OUTDOOR NOTES : New State Senate Bill Is Rocking the Boat

Two things you can expect if you’re planning a trip next year aboard a California sportfishing boat:

*To pay more than you paid or will pay this year. Price hikes have not yet been announced, but they seem inevitable.

*To be asked for your fishing license before you board the boat, and to be refused a ticket if you don’t have one. No longer will you be able to take a chance that the warden won’t be there to greet you when you return.

It all has to do with Senate Bill 1565, signed into law last week by Gov. Pete Wilson.

The bill is an attempt to generate revenue for the strapped Department of Fish and Game.

Sportfishing boat registration fees next year will increase from $223 to $600 a year, at a time when people are already dropping out of the business because of skyrocketing operating costs. In 1989, for example, there were 732 commercial passenger-carrying vessels running in California. This year there are 450.

“And if this keeps up we’re going to see even less boats,” said Bob Fletcher, president of the Sportfishing Assn. of California. “They’re going to drive everybody out of business.”

The commercial fishing fleet was not adversely affected by the bill, which put a cap on annual fees part of that industry pays.

In a letter to SAC landings and boat owners, Fletcher wrote: “The bottom line is clearly that our fleet was outmaneuvered by the commercial industry and their full-time lobbying presence in Sacramento.”

Also included in the bill is a requirement that landing operators check passengers for valid fishing licenses, which Fletcher says “adds a new layer of bureaucracy that we don’t need.”

An estimated 15% of fishermen aboard California commercial sportfishing vessels do not have licenses. Because an estimated million people fish from “party boats” each year, licensing the scofflaws would bring in an extra $150,000 a year.

Fletcher, however, questions the constitutionality of a law that requires private citizens to enforce the law or be charged with breaking it.

“Think of the burden, checking everybody before they board the boat,” Fletcher said. “It’s an unacceptable burden to be placed on us.”

Fletcher says he plans to challenge the law when it goes into effect next January.

*

The California Fish and Game Commission is holding its next meeting in Carpinteria Oct. 2. The United Anglers of Southern California will be there, and they are looking for support.

At issue is the commission’s consideration given to five Southland commercial fishermen who hope to be issued “experimental” permits to use long-line fishing gear--miles of lines with series of baited hooks--for swordfish, tuna and sharks.

The sportfishing community is vehemently against long-line fishing.

“Look at the history of long-lines,” said Jim Paulk, a spokesman for United Anglers. “It indicates that wherever they put these things, they eliminate the sportfishing in that area.”

The gear has been blamed for the decline of several fisheries, including reduction of the striped marlin off the Mexican coast, a fishery that rebounded significantly after the gear was banned.

“Tuna is the absolute most important species to our fleet,” Fletcher said. “They can make or break our season, and those proposing long-lines can directly impact the tuna resource. In light of what has happened (elsewhere) this commission would be well served to learn from history and avoid the problems altogether.”

The meeting, at the Carpinteria City Council Chambers, begins at 9 a.m.

Briefly

SALTWATER--Bluefin tuna remain the most sought-after species in the Southland, and when the fish are found--usually around the offshore banks--they are providing anglers with plenty of action. The Toronado out of Long Beach located a school Tuesday morning off Dana Point and by noon the passengers had boated 90 fish. The San Diego fleet is reporting excellent fishing for yellowfin just south of the border. Top fish: a 484-pound blue marlin taken aboard the Cyper Lurus off San Onofre, well north of the usual range of blue marlin.

Cabo San Lucas: From Tortuga Sportfishing on Tuesday: “Weather mostly rainy-windy. Not many boats out but great fishing for the hardy ones.” Blue marlin, wahoo and dorado are the common catches on days the harbor is open. East Cape: Some bad weather but very good fishing for dorado, tuna and wahoo. La Paz: A blue marlin was reportedly lost after a 29-hour fight. The fish was estimated at 700 pounds.

MISCELLANY--The San Diego Ocean Foundation’s Coastal Awareness Day will be held Sunday between the B Street Pier and San Diego Maritime Museum. Details: (619) 237-1221. . . . The American Paragliding Assn.’s World Cup finals and U.S. National Championships are under way through Oct. 10 in the Owens Valley. Headquarters are at the Bishop Airport. Details: (619) 632-0514. . . . The Ladies Charity Classic, a shooting tournament to benefit alternatives to domestic violence, will be held Sat. at 9 a.m. at Raahague’s pheasant hunting club in Norco. Experienced and non-experienced women shooters are invited. Entry is $60. Details: (714) 735-7981.