FISHIN LICENCES

[numbskull]

Originally Posted by Ed B

I know people like to complain because that is what we like to do but really you make a good point PeteF, this is pretty simple stuff.

Not that simple to me. Can you answer me this?

If someone is caught fishing on my boat using gear I have provided without a license (even if I have one) what, as the boat owner, is my liability? Do I lose my gear? Do I have to stop fishing as long as he is on board?

[Ed B]

Originally Posted by numbskull

Not that simple to me. Can you answer me this?

If someone is caught fishing on my boat using gear I have provided without a license (even if I have one) what, as the boat owner, is my liability? Do I lose my gear? Do I have to stop fishing as long as he is on board?

You have to stop fishing for the rest of your life.

I know you want to bait me into a legal discussion numbskull, but I just don't see this as something that is that difficult. I have to believe that F&W officers encounter these situations all the time with fresh water fishing.

If a person were on my 12 ft fishing vessel who did not have a license I would tell them they could not fish. This is what I have done in the past and I didn't find that complicated.

Certainly you can come up with hypotheticals though, give them a trial run on the water, and let he F&W officer decide who to fine.

[numbskull]

I'm not trying to bait you, I'm trying to get you to think.

I agree it is not that difficult to follow the letter of the law. Anybody I want to take fishing I just need to buy them a license. That, however, is a strong disincentive against taking people fishing.

Over the decades I (and most other boat owners I know) have taken many dozens of people who are not fishermen, fishing. Most have enjoyed it. Already I am paying for fuel, tackle, and often food. Shelling out another $10/person adds up quickly when taking 3-4 people out. Becomes another hassle, another expense, and therefore another reason not to do it.

To compare this law to freshwater laws is simplistic. Freshwater fees pay for stocking, access, and enforcement. This saltwater law is ostensibly only to create a registry to allow better data acquisition. If I am a private boat owner, shouldn't I be able to satisfy that requirement without requiring every person fishing with me once per summer to pay a fee. Likewise, the idea that I may be responsible for checking the license status of anyone who fishes on my boat ( if in fact that is required.....I remain unsure that it is) seems a slippery slope indeed.

[Ed B]

[QUOTE=numbskull;835969]I'm not trying to bait you, I'm trying to get you to think.


I truly appreciate your attempt to get me out of your perception of my non-thinking mode. But, I am sitting at my desk right now with plumes of smoke coming out of my ears as I think away and the top of my head is sweating like I'm eating hot mexican food.

You say that to compare this law to freshwater laws is simplistic. I disagree. I grew up inland, in Worcester, freshwater fishing and continue to freshwater fish. Everybody who fishes inland faces exactly the same scenarios as you describe every summer. The law says get a license. It doesn't matter if you are only going one time to catch sunfish with a bobber and worm or have a $30,000 Ranger bassboat. Whoever you take out be it on fourth of July weekend at the lakeside barbecue or whatever, if they fish they need a license.
That probably does discourage some people from fishing, but what can you do.

I am not saying we should like it or agree with it and I see the inconvienience of it, but I don't see it as complicated unless your planning not to conform to the law.

[JohnnyD]

Originally Posted by Ed B

You say that to compare this law to freshwater laws is simplistic. I disagree. I grew up inland, in Worcester, freshwater fishing and continue to freshwater fish. Everybody who fishes inland faces exactly the same scenarios as you describe every summer. The law says get a license. It doesn't matter if you are only going one time to catch sunfish with a bobber and worm or have a $30,000 Ranger bassboat. Whoever you take out be it on fourth of July weekend at the lakeside barbecue or whatever, if they fish they need a license.
That probably does discourage some people from fishing, but what can you do.

I am not saying we should like it or agree with it and I see the inconvienience of it, but I don't see it as complicated unless your planning not to conform to the law.

I'm not trying to defend anyone but I think numbskull's mindset going into this SW license is similar to mine.

When I buy my freshwater license, I pay for it without any reservation. I know that money from the license is helping fund the trout/salmon stocking programs, keep boat ramps maintained in semi-usable shape and other useful funding programs.

On the other hand, I despise having to pay the $10 for my saltwater license. Why? Because the government is making me pay $10 to put my name on a list for their own ineffective research.

Here's how I see it playing out when the registry folks call fishermen.
Call someone who wants to prevent further limits on the fisher: "Yeah. I'm having an excellent year. Fish all over the place. Seems like there's nowhere you can go and not catch fish."
Call someone who doesn't care about keeping fish and wants gamefish status: "I fish 100 days per year and I'm having the worst year fishing than I've had in a long time. Seems like every year just keeps gets worse."

"Only believe half of what you see, and none of what you hear."
Using the general public's personal accounts is nonsense. You can't expect people to give reliable information (knowingly or unknowingly) in order to produce effective scientific research. How will they include the information from these surveys? "Well, from phone surveys conducted, the general consensus is that the Striped Bass are doing great."

I'm paying $10 towards an ineffective system that has been hastily enacted and, in my opinion, will not provide any lasting benefit to the fishing community aside from politicians finally realizing how many voters fish.