Shrimp trawling ban in coastal N.C. waters may be added to flounder/red snapper bill in General Assembly

From SamWalkerOBXNews.com An amendment that would ban shrimp trawling in the North Carolina sounds and ocean near-shore is reportedly being proposed for a bill that requires opening recreational flounder and […] The post Shrimp trawling ban in coastal N.C. waters may be added to flounder/red snapper bill in General Assembly appeared first on Island Free Press.

From SamWalkerOBXNews.com

An amendment that would ban shrimp trawling in the North Carolina sounds and ocean near-shore is reportedly being proposed for a bill that requires opening recreational flounder and red snapper seasons.

A post Monday on Facebook said that Sen. Bill Rabon (R-Brunswick), who holds several key leadership posts in the legislature, will introduce an amended version of House Bill 442 when the Senate Agriculture, Energy, and Environment Committee meets on Tuesday.

The measure as currently written would create a four-year pilot program for recreational fishing for flounder and red snapper in state waters.

Over the last several years, both species have had limited seasons, or been closed to fishing entirely, by regulators due to declining populations.

The bill would require the Division of Marine Fisheries director and the state Marine Fisheries Commission to issue a proclamation that would hold for four years an at least six-week-long recreational flounder season between May 15 and November 15, and set a 750,000 pound annual quota for the commercial sector.

A 15-inch, one fish per person recreational limit would be set, and any overages or unused quota for the commercial sector would be applied to the following season.

The bill also requires the NCDMF to complete a Southern flounder stock assessment based on the most recent years of available data by July 1, 2026, and report the findings to the legislature on August 1, 2026.

And the proposal sets a year-round red snapper season, with a 20-inch, two-fish per person limit.

That version of the bill was approved in May by a 77-35 bipartisan vote in the Republican-led state House.

On Monday, images of a proposed amendment of the bill were circulated on Facebook by Ed Stiles, Legislative Assistant to Sen. Bobby Hanig (R-Currituck).

Stiles post shows an amended bill with language changing state fisheries laws that make it a Class A1 Misdemeanor for violations to include “(T)aking or attempting to take shrimp using a trawl net in any coastal fishing waters other than areas of the Atlantic Ocean located more than one-half mile from the shoreline.”

The amendment also deletes requiring the flounder season proclamation, which would allow the Division of Marine Fisheries and Marine Fisheries Commission to use its regular rulemaking process.

“Please call your state (S)enator and tell them you don’t want this amendment. The General Assembly switchboard number is 919-733-4111,” Stiles said in the post.

The Senate Agriculture, Energy, and Environment Committee is scheduled to meet Tuesday at 10 a.m. in the Legislative Building in Raleigh, with live streaming of the hearing available on Youtube.

The panel is co-chaired by Sen. Norman Sanderson (R-Pamlico), who previously represented Dare County in the Senate. Hanig and Rabon are also members of the committee.

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