
I don't know where they spawn and I don't care. I only know all the fish are offshore and out of reach of most people. That is why they are saying there is less of them. '



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8. Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass Association - cf


"We need sb as part of our diversified fishery. We fish for TAC - total allowable catch, and will soon be participating in catch shares developed by Dr Lubchenko."


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9. Menemsha fishing assoc - cf


"We don't know where you are getting your low figures from. We all caught over 6000lbs each last year."

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10. Stan Barry - cf - Boston fish wholesaler


"I have customers around the world who plan their season around buying and eating striped bass. They will not eat farmed striped bass and prefer wild striped bass. If I cannot provide it to them, I will lose these customers."

[finchaser]

I'm against the tag ,there is a quota assigned to it and once met that should be it for the year but no one monitors it.under the new method

Under the old method you had cards that had to be filled out and mailed in, and you were sent another but after so many cards were issued in general it stooped. Using the INTERNET to do it is total bull ****. IMO the INTERNET will aid in destroying bass fishing even faster this time around.

[VSdreams]

Time well spent Dark, it must have taken you hours to collect your thoughts and get them down on paper. It is much appreciated. Nice reporting. Thanks.

[DarkSkies]

VSDreams, I honestly spend way too much time on these issues. What pushes me is there are many out there who don't know any of this stuff, because it's never been presented to them before.

I want to give it my best effort. My energies are fueled by the countless phone calls and PMs I get thanking me for trying.

Many of those contacting me are old-timers, who have seen this happen once, and see the potential of it happening again. Quite a few of them are tired of fighting. A general consensus among a lot of old timers I know and a lot of other fishermen is that we might as well ignore this. They feel another moratorium is inevitable given all the fighting we recreational fishermen do. They feel things will get shut down anyway, what's the use of trying?

Sometimes I wonder if in the grand scheme of things if it's worth it? Why fight a growing trend of anglers who don't want to believe it unless they see it before their very eyes?

My answer:
It's the phone calls and PMs. I thank you guys for that.

Thanks to all who keep pushing me, even the grouchy ones.

[seamonkey]

Nice report Dark, Thanks for the update.

[DarkSkies]

11. Tim Silva, cf
"50% of my income comes from bass fishing. This bill is selfish."


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12. Thomas Short, cf
"This is a sustainable fishery"


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13. Darren Saletta, cf Chatham


"I have a marine sciences degree from Cornell. We don't hi-grade our fish. We are accused of not contributing to the fishing culture. Many families come to the docks to see us come in. It's true there are many inactive permits, but people maintain these permits to keep their options open. "


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14. Allen Forrest, rf, Cape Cod, fishing for 50 years


I was once a cf, am now solely a rf. I believe we need to protect these fish. We all deserve better fishing than what we're having now. The preservation of this species has been maligned, like it only benefits a special interest group. I say that statement is false. The making of the striper a gamefish will ultimately benefit us all, and because the numbers are down, now is the time to do it."


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15. Russell Cleary, cf, representing the Commercial Anglers Assoc. (CAA)
"Striped bass are not overfished. This bill would place an undue burden on many families. I was on the MFC advisory committee at one time."


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16. George Watson, rf
I have many years of fishing experience. I grew up fishing with John Tolten. I have issues with several claims put forth with commercial fishermen:
a. No one will eat farm raised striped bass and people will lose restaurant customers if they try to serve it.
This is an untrue statement. If you look at the value of farm raised vs wild striped bass in the fish markets, wild striped bass sells for only 10c more/lb than farm raised. What does that tell you about market forces? People are already eating farm raised striped bass and paying for the privelege with no complaints. Market forces have dictated that farm raised is comparable to wild bass, at least from an economics standpoint.

b. All striped bass are healthy as sold.
This is another fallacy. The larger striped bass have higher concentrations of PCBs. This has been scientifically proven. There is also a high % of mycobacteriosis in bass who spawn in the Chesapeake bay. They are having serious problems with that now.

c. The striped bass fishery is sustainable.
This is another fallacy. In the 1800s there were 100lb striped bass. The average size has been decreasing since then. I don't expect people to have 100lb bass as a standard now. After all, that was over 150 years ago. However, this continuous harvesting of the bigger bass has had a negative effect on average striped bass size. I maintain it is decreasing, and will continue until we do something about it.


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17. Dave Tripp, cf & charter captain
"The slot limit is bad because it doesn't allow bass to spawn"

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18. Jose______, cf
"rf has more mortality than cf"

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19. Hunter Mark (14 years old) and David Mark (uncle), cf, Chatham
"This bill will restrict us and not allow us to make a living"

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20. ______________ , rf
(I didn't get this guy's name. Anyone who recognizes his testimony here, plse let me know and I'll edit it in later)
'I was a cf for many years, and now just fish rf.
I may be one of the few in this room who is a regular ASMFC attendee.
Some of you have criticized the Southwick Study put up by sf. I remind you that -
'Results of this survey should not be used to make decisions for research allocations or mandates.'

Although I feel something needs to be done, I DON'T support the slot limit. Bad science is bad science. I firmly believe that a 20-26" slot is bad. May I remind you that Maine went to a slot limit in 1997. By 1999, 2 years later, reported catches had risen 1000%.

I will read a letter from Dr Michael Armstrong, retired head of the RF program for the state of MA:
'....the slot limit does not work...the economics for that size don't work.'

I can report that the latest ASMFC meeting, there was an updated stock assessment. This assessent says that the overall biomass is trending down. There will ultimately be some sanctions recommended by the ASMFC to restrict striped bass catches somewhat.

That's how this matter should be handled, on the ASMFC level.


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21. Brian Curry, cf, fishing 50 years


"This bill unfairly targets cf, while rf kill many more bass than cf. I don't see where the science behind it is accurate. On the Cape, we have had differences in bait migration. We also have an abundance of seals and cormorants whose population is unchecked and growing. I don't feel it's fair to place the whole blame squarely on the shoulders of cf. '

[nitestrikes]

6. Representative Matthew Patrick: (Representing Recs) from Bourne, Mashpee, Barnstable



b. 3000 Commercial permits were taken out in 2008, at a fee of $65. Of those 3000, only 1207 permit holders reported catching any fish. It is my understanding that they do this to ensure a consistent portion of quota is given to commercial fishermen.

. The goal of all of us should be to look at the breeding females and figure out how to protect them.

Here are my recommendations in addition to supporting this bill:
1. Figure out a way to save the spawning females.
2. Find a way to buy out commercial fishermen so they are not financially impacted if we pass this gamefish bill.
3. I would like to see a slot fish limit of 20-26", and the number of keeper bass reduced from 2 to 1. "

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4. David Halbinson, rf, and charter captain, Halston, MA, speaking in support of the bill
"60 yrs fishing... there has been a precipitous drop in rf catches since 2006 according to NOAA and NMFS.
DMF striped bass permit breakdown:
What is the distribution of those who sell fish?
a. Only 453 reported they actually sold fish. That means approx 9% of permit holders sold 73% of all fish.
b. The total income brought into MA by all cf license holders is approx $3.4mm before taxes. This translates to approx $2800/yr. Assuming costs of doing business, I find it hard to believe these guys who are cf are making around $2800/year or substantially less on selling bass.

Are these figures and reported income accurate? Someone needs to look at this. "

I didn't study every post in this thread but those 2 jumped out at me. There's no way those guys are only making $2800/year bass fishing.
I have a friend who owns a pizzeria. He tried to tell the IRS he was making 20k a year while he was making $80k. They almost put my friend in jail for one year of misstated income. He had to sell his house and move in with the parents so he wouldn't go to jail because the penalties were so high and they were going to seize his business. If the IRS can audit pizza joints they should audit commercial fishmen. Some of those guys have to be lying I hope they get caught.