House Bill 242

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 49-4-4, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO AUTHORIZE THE COMMISSION ON WILDLIFE, FISHERIES AND PARKS TO ENTER INTO AGREEMENTS WITH SURROUNDING STATES PROVIDING FOR RECIPROCITY OF RECREATIONAL PUBLIC FRESHWATER FISHING PRIVILEGES FOR PERSONS OF EACH STATE WHO ARE SIXTY-FIVE YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER; TO AMEND SECTION 49-15-313, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CLARIFY THAT THE COMMISSION ON MARINE RESOURCES MAY ENTER INTO AGREEMENTS WITH ADJACENT STATES PROVIDING FOR RECIPROCITY OF RECREATIONAL FISHING PRIVILEGES IN PUBLIC SALTWATER FOR PERSONS OF EACH STATE WHO ARE SIXTY-FIVE YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER; TO AMEND SECTIONS 49-7-8 AND 49-7-12, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, IN CONFORMITY THERETO; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 49-4-4, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

49-4-4. (1) There is hereby created the Mississippi Commission on Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks, to be composed of five (5) persons appointed by the Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate, for a term of five (5) years. One (1) person shall be appointed from each congressional district. The initial terms of the members shall be one (1), two (2), three (3), four (4) and five (5) years, respectively. Thereafter, all terms shall be for five (5) years. An appointment to fill a vacancy which arises for reasons other than by expiration of a term of office shall be made from the respective congressional district for the unexpired term only.

(2) The commission shall elect from its membership a chairman who shall preside over meetings and a vice chairman who shall preside in the absence of the chairman or when the chairman shall be excused.

(3) The commission shall adopt rules and regulations governing times and places for meetings and governing the manner of conducting its business. Each member of the commission shall take the oath prescribed by Section 268 of the Mississippi Constitution, and shall enter into bond in the amount of Thirty Thousand Dollars ($30,000.00) to be approved by the Secretary of State, conditioned according to law, and payable to the State of Mississippi before assuming the duties of office. Any member who shall not attend three (3) consecutive regular meetings of the commission shall be subject to removal by a majority vote of the commission members.

(4) The members of the commission shall receive no annual salary but shall receive per diem compensation as authorized by law for each day devoted to the discharge of official duties and shall be entitled to reimbursement for all actual and necessary expenses incurred in the discharge of their duties, including mileage as authorized by law.

The commission shall be composed of persons with a demonstrated history of involvement in at least one (1) of the matters of jurisdiction of the commission and whose employment and activities are not in conflict. All of the commissioners shall be an active outdoorsman holding a resident hunting or fishing license in at least five (5) of the ten (10) years preceding appointment. A member shall not have a record of conviction of violation of fish or game laws and regulations within five (5) years preceding appointment or a record of any felony conviction.

(5) The commission shall have the power to adopt, amend and repeal such regulations and rules as may be necessary for the operation of the department.

(6) The commission shall have the power and authority to issue all licenses and permits under the jurisdiction of the department.

(7) In the furtherance of its duties and responsibilities, the commission may conduct hearings, gather testimony and perform other functions required to carry out its powers and duties as prescribed by statute.

(8) The commission shall have all power for conserving, managing and developing wildlife and fishery resources except for saltwater aquatic life and marine resources under the jurisdiction of the Mississippi Commission on Marine Resources.

(9) The commission may enter into an agreement with the commission or entity having jurisdiction over recreational public freshwater fishing licenses or privileges in the surrounding states of Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Tennessee, with regard to reciprocity of fishing privileges for persons sixty-five (65) years of age or older. Such an agreement shall provide that a resident of Mississippi or of one of the surrounding states who is sixty-five (65) years of age or older, and who is authorized to fish for recreation in the public freshwaters of either state, is entitled to fish for recreation in the public freshwaters of both states.

SECTION 2. Section 49-7-8, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

49-7-8. (1) Except as may be otherwise provided under Section 49-4-4(9) with regard to recreational freshwater fishing privileges for certain nonresidents aged sixty-five (65) years or older, no nonresident sixteen (16) years of age or older may hunt, fish, kill, take or trap any game animal, bird or fish without having acquired and having in his immediate possession a valid license issued by the Mississippi Commission on Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks.

(2) The commission shall have the following duties and powers:

(a) To prescribe the forms and types of nonresident licenses that a nonresident must obtain;

(b) To determine the total number of each type of nonresident license to be issued annually;

(c) To establish fees for nonresident licenses and the collection fees for the agent issuing such licenses; provided, however, that the fee for a nonresident all game hunting license shall not be less than Sixty Dollars ($60.00);

(d) To exercise all incidental powers necessary to develop a nonresident licensing program.

(3) A nonresident who violates this section or any licensing regulation of the commission is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished as provided in Section 49-7-21(3).

SECTION 3. Section 49-7-12, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

49-7-12. (1) The commission may promulgate rules and regulations regarding: (a) nonresident recreational and commercial permits and licenses in order to promote and to enter into reciprocal agreements with other states; and (b) recreational freshwater fishing privileges under a reciprocal agreement as described in Section 49-4-4(9) for certain nonresidents aged sixty-five (65) years or older.

(2) The commission may issue and prescribe the forms, types and fees of nonresident freshwater commercial fishing licenses to be sold by the department and not by licensing agents.

(3) The commission may require a nonresident to purchase the same type and number of freshwater commercial fishing licenses and pay the same fees that are required of Mississippi residents to engage in like activity in the nonresident's state.

(4) Any nonresident who engages in freshwater commercial fishing without having the required licenses is guilty of a Class I violation and punishable as provided under Section 49-7-141 and shall forfeit any equipment, gear or nets used in the offense.

SECTION 4. Section 49-15-313, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

49-15-313. (1) Any resident between the ages of sixteen (16) and sixty-five (65) years, as defined in Section 49-7-3, fishing in the marine waters of the state, shall obtain a saltwater sports fishing license for a fee of Ten Dollars ($10.00). A resident sixty-five (65) years of age or older, fishing in the marine waters of the state, shall obtain a lifetime saltwater sports fishing license for a one-time fee of Five Dollars ($5.00). These licenses shall be valid in any waters south of Interstate 10. Any resident citizen who is blind, paraplegic or a multiple amputee, or who has been adjudged by the Veterans Administration as having a total service-connected disability, or has been adjudged totally disabled by the Social Security Administration shall not be required to purchase or have in his possession a saltwater sports fishing license while engaged in such activities. Any resident exempt under this section shall have on his person while fishing proof of residency and age or disability. Any resident who is a member of the Armed Forces, including the Reserves and National Guard, and on active duty outside the State of Mississippi is not required to purchase or have in his possession a hunting or fishing license while engaged in such activities on leave from active duty. Such resident shall have in his possession and on his person such proof as may be required by the commission.

(2) (a) The commission shall prescribe the forms, types and fees for nonresident saltwater sports fishing licenses except that the fee for a nonresident saltwater sports fishing license shall not be less than Twenty Dollars ($20.00). This minimum fee shall not apply to nonresidents sixty-five (65) years of age or older.

(b) (i) The commission may enter into reciprocal agreements with adjacent states pertaining to fees and exemptions for persons sixty-five (65) years of age or older. (ii) The commission may also enter into reciprocal agreements with adjacent states pertaining to the reciprocity of recreational fishing privileges for persons sixty-five (65) years of age or older. Such an agreement shall provide that a resident of Mississippi or of one of the adjacent states who is sixty-five (65) years of age or older, and who is authorized to fish for recreation in the public saltwater of either state, is entitled to fish for recreation in the public saltwater of both states.

(c) The commission shall require a nonresident to purchase a nonresident freshwater fishing license and a nonresident saltwater sports fishing license if the nonresident's state requires both licenses for a nonresident to fish in its marine waters.

(d) Except as may be otherwise provided in paragraph (b) of this subsection (2), any nonresident sixty-five (65) years of age or older shall possess a saltwater sports fishing license.

(3) All resident vessels engaged in charter boat fishing, party boat fishing, head boat and guide boat fishing shall be issued a separate annual license by the commission at a fee of Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00). All nonresident vessels engaged in charter boat fishing, party boat fishing, head boat and guide boat fishing shall be issued a separate annual license by the commission. In addition to other requirements for charter license eligibility, captains must show proof of participation in a Department of Transportation approved random drug testing program and proof of liability insurance as a charter boat captain. Crew members and customers of the licensed vessels shall not be required to purchase an individual resident or nonresident saltwater fishing license while sponsored by the licensed vessels. An operator of a licensed vessel shall be required to report the number of customers to the department as required by the commission and the information shall be kept confidential and shall not be released, except to other fisheries management agencies or as statistical data. All nonresident vessels engaged in saltwater sport fishing tournaments, not to exceed an aggregate of twenty (20) days per calendar year, shall not be required to purchase an annual license as provided under this subsection.

(4) The saltwater sports fishing license is required for all recreational methods of finfish harvest.

(5) Any resident who purchases a lifetime sportsman's license, in accordance with Section 49-7-153, shall be entitled to fish in the marine salt waters of the state and shall be exempt from the purchase of a sport saltwater fishing license.

(6) Any person authorized to issue a license may collect and retain, for each saltwater fishing license issued, the additional fee authorized under Section 49-7-17.

(7) The fees collected from the sale of resident and nonresident saltwater sports fishing licenses shall be deposited into the Seafood Fund and shall be used solely for the management of marine resources.

(8) Participants in the Very Special Fishing Olympics are exempt from this section.

(9) July 4 of each year is designated as "Free Saltwater Sports Fishing Day." Any person may saltwater sport fish without a license on the "Free Saltwater Sports Fishing Day."

(10) The department may exempt participants in an organized fishing event conducted by a qualified nonprofit charitable, governmental or civic organization from the requirements of this section for one (1) day per year if the organization files an exemption application with the department and the application is approved by the department.

SECTION 5. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2011.