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History
- Referred to environmental conservation
- Committed to rules
- Advanced to third reading
- 2nd report cal.
- 1st report cal.534
- Referred to environmental conservation
Companion bill
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Allows the use of spears, spearguns and underwater guns in commercial and recreational bass fishing
In Assembly Committee · Environmental Conservation · Sponsor Fred Thiele
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S1590
Title of bill
An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to the use of spears, spearguns or underwater guns in recreational and commercial bass fishing
Purpose
Allows the use of spears, spear guns and underwater guns in commercial and recreational bass fishing.
Summary of provisions
Section 13-0347 of the environmental Conservation Law is amended by adding a new subdivision 5 to authorize the taking of striped bass by the use of spears, spear guns or underwater guns for recreational and commercial purposes. Defines for the purpose of this subdivision, the meaning of "spear gun" and "underwater gun" as any spear gun that stores potential energy provided from the spear fisher's muscles only and is used while submerged under the water. Such gun may only release that amount of energy that the diver has provided it from such diver's own muscles. Common temporary energy storing devices for spear guns shall include but not be limited to rubber band, springs and sealed air chambers.
Justification
Existing New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) regulations (6.N.Y.C.R.R Section 40.1(j) (22)) currently prohibit the use of spear guns in commercial striped bass fishing. However, NYSDEC currently allows the use of spear guns for the recreational taking of striped bass (6 N.Y.C.R.R Section 40.1 (g) (2)). More so, NYSDEC currently allows spear-fishing in the commercial harvest of other fish species.
Spear-fishing is an extremely selective method of fishing as only the target species is harvested, resulting in much lower by-catch yields. Spear-fishing also supplies in a fresher, less bruised, higher-valued product as it can be harvested from the water immediately.
Legislative history
2013-14 S.3059B/A.3890B; 2011-12 S.5684A/A.8288A
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
Immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.