Update on Fishing Tournament Permits

[Ray Esboldt]

I received this revised bill language from Representative Dean Urdahl today. I do not believe a vote has taken place on this bill as of now. Feel free to chime in with your comments.

Amendment – Fishing Contest Participant Fees

97C.081 FISHING CONTESTS.

Subdivision 1. Restrictions. A person may not conduct a fishing contest on waters except

as provided in this section.

Subd. 2. Contests without a permit. A person may conduct a fishing contest without a

permit from the commissioner provided:

(1) the following criteria are met:

(i) there are 30 participants or less for open water contests and 150 participants or less for

ice fishing contests;

(ii) the entry fee is $25 per person or less;

(iii) the total prize value is $25,000 or less; and

(iv) the contest is not limited to trout species only;

(2) the following criteria are met:

(i) the contest is not limited to specifically named waters; and

(ii) the contest is not limited to trout species only; or

(3) all the contest participants are age 18 years or under.

Subd. 3. Contests requiring a permit. (a) A person must have a permit from the

commissioner to conduct a fishing contest that does not meet the criteria in subdivision 2. The

commissioner shall not charge a fee for the an open water contest permit. A person participating in a permitted open water fishing contest must have a fishing contest participant license validation. A fishing contest participant license validation is valid during a fishing license year and only one participant validation is required each license year, regardless of the number of contests participated in. The commissioner shall set a fishing contest license validation fee that recovers the costs of issuing the permit open water fishing contest permits and of monitoring the activities allowed by the permit those permits. The commissioner may waive the fee under this subdivision for a charitable organization. Notwithstanding section 16A.1283, the commissioner may, by written order published in the State Register, establish open water fishing contest permit participant fees. The fees are not subject to the rulemaking provisions of chapter 14 and section 14.386 does not apply. The commissioner shall evaluate the revenues and expenditures related to this section at least once each biennium and adjust the open water fishing contest license validation fee so that the fee does not significantly over-recover or under-recover actual costs of administering open water fishing contest permit issuance and contest monitoring.

( If entry fees are over $25 per person, or total prizes are valued at more than $25,000, and if the applicant has either:

(1) not previously conducted a fishing contest requiring a permit under this subdivision; or

(2) ever failed to make required prize awards in a fishing contest conducted by the applicant, the commissioner may require the applicant to furnish the commissioner evidence of financial responsibility in the form of a surety bond or bank letter of credit in the amount of $25,000.

© The permit fee for any individual contest may not exceed the following amounts:

(1) $120 for an open water contest not exceeding 100 participants and without off-site

weigh-in;

(2) $400 for an open water contest with more than 100 participants and without off-site

weigh-in;

(3) $500 for an open water contest not exceeding 100 participants with off-site weigh-in;

(4) $1,000 for an open water contest with more than 100 participants with off-site weigh-in; or

(5) $120 for an ice fishing contest with more than 150 participants is $120.

[EFFECTIVE DATE: This section is effective March 1, 2009.]

[ocf1]

Well its not to next year but im pretty sure its a step forward for us?

[Deitz Dittrich]

I can live with that I think.

[ocf1]

(1) $120 for an open water contest not exceeding 100 participants and without off-site

weigh-in;

Now that isnt that bad...

[TonkaBass]

Looks ok

[bassNspear]

not bad!!

Its getting closer everyday!!

[hhguide]

Does that mean 100 boats for $120 or only one hunred people and only 50 boats for 120? Does anyone know if you can apply for tournaments in 2009 already?

[ocf1]

yes it does and i dont think it has passed yet so no hhguide. And per contestant its only 1-2 dollars.

[bassrap]

The $120 for 100 participants (50 boats) is already in effect, as are all of the permit fees.

The proposed change is the addition of a contest validation fee or a "tournament stamp" for the anglers. In order for an angler to participate in a tournament, they would have to purchase this at the time they buy their license. It will probably be $2-$3 per person.

The way it is currently proposed would mean that this would be in addition to the permit fee that has to be paid by the tournament organizer, which doesn't make sense, since the objective of the license validation fee is the same as the permit fee, which is to recover the cost of administering tournaments. I believe to accomplish what they are trying to do, they need to eliminate the permit fee except in the case of off-site weigh ins, which should then require an additional permit fee.

[hhguide]

Does anyone know when they vote for this?

[pperovich]

I'm courious when this new version came out??

[Ray Esboldt]

pperovich,

First, welcome to FishingMinnesota.com.

I received an email from Representative Dean Urdahl's office on March 31st stating the revisions.