The Licensing of Marine Recreational Fishermen

This study provides an account of certain current marine recreational fishery issues including licensing in the coastal states in 1981. Only four states license their resident marine recreational fishermen on a continuing basis. These general licenses apply to all waters of the state and marine anglers cannot be separated from the general fishing population. This latter factor is important to using license files for data collection. Interviews with state officials disclosed that marine recreational fishery programs suffer from a lack of funding and data collection. Most of the officials acknowledge the advantages of implementing a saltwater fishing license. Alternatives to a saltwater fishing license mentioned by them included financing from state general funds as a source of revenue, and surveys, censuses, and voluntary reporting for data collection. However, most felt that other alternatives were not as equitable or beneficial as a separate saltwater fishing license. State officials also predicted that the tourist industry in their respective states would be opposed to a separate saltwater fishing license, fearing a loss in tourist business. However, the majority of the officials were inclined to believe that fishermen would support a saltwater fishing license as long as definite plans for marine recreational fisheries programs were established. Should coastal states adopt a separate saltwater license for marine anglers, it is recommended that they base their programs upon certain principles for levying user charges.