Florida Saltwater Anglers

06/28/2024

The Chevron case is the one that torpedoed the grouper and snapper lawsuit. It basically said that the Courts must give deference to Administrative agencies decision. No more!

Supreme Court Pares Back Federal Regulatory Power
Justices abandon 1984 precedent giving agencies leeway to interpret their own powers

WASHINGTON—The Supreme Court upended the federal regulatory framework in place for 40 years, expanding the power of federal judges to second-guess agency decisions over environmental, consumer and workplace safety policy, among other areas.

The 6-3 decision, along ideological lines, discards a 1984 precedent directing federal courts to defer to agency legal interpretations when the statutory language passed by Congress is ambiguous. Conservative legal activists, Republican-led states and some business groups have argued in recent years that the 1984 case, Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council, allows agenda-driven regulators to push the limits of their power.

By abandoning the doctrine called Chevron deference, the justices have given parties unhappy with agency decisions more opportunities to overturn regulations by persuading federal judges that agency officials exceeded their authority.

Even before the decision, the conservative-dominated court had been hammering away at federal regulatory power, in opinions that threw out Biden administration policies ranging from public-health measures to contain Covid-19 to a blanket cancellation of student-loan debt. But while the Supreme Court hasn’t cited Chevron for authority in years, many lower courts said they remained bound by the doctrine as long as it remained on the books.

05/23/2023

The fighing world lost a great man Paul Skilowitz the owner of Bluewater Sportfishing Boats in a plane crash

03/16/2023

DeSantis and GOP lawmakers want to make it much harder to sue insurance companies.

03/15/2023

Red Snapper, Gag, and Black Grouper During March Meeting

March 15, 2023

Members of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council approved measures to reduce the annual catch limit for Red Snapper and help address release mortality for Red Snapper and other species managed as part of the snapper grouper complex. Snapper Grouper Regulatory Amendment 35 would reduce the total Annual Catch Limit from 42,510 fish to 28,000 fish once implemented. The catch limit reduction is required to address the overfishing status of the stock, primarily due to the continued high number of fish being released by recreational fishermen as the stock continues to rebuild. To help address release mortality, the amendment would limit recreational anglers fishing for snapper grouper species to one hook per line when using natural baits in federal waters in the South Atlantic. If approved by the Secretary of Commerce, the measures are expected to go into place later this year. NOAA Fisheries will make an announcement regarding the 2023 fishing seasons for Red Snapper prior to any opening in July.

Approval of Regulatory Amendment 35 is part of the Council’s multi-step approach to address management of red snapper and the entire snapper grouper fishery. A Management Strategy Evaluation (MSE) is being developed for the snapper grouper fishery, exploring various management tools in a holistic approach to management. The Council received a presentation on development of the MSE during the meeting. Additional information is now available from the Council’s website https://safmc.net/science-sedar/snapper-grouper-management-strategy-evaluation/. In addition, the Council is moving forward with Snapper Grouper Amendment 46 to establish a private recreational permit for the South Atlantic snapper grouper fishery. Public scoping meetings were held earlier this year and the Council will continue to receive input from its advisory panels as the amendment is developed.
The Council also approved Snapper Grouper Amendment 53 to end overfishing for Gag grouper and establish a rebuilding plan. The Council considered public hearing comments before recommending the amendment for Secretarial approval. The amendment will modify annual catch limits and allocations for Gag and create a recreational vessel limit for both Gag and Black Grouper of 2 fish per day or two fish per trip, not to exceed the daily bag limit of 1 fish (either Gag or Black Grouper) per person per day, whichever is more restrictive. The amendment would also prohibit retention of Gag and Black Grouper by the captain and crew of federally permitted for-hire vessels. Black Grouper are included in the measures because of concerns over misidentification between Gag and Black Grouper by the recreational sector. The amendment would also reduce the commercial trip limit for Gag to 300 pounds gutted weight.

04/15/2022

April 15, 2022

To help a declining redfish stock in the Indian River Lagoon (IRL), the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission (FWC) will propose a catch-and-release only fishery for redfish in the IRL. CCA Florida is encouraged by this proposal and we hope that FWC will also work to add other species. The proposed catch-and-release zone is outlined as Florida Waters lying south of State Road 44/State Road A1A (Lytle Avenue/South Causeway) in Volusia County, all Florida Waters south of a line extending due east from a point located at 29°01.755’N, 80°54.160’W in Volusia County, and all Florida Waters north of the Martin-Palm Beach county line. The proposed rule will be brought to the FWC Commissioners at their May 4 meeting in Gainesville. FWC welcomes in-person public input.

03/11/2021

New kill switch regulation

01/26/2021

The video outlines the proposed coming changes for Dolphin and Wahoo.
Dolphin – not much should change, possibly a lowering of the vessel limit from 60 per vessel, the proposed limit has only been exceeded once in 5 years.
Wahoo – should see bigger changes with yearly closures on the horizon. These closures would begin each year between mid-September and late December as the yearly limit has been exceeded 3 of the past 5 years.
There is also a possible vessel limit.
Webinars will be held
Tues, January 26, 2021, 6 PM
https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/5406567366785545487
Wed January 27, 2021, 6 PM
https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/7419002399592348943
Thurs, January 28, 2021, 6 PM
https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/4409066228811370767
Comments may be submitted by February 5, 2021 at 5 PM to be included in the Public Hearing record.
https://safmc.wufoo.com/forms/z1qhn6vo1itjxeq/

This video walks through the 13 actions being considered in Dolphin Wahoo Amendment 10. Public Hearings for the amendment are scheduled for January 26 - 28, ...

12/22/2020

New hook regulations in Atlantic state waters effective Jan. 1 empower anglers to conserve fisheries

Starting Jan. 1, 2021, anglers using hook-and-line with natural bait to target reef fish like snapper or grouper from a vessel in Atlantic state waters will be required to use non-stainless steel, non-offset circle hooks north of 28 degrees north latitude (near Melbourne) and non-stainless steel hooks south of 28 degrees north latitude.

These changes are consistent with requirements in Atlantic federal waters that recently took effect and, along with emphasizing best fishing practices through educational resources and strategic messaging, will help empower anglers to conserve fisheries for the future.

Non-stainless steel, non-offset circle hooks are already required when fishing for reef fish in Gulf state waters and have been a successful tool in increasing the number of fish that survive release.

Non-stainless steel hooks should degrade faster in the marine environment compared to stainless steel or other non-corrodible metals. Use of these hooks may ultimately improve survival if the line is broken or the hook cannot be removed, and increase a fish’s chance to shed the hook over time. Additionally, non-offset circle hooks more often hook fish in the mouth rather than the gut, which reduces internal harm to the fish and decreases de-hooking time for the angler.

Allowing the use of other types of non-stainless steel hooks south of 28 degrees north latitude accommodates for regionally important south Florida fisheries, such as yellowtail snapper, in which the use of J hooks allows for greater efficiency and reduces discard mortality.

In addition, FWC encourages the use of tools such as descending devices and venting tools when barotrauma occurs so long as they do not delay release

10/22/2020

Proof that Roy Crabtree is incompetent.

Snapper count should be final nail in NOAA’s inept management of red snapper. This week, the public and Congress finally heard why nothing seemed to add up in federal management of Gulf red snapper. It turns out that NOAA just doesn’t count snapper very well. After more than a decade of utter ma...

05/28/2020

Roy Crabtree;s vision for screwing us in the future
fil://svr-drhdc/folder_redirection$/dheil/Downloads/NOAA_SouthEast_SP.Update%203.00.54%20PM.pdf

05/14/2020

Request for Comments: Proposed Modifications to South Atlantic Red Snapper Fishing Seasons

KEY MESSAGE:
NOAA Fisheries requests your comments on the proposed rule for Regulatory Amendment 33 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region. The proposed rule would allow the South Atlantic red snapper fishing season to be less than four days. NOAA Fisheries will announce the 2020 commercial and recreational fishing seasons in a future Federal Register notice and Fishery Bulletin. Comments on the removal of the minimum season requirement are due by June 15, 2020.

SUMMARY OF PROPOSED CHANGES:
Currently, if NOAA Fisheries projects the commercial and recreational catch limit for red snapper will be caught in three days or less, the commercial and/or recreational seasons would not open for that fishing year.
This proposed rule would remove this minimum season length requirement, and red snapper harvest could be open for either commercial or recreational harvest for three days or less.
The removal of this requirement, if implemented, would improve access to the red snapper resource.
HOW TO COMMENT ON THE PROPOSED RULE:
You may submit comments by electronic submission or by postal mail. Comments sent by any other method (such as e-mail), to any other address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period, may not be considered by NOAA Fisheries.



Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal.

Go to https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=NOAA-NMFS-2020-0017.
Click the "Comment Now!" icon, complete the required fields.
Enter or attach your comments.
Mail: Submit written comments to Frank Helies, Southeast Regional Office, NMFS, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701.

04/21/2020

Request for Comments: Proposed Gear Modifications for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery

KEY MESSAGE:
NOAA Fisheries requests your comments on the proposed rule for Regulatory Amendment 29 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region, which if implemented, would modify gear requirements for the fishery. Comments are due by May 6, 2020.

SUMMARY OF PROPOSED CHANGES:
require descending devices be on board and readily available for use on commercial, for-hire, and private recreational vessels while fishing for or possessing snapper-grouper species;
require the use of non-offset, non-stainless steel circle hooks when fishing for snapper-grouper species with hook-and-line gear and natural baits north of 28º north latitude;
require all hooks be non-stainless steel when fishing for snapper-grouper species with hook-and-line gear and natural baits south of 28º north latitude; and
allow the use of powerheads in federal waters off South Carolina.
HOW TO COMMENT ON THE PROPOSED RULE:
You may submit comments by electronic submission or by postal mail. Comments sent by any other method (such as e-mail), to any other address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period, may not be considered by NOAA Fisheries.

FORMAL FEDERAL REGISTER NUMBER: 85 FR 22118, April 21, 2020

Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal.

Go to https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=NOAA-NMFS-2020-0008.
Click the "Comment Now!" icon, complete the required fields.
Enter or attach your comments.
Mail: Submit written comments to Frank Helies, Southeast Regional Office, NMFS, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701.