Harpoons and Flying Gaffs for Recreational Tuna Fishery and Gear Marking in Commercial Harpoon Swordfish Fishery

Harpoons and Flying Gaffs for Recreational Tuna Fishery and Gear Marking in Commercial Harpoon Swordfish Fishery

The California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) proposes to use regular rulemaking authority to amend the recreational fishing regulations for tuna, marlin, and swordfish and the commercial fishing regulations for swordfish as set forth in Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations (Project). The amendments will allow recreational anglers to use harpoons and flying gaffs to help land tuna that have been legally taken. The amendment will also make a variety of minor, nonsubstantive, changes to update the species common name from “broadbill” or “broadbill swordfish” to “swordfish,” and “fin fish” to “finfish” and to clarify existing prohibitions on the use of spears and bow and arrow fishing gear to take marlin. The amendment will add gear marking requirements for commercial harpoon gear to clearly differentiate that gear from federally authorized deep-set buoy gear.

State Ocean Waters

Alameda, Contra Costa, Del Norte, Humboldt, Los Angeles, Marin, Mendocino, Monterey, Napa, Orange, San Diego, San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, Sonoma, Ventura

Statewide

California Coastal Commission (CCC), California Department of Conservation (DOC), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Bay Delta Region 3 (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Central Region 4 (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Habitat Conservation Planning (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Marine Region 7 (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Northern and Eureka Region 1 (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, South Coast Region 5 (CDFW), California Department of Parks and Recreation, California Department of State Parks, Division of Boating and Waterways, California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC), California Department of Water Resources (DWR), California Fish and Game Commission (CDFGC), California Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC), California Natural Resources Agency, California State Coastal Conservancy (SCC), California State Lands Commission (SLC), San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC), State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Water Quality, University of California Natural Reserve System (UCNRS)

Other (Fishing Regulations)

Fishing Regulations

Aesthetics, Agriculture and Forestry Resources, Air Quality, Biological Resources, Cumulative Effects, Geology/Soils, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Growth Inducement, Hazards & Hazardous Materials, Hydrology/Water Quality, Land Use/Planning, Mineral Resources, Noise, Population/Housing, Public Services, Recreation, Wildfire, fishing