2015 NY Striped Bass Regulations NY Marine Resource Advisory Council Meeting (MRAC) - IMPORTANT The next meeting of MRAC is on Tuesday, January 13th at 2:00PM. The meeting will be held at the DEC offices located at 205 Belle Meade Road in East Setauket, NY. MRAC advises the NY Dept of Environmental Conservation on issues pertaining to New Yorks living marine resources and the fisheries these resources sustain. The bottom line is that while the DEC is not obligated to act consistent with MRAC, the council does have influence over their decisions. ***** THIS IS AN IMPORTANT MEETING TO ATTEND ***** At the last meeting, MRAC voted to investigate a 2 fish bag limit for the party boat/for-hire sector AND a 2 fish bag limit for rest of the recreational sector. I attended this meeting and the audience consisted almost exclusively of people aligned with the commercial sector and the party boat sector. Given the make-up of MRAC, the great majority of recreational anglers are not represented proportionally and what was very clear during that meeting was that the ASMFC public comments were not fully recognized and represented. Charlie Witek and Bob Danielson did their best to represent and support the 1 fish bag limit that was favored by the great majority of the public comments received. However, they were drowned out and over-ruled by the other council members. So while we may not sway the ultimate recommendations that MRAC makes to the DEC, a strong showing will remind the DEC members and leadership attending the meeting of the public comments and the overwhelming support for a 1 fish bag limit. It is the cover the DEC may need in order to enact 2015 regulations that are different from what MRAC advises. I recognize that 2:00 in the afternoon is a difficult time for many. I requested having the meeting moved to the evening however MRAC was unable to gain a quorum for an evening meeting. Your attendance, if at all possible, is important and is needed. Hope to see you there. Ross Squire
Posted on: Sat, 03 Jan 2015 13:53:16 +0000
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