Freshwater Fishing Stamp Proposal -- Bass Fishing News
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Freshwater Fishing Stamp Proposal
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BFHP Fishing News
Freshwater Fishing Stamp Proposal
There is bill currently before the Texas Legislature that would add a
freshwater fishing stamp to the current fishing stamp endorsements
required by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department in order to participate
in certain types of fishing in Texas (HB 1989). The Freshwater Fishing
Stamp would be required in order to fish in any freshwater situation in
Texas. The cost of the stamp will be $5 in addition to a valid Texas
fishing license. House Bill 1989 is authored by Representative Dan
Ellis of Livingston, TX and co-authored by our own Representative Byron
Cook of Corsicana, TX.
For decades, sportsmen and sportswomen have paid their way through the
various taxes they pay. License fees, stamp fees, boat registration
fees, state and federal excise taxes, etc. pay for the creation and
annual budgets of fish and game departments throughout the country. In
other words, we pay our own way. This new Freshwater Fishing Stamp is
another way for us to generate revenue at the State level in order to
improve our freshwater fisheries across Texas.
The Freshwater Trout Stamp is a great example of what this new
Freshwater Fishing Stamp can do for all types of fishing in Texas.
Several years ago, a “trout stamp” was created to help fund the State’s
efforts to raise rainbow trout and place them in some of our freshwater
lakes and rivers in order for Texans to be able to enjoy trout fishing.
The money collected from the sale of the “trout stamp” generated dollars
to fund this project which has become a huge success. Again, the trout
fishermen funded the project to further enhance their angling
opportunities throughout the state.
Looking across the isle at the hunting side of things, Texas Parks and
Wildlife created a “turkey stamp” several years ago with the money being
used, in part, to reintroduce wild turkey in parts of the state that had
been void of turkeys of years. Today, with the cooperation of hunters
and funds collected from the “turkey stamp”, we probably have more wild
turkey in Texas than we’ve had in over a century. The idea of
generating funds for specific use from targeted individuals that
actually utilize the resource directly is a fair and efficient way to
fund these projects.
Admittedly, I was somewhat skeptical about the Legislature creating
another fee for anglers to have to pay in order to fish in Texas. Byron
and I had a lengthy discussion about the new Freshwater Fishing Stamp.
He pointed out in Section 43.805 of the bill that the money generated by
the stamp would be used in only two ways:
(b) The net receipts from the freshwater fishing stamp sales may be
spent only for:
(1) the repair, maintenance renovation, or replacement of freshwater
fish hatcheries in this state; or
(2) the purchase of fish that are stocked into the public water of this
state.
This issue was of the utmost importance to me. If we sportsmen and
women were going to be paying higher fees in order to fish in Texas, I
wanted to know where the money was going to be used and Byron gave me
the answer I was looking for.
As many of you know, we have a new fish hatchery in Athens, TX. We
also have several other hatcheries across the states that produce a
variety of different species of fish that go into our lakes and rivers.
Many of these hatcheries are outdated and antiquated for the direction
that Texas Parks and Wildlife is trying to go with regard to supplying
fish for our public waters. The money generated by the new fishing
stamp would give the department the necessary funds needed to bring our
hatcheries up to date with state of the art technology that will result
in more and better fish to be released into our public waters.
If you enjoy any type of freshwater fishing, I hope you will join me in
supporting HB 1989. We need to update our hatcheries by improving our
facilities. All anglers can and will benefit from improving our
hatcheries and ensure a future of fishing in Texas for generations to
come. Please take a moment to visit with your representative and/or
senator to let them know that you support HB 1989 and the idea of
improving freshwater fishing for all Texans.
I appreciate Representatives Ellis and Cook taking the initiative to
present this legislation and trying to support angling and anglers
throughout Texas. As outdoorsmen and women, we need Congressmen that
know and understand our areas of interest and will bring those interest
to the forefront to better Texas’ outdoor experiences for all Texans.
(Tom Lester II is a professional bass angler and outdoor writer. He
lives in Corsicana, TX with his wife, Kelly and daughters, Tatum and
Megan. He host and operates an information based web site where he
answers questions about products and techniques he uses in the
professional bass fishing arena. He fishes bass tournaments throughout
the southern and midwestern United States and represents numerous tackle
manufacturers across the country at trade shows, on his web site and at
seminars. For more information or to contact Tom, visit him at
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