Coastal Conservation Association New York
PO Box 1118, West Babylon, NY 11704
www.ccany.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 2, 2009                     CONTACT: Charles Witek, 1-800-201-FISH
 
CCA NY OPPOSES SALT WATER LICENSE REPEAL

    West Babylon, NY—Just one month after the State of New York adopted its first recreational salt water fishing license, legislators are being asked to repeal the licensing requirement and replace the license with a free registry of anglers.  Coastal Conservation Association New York (“CCA NY”), has long supported the license, and opposes the current repeal effort.
    “There is just nothing good about the current proposal,” declares Bill Raab, CCA NY’s President.  “License repeal can have only two outcomes.  Either New York anglers will be forced to pay an expensive Federal registration fee, and get nothing for their money, or the Department of Environmental Conservation (“DEC”) will be forced to bust its budget implementing a substitute registration program, and have no money left for managing marine fish stocks.”
New York didn’t require salt water anglers to obtain a fishing license until October 1 of this year, placing it well behind the majority of coastal states.  Currently, of the twenty-six states on the Atlantic, Pacific and Gulf coasts, only 6 have failed to put a license in place, and many of those are getting ready to adopt licensing plans.  The licensing of fresh water anglers and hunters has, of course, been the norm in all states for many years.
“Throughout the past century and right up to today, sportsmen and women have been willing to pay their fair share toward managing the natural resources important to them,” notes Scott Emslie, State Chair of CCA NY.  “It was sportsmen who were behind the excise taxes on firearms and fishing tackle, and sportsmen who insisted that the federal duck stamp be created to fund the purchase of waterfowl habitat.  For some reason, there are a few salt water fishermen who feel that they should be exempt from that responsibility.  They’re perfectly fine with having hunting and fresh water fishing license revenues pay for the DEC’s work in salt water.  As someone who also hunts and fishes in fresh water, I have a big problem with that.”
Without revenues from the salt water license, it is likely that funding for the DEC’s Marine Bureau, and for any so-called “free” registration system, will come from New York’s Conservation Fund, where revenues from hunting, trapping and fresh water fishing licenses are deposited.  In effect, hunters and fresh water anglers will have their license money diverted from programs affecting game and inland waters to fund a registration program implemented solely so that salt water anglers won’t have to pay to participate in their chosen hobby.
“It’s embarrassing,” admits CCA NY Vice Chair, Charles Witek.  “Anglers used to care about good fisheries management.  Today, there are a few very loud people who appeal to everything that is small, selfish and mean in the salt water fishing community.  The same people who want to see the license repealed are the people who oppose conservation measures and attack fisheries scientists.  They want managers to give them everything, but don’t want to give anything back.  It’s as if they were spoiled children, not adults, and it’s sad.”
    A bill to repeal the salt water license is in the Senate (S6250, introduced by Foley, D-Brookhaven), but no companion has yet been introduced in the Assembly.  CCA NY hopes that responsible legislators will see to it that no license repeal is approved..##