January 31, 2013

Question: Why am I required to buy a sturgeon fishing report card and tags in order to go sturgeon fishing? What will the collected money be used for? Will the money be directed to a dedicated fund account? (Anonymous)

Answer: The sturgeon fishing report cards with tags were created to help with enforcement of the sturgeon bag limit, a key conservation measure. In addition, data from the report cards is a valuable complement to on-going sturgeon research. The monies received from the sturgeon report card will be used to fund increased data analysis of the sturgeon populations (white and green) and enforcement of the regulations related to the sturgeon fishery. Card fees are not going to a dedicated fund because a dedicated fund can only be created by the Legislature.