ACT NOW or NO New Bass Season!

[djkimmel]

First of all - AWESOME!!! WE WON!!! Michigan gets to keep scientific fish and wildlife management!!

Okay now that that is out of the way, Mojo thank you so much for thanking Representative Kesto. It was a rough day for everyone until the final vote was in. I thank every one of you who called a Rep or wrote an email. It really did make a big difference in some cases! THANKS!!!!

Now - to bass season since we still get to manage fish and wildlife in Michigan using science. There are 3 year-round bass season proposals being reviewed. The most opportunity one (option 4) could open bass season to all choices of fishing in the Lower Peninsula on the last Saturday of April, and May 15th for the Upper Peninsula so bass line up with inland walleye, pike and muskie seasons.

Catch-and-release fishing for bass would be legal all year BUT because our fishing season is regulated April 1 - March 31 each season, a change could not take effect for 2015 until April 1st.

I'm hoping that on April 1, 2015 (NO FOOLING) we can start bass fishing catch-and-release in most of the state (just a few exception waters like Beaver Island and the Sylvania Wilderness). I'm also hoping that all of us will have the CHOICE to fish our preferred method for bass starting the last Saturday in April 2015 for the LP and May 15 for the UP until December 31, 2015.

After that bass fishing could be legal all year each calendar year with catch-and-release January 1 - until the regular openers above.

The MDNR still has some internal review to do; Fisheries Chief Jim Dexter is going to discuss all of the previous input with the MDNR Director Keith Creagh. Then, probably a presentation of survey results to the NRC in September, followed by public presentation of an option at the October NRC meeting and then a vote by the NRC in November.

At the recent MDNR Warmwater Resources Steering Committee conference call both the Michigan B.A.S.S. Nation and The Bass Federation of Michigan announced they now support the above-mentioned option 4 as their primary choices with our original option - option 3, as our minimum acceptable alternative. MUCC announced that they officially support our option 3 but also that their members and Fisheries Committee would support option 4 too. The minutes from that meeting should be posted on the Michigan.gov/dnr website this week.

[Kal-Kevin]

So with some of us having to start planning for the next year as soon as possible, Dan, what do you see as a time line for when we will know what is going to happen next year? Do you think we will have a good idea by the first of November or December, with January being the dead line for any change in 2015?

Thanks for all you do for us

[djkimmel]

We should know before the end of November - we would need the NRC to vote at the November meeting at the latest to have time to make it into the 2015-16 MDNR Fishing Guide.

No change can start until April 1, 2015 because that is when the new regulations period starts for a 2015-16 MDNR Fishing Guide.

[Kal-Kevin]

Thanks Dan, I was thinking I should wait till at least December or January to make my 2015 schedule up. 

[djkimmel]

You could make a tentative schedule based on the best, possible outcome, and a regular schedule if only Lake St. Clair gets more bass fishing choice so you are ready to announce shortly after we find out what we're getting.