The 2005 commercial striped bass fishery will open on Tuesday, July 12th and will remain open until the quota of 1,094,962 lbs is reached. Please take note of the following important rules concerning this year’s season:

Fishermen:

• New rules implemented in April have established a 30-fish per vessel per day possession limit on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays and 5-fish per day possession limit on Sundays. The possession of fish above the recreational limit of 2-fish per day at 28” is prohibited on all other days.
• Fishermen may only sell striped bass to those dealers authorized to purchase striped bass. A list of authorized dealers is currently being mailed to all permit holders and can also be obtained online at: http://mass.gov/dfwele/dmf/dealers/dealers_authorized.htm.
• Fishermen are required to submit a 2005 catch report to MarineFisheries by October 15th, 2005. Blank 2005 catch reports are currently being mailed to all permit holders and can also be obtained online at: http://mass.gov/dfwele/dmf/commercialfishing/catch_reports.htm.
• Any current (2005) holder of a commercial striped bass permit is required to submit a catch report, even if the permit was only fished minimally or not at all. Failure to comply with this deadline may result in the loss of your commercial striped bass permit for 2006. Last year over 800 permit holders were denied re-issuance of their permits for failure to report on time. By not submitting timely catch reports, effective management of the fishery is compromised by delayed and insufficient statistics.

Dealers:

• Dealers are reminded that beginning July 12th, they are prohibited from importing non-conforming (legally caught in the state of origin but less than 34”) whole striped bass until five days after the close of the commercial season. During the commercial season (and five days following the closure) all bass in the possession of dealers must meet the Commonwealth’s 34” minimum size.
• It is unlawful for dealers to purchase striped bass from fishermen who do not possess a commercial fishing permit endorsed for the harvest and sale of striped bass.
• Dealers must be authorized to purchase striped bass directly from fishermen, and authorized dealers must be primary buyers, and must report their purchases as part of the dealer reporting program. If a dealer is not authorized or is not a primary buyer, and wishes to purchase striped bass directly from fishermen, they may contact MarineFisheries at 978-282-0308 x117 with further questions.