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No license, no fishing in ocean
Top Headlines Change approved quietly in Bay State
Laws requiring recreational fisherman to buy licenses to fish in the ocean have sparked outrage in Florida and a gubernatorial veto in Rhode Island, but passed virtually without notice in Massachusetts.Gov. Deval Patrick has signed a new state law that require fishermen to purchase a $10 state license for saltwater fishing. The state license requirement was made necessary by a federal law approved by former President George W. Bush. The federal law mandates that states develop registries and charge for fishing. If the state fails to comply, fishermen have to pay a $20 to $30 federal fee instead. Rhode Island Gov. Donald Carcieri vetoed a state measure earlier this month after the Legislature approved it with the support of some fishing organizations. Carcieri said fishing in the ocean is a Rhode Island birthright. In Florida, the requirement has led to protests by the fishing community. But in Massachusetts, there has been no outcry, and fishing organizations supported the move. "There wasn't a lot of controversy here," said state Rep. Bill Bowles, D-Attleboro. Patrick Paquette of the Massachusetts Striped Bass Association said fishermen worked with state legislators in writing the best law they could come up with so they could avoid the higher federal fees. "As much as fishermen are not going to like buying a state license, I hope that they will realize it could have been a lot worse," Paquette said in a news release. The federal law was passed in 2006 under Bush, but is just now taking effect. It attempts to track fish populations by registering fisherman so they can be polled on how many and what kind of fish they catch. Some anti-government activists in other states have seized on the issue, saying it will violate privacy rights by creating a Big Brother like way of tracking people. Supporters point out that in most states, fishermen are already required to obtain a license for fresh water fishing. In Massachusetts, the freshwater license is $36 and the salt water permit is $10. Commercial saltwater fisherman can pay fees up to $250. State officials said the permit money will go toward administrative costs and improving access to fisheries. JIM HAND covers politics for The Sun Chronicle. He can be reached at 508-236-0399 or at jhand@thesunchronicle.com.
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spookey wrote on Dec 1, 2009 1:27 AM:
attlebororesident2008 wrote on Dec 1, 2009 12:03 AM:
kevin h. wrote on Nov 30, 2009 6:09 PM:
I wonder how much money the bio-fuel industry gave to our REPRESENTATIVES to get their product forced on us?
Oh, isn't burdensome government wonderful? "
jorod03 wrote on Nov 30, 2009 1:19 PM:
s-plumb wrote on Nov 30, 2009 1:05 PM:
We're purposely being overloaded, and cannot keep track of all the changes.
Just today, we're dumped on with cap & trade, climategate, health care, financial collapse (starting in Dubia), "who crashed the WH party"...this is triangulation to the max. And to top it off, even though most of the nation is against more spending, as seen in polls town hall meetings, etc., our representatives are doing just the opposite!
'2010 may be too late.
Example: Healthcare is a done deal. You need 60 votes to make a change/ammend the bill, but only 51 votes to pass it in the senate. There is no mechanism to change course. "
s-plumb wrote on Nov 30, 2009 12:48 PM:
s-plumb wrote on Nov 30, 2009 12:38 PM:
Yet again congress has violated their oath to uphold the Constitution. "
s-plumb wrote on Nov 30, 2009 12:19 PM:
Stop spending, and stop taxing. "
kevin h. wrote on Nov 30, 2009 12:17 PM:
Time IS money!
Hospitals are private.
Social infrastructure?
I'd better move??
Thanks for telling me what to do.
Perhaps you might choose to move to a European country so you can achieve your idealistic socialist utopia.
I'll stay in the United States of America, where we have a the Constitution, a Democratic republic, capitalism and freedom FROM goverment. None of these federal mandates adheres to the limitations in the 10th Amendment. On the flip side. I agree that legislation should be small, instead of titanic. "
sunfan wrote on Nov 30, 2009 11:07 AM:
Another place to start would be to mandate that Congress vote on each piece of spending individually, rather than be allowed to lump a bunch of good and bad legislation together into one bill. "
1-20-2013 wrote on Nov 30, 2009 10:10 AM:
Access...????....Yyyyyyeeeaaahhhhhh, right.
As we speak, the Dimwit in the Deville, Deval is launching a nationwide search for the new $137.5K/Yr position of "Executive Director Saltwater Fisheries Permitting and Licensing"
Take it to the bank that the first and last thing to be checked in this search is the Decrepit Dimbulb's list of campaign contributors. "
usafvet wrote on Nov 30, 2009 9:18 AM:
Southern View wrote on Nov 30, 2009 9:05 AM:
kevin h. wrote on Nov 30, 2009 7:54 AM:
Great, MORE government intrusion on freedom. If the governor wanted to comply and show that he isn't going to use this as a cash cow, he would have made the license $.01.
I give it two years before the fees go up.
The control of food is getting serious.
Want to hunt..............pay for a license.
Want to freshwater fish...pay for a license.
Want to fish the ocean....pay for a license.
So, what's next, a license to grow a garden???
WWJD?
Give a man a fish, he votes Democrat.
Teach a man to fish, Tax the heck out of him! "