TPW Commission Adopts Changes to Fishing Regulations

Steve Lightfoot, 512-389-4701, steve.lightfoot@tpwd.texas.gov

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AUSTIN — The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission today adopted a series of fishing regulation changes affecting bass and catfish in specific fresh waters, and clarifying saltwater length limits on black drum and amberjack, and rules prohibiting snagging of fish with pole-and-line.

The changes to the 2016-17 Statewide Recreational and Commercial Fishing regulations take effect on September 1, 2016, and include:

  • Modifying harvest regulations for largemouth bass on Lake Naconiche (Nacogdoches County) from an 18-inch minimum length limit to a 16-inch maximum.
  • Modifying harvest regulations for smallmouth bass on Lake Meredith (Hutchinson, Moore, and Potter counties) from a 12- to 15-inch slot and 3 per day bag to a 14-inch minimum length limit and 5 per day bag.
  • Modifying harvest regulations for channel and blue catfish bass on Lake Tawakoni (Hunt; Raines, and Van Zandt counties). The new proposal would remove the current 12-inch minimum length limit, but with a modified 25 fish daily bag (blues and channels combined). Within the 25 bag, only seven fish could exceed 20 inches in length and of those seven fish, only two could exceed 30 inches.
  • Modifying harvest regulations for largemouth bass on the Sabine River in Newton and Orange counties, and in Chambers, Galveston, Jefferson, and Orange counties. This proposal would reduce the minimum length limit for largemouth bass to 12 inches. The daily bag limit would remain at five fish in the four counties and at eight fish for the Sabine River (same as limit for waters shared with Louisiana).
  • Modifying saugeye harvest regulations to remove the current 18-inch minimum length limit and change the daily bag limit from three to five, only two of which may be greater than 16 inches (same as walleye harvest regulations).
  • Clarifying the recreational maximum size limit for black drum is 30 inches, and the recreational minimum total length limit on greater amberjack is 38 inches to align with new federal regulations that utilize a different measurement guideline.
  • Clarifying that snagging or foul hooking any fish using pole-and-line in fresh and salt water is prohibited.