SB 184: "An Act amending the powers of the Board of Fisheries to include regulating commercial cooperative fisheries."
00 SENATE BILL NO. 184 01 "An Act amending the powers of the Board of Fisheries to include regulating 02 commercial cooperative fisheries." 03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 * Section 1. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section 05 to read: 06 LEGISLATIVE INTENT AND PURPOSE. (a) It is the intent of the legislature to 07 clarify that the Board of Fisheries has authority under AS 16.05 and AS 16.43 to establish and 08 allocate fishery resources to commercial cooperative fisheries and that AS 16.43 does not 09 limit that authority. 10 (b) The purpose of this Act is to overrule the holdings in Grunert v. State, 109 P.3d 11 924 (Alaska 2005), and Grunert v. State, 139 P.3d 1226(Alaska 2006). 12 * Sec. 2. AS 16.05.251(a) is amended to read: 13 (a) The Board of Fisheries may adopt regulations it considers advisable in 14 accordance with AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act) for
01 (1) setting apart fish reserve areas, refuges, and sanctuaries in the 02 waters of the state over which it has jurisdiction, subject to the approval of the 03 legislature; 04 (2) establishing open and closed seasons and areas for the taking of 05 fish; if consistent with resource conservation and development goals, the board may 06 adopt regulations establishing restricted seasons and areas necessary for 07 (A) persons 60 years of age and older to participate in sport, 08 personal use, or subsistence fishing; or 09 (B) persons under 16 years of age to participate in sport 10 fishing; 11 (3) setting quotas, bag limits, harvest levels, and sex and size 12 limitations on the taking of fish; 13 (4) establishing the means and methods employed in the pursuit, 14 capture, and transport of fish; 15 (5) establishing marking and identification requirements for means 16 used in pursuit, capture, and transport of fish; 17 (6) classifying as commercial fish, sport fish, guided sport fish, 18 personal use fish, subsistence fish, or predators or other categories essential for 19 regulatory purposes; 20 (7) watershed and habitat improvement, and management, 21 conservation, protection, use, disposal, propagation, and stocking of fish; 22 (8) investigating and determining the extent and effect of disease, 23 predation, and competition among fish in the state, exercising control measures 24 considered necessary to the resources of the state; 25 (9) prohibiting and regulating the live capture, possession, transport, or 26 release of native or exotic fish or their eggs; 27 (10) establishing seasons, areas, quotas, and methods of harvest for 28 aquatic plants; 29 (11) establishing the times and dates during which the issuance of 30 fishing licenses, permits, and registrations and the transfer of permits and registrations 31 between registration areas is allowed; however, this paragraph does not apply to
01 permits issued or transferred under AS 16.43; 02 (12) regulating commercial, sport, guided sport, subsistence, and 03 personal use fishing as needed for the conservation, development, and utilization of 04 fisheries, including allocating to commercial cooperative fisheries; 05 (13) requiring, in a fishery, observers on board fishing vessels, as 06 defined in AS 16.05.475(d), that are registered under the laws of the state, as defined 07 in AS 16.05.475(c), after making a written determination that an on-board observer 08 program 09 (A) is the only practical data-gathering or enforcement 10 mechanism for that fishery; 11 (B) will not unduly disrupt the fishery; 12 (C) can be conducted at a reasonable cost; and 13 (D) can be coordinated with observer programs of other 14 agencies, including the National Marine Fisheries Service, North Pacific 15 Fishery Management Council, and the International Pacific Halibut 16 Commission; 17 (14) establishing nonexclusive, exclusive, and superexclusive 18 registration and use areas for regulating commercial fishing; 19 (15) regulating resident or nonresident sport fishermen as needed for 20 the conservation, development, and utilization of fishery resources; 21 (16) requiring unlicensed fishing vessels present in or transiting the 22 waters of the state to report to the department the quantity, species, and origin of fish 23 on board; in this paragraph, "unlicensed fishing vessel" means a fishing vessel that is 24 not licensed under AS 16.05.490 - 16.05.530; 25 (17) promoting fishing and preserving the heritage of fishing in the 26 state. 27 * Sec. 3. AS 16.05.251(e) is amended to read: 28 (e) The Board of Fisheries may allocate fishery resources among and within 29 personal use, sport, guided sport, and commercial fisheries, including allocating to 30 cooperatives within a single fishery or between fisheries. The board shall adopt 31 criteria for the allocation of fishery resources and shall use the criteria as appropriate
01 to particular allocation decisions. The criteria may include factors such as 02 (1) the history of each personal use, sport, guided sport, and 03 commercial fishery; 04 (2) the number of residents and nonresidents who have participated in 05 each fishery in the past and the number of residents and nonresidents who can 06 reasonably be expected to participate in the future; 07 (3) the importance of each fishery for providing residents the 08 opportunity to obtain fish for personal and family consumption; 09 (4) the availability of alternative fisheries resources; 10 (5) the importance of each fishery to the economy of the state; 11 (6) the importance of each fishery to the economy of the region and 12 local area in which the fishery is located; 13 (7) the importance of each fishery in providing recreational 14 opportunities for residents and nonresidents. 15 * Sec. 4. AS 16.43.950 is amended to read: 16 Sec. 16.43.950. Applications of regulations of Board of Fisheries. Nothing 17 in this chapter limits the powers of the Board of Fisheries, including the power to 18 determine legal types of gear, [AND] the power to establish size limitations or other 19 uniform restrictions applying to a certain type of gear, and the power to establish 20 and allocate fishery resources to commercial cooperative fisheries. Holders of 21 interim-use permits or entry permits issued under this chapter are subject to all 22 regulations adopted by the Board of Fisheries.