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<title>Gamefish Bill Information</title>
<link>http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/communities/gamefish_bill/</link>
<description>Gamefish Bill Information</description>
<copyright>Carolina Publishing</copyright>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Sun 29th Jul 2012 13:07:00]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Gamefish bill sponsor laments fate of his legislation]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2732]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Rep. Darrell McCormick (R-Yadkin), former co-chair of the state legislatures 16-member Committee on Marine Resources, said his attempt to keep the gamefish-status bill (H 353) alive was the toughest legislative battle hes ever faced, and he was taken aback by the lack of support of several key members of his own party.

The bill died in committee during the 2012 short session that ended in July.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Mon 18th Jun 2012 08:06:59]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Commercial fishermen continue to take most of North Carolina's saltwater bounty]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2648]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[North Carolinas commercial and recreational fishermen saw harvests decline slightly in 2011, but for-profit fishing continued to lead all landings by weight and income by a large margin.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Thu 05th Apr 2012 15:04:05]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Legislative committee puts merger talks on hold]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2472]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[The state legislatures Committee on Marine Resources met for a fourth and final time April 5 to study legislative proposals to present to the General Assembly when it meets again for its short session in May.

However, the committee dropped a bombshell when the most important proposal on the meetings agenda  to merge the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries with the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission  was converted into another passive topic for future study.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Mon 02nd Apr 2012 11:04:06]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Legislature's Marine Resouces Committee's final meeting is April 5]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2462]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[The N.C. General Assemblys Committee on Marine Resources will hold its final open-to-the-public meeting April 5 at Raleigh in the Legislative Office Building, Room 643, 1 p.m.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Thu 01st Mar 2012 16:03:27]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Gamefish bill apparently headed to House; no discussion at latest committee meeting]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2403]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[No news was apparently good news at the latest meeting today (March 1) of the Legislative Research Commission Committee on Marine Fisheries.

Discussion of the proposed gamefish-status bill, House Bill 353, was not on the agenda, and the bills primary sponsor, Rep. Darrell McCormick (R-Yadkin), wasnt even in attendance  he was reported to be under the weather, back home in Yadkinville  at the meeting in Raleigh.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Wed 29th Feb 2012 12:02:05]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Fisheries group calls for total gill-net ban, cites legislative inaction on gamefish bill]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2392]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[The Coastal Fisheries Reform Group declared last week its intent to seek a total gill-net ban in North Carolina coastal waters.

The notice came in a news release that cited inaction on the part of the state legislature on a bill that would give gamefish status to spotted seatrout, striped bass and red drum, plus inaction on the part of the legislatures Committee on Marine Resources. CFRG also cites inaction on the part of the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission to approve measures to conserve and protect certain saltwater fish species.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Wed 22nd Feb 2012 13:02:11]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Angler: Stones Creek netting incident shows lack of respect, portends trouble]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2385]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Robert Patterson of Jacksonville is used to swimming against the tide.

Thats evident because it doesnt take long to find out he and his wife are huge fans of North Carolina State  but both of them are East Carolina graduates.

Today, Patterson might be seen as a maverick for a larger cause, one that hes worried may escalate with serious results: He isnt sure if some commercial netters arent becoming more emboldened because they think their small segment of the net-for-profit business is going to disappear or if its just business as usual.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Tue 21st Feb 2012 17:02:39]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[McCormick to speak at Swansboro fundraiser for gamefish fight]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2384]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Representative Darrell McCormick, co-chair of the North Carolina Legislatures Committee on Marine Resources, will be the keynote speaker during a Feb. 25 event to raise money for the fight to change the states saltwater fisheries management and better reflect the value of recreational fishing. The event will be held in Swansboro.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Wed 15th Feb 2012 09:02:08]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Mismanagement of river herring warns of NCMFC's commercial bias, veteran rec angler says]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2378]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[As commercial and recreational saltwater fishing interests duke out their positions online and at meetings of the legislatures Committee on Marine Resources, Ray Brown of Goldsboro remains one of the most eloquent speakers on behalf of coastal resources.

Brown worries that the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission hasnt learned from one of its most-egregious mistakes  allowing river herring to disappear  and may be on the road to repeating it with speckled trout.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Mon 06th Feb 2012 13:02:57]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Coastal realtor says gamefish status key to coastal counties' survival]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2371]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[The way Dean Phillips of Topsail Island sees it, fish availability is the horseshoe nail, the linchpin to the survival of most of North Carolinas coastal counties, which is to say saltwater fish are crucial to the lives of a majority of coastal residents.

(In) my county, Pender, its just absolutely the thing that ties everything together, said Phillips, who lives at Topsail Island and works in the family business, Surf Citys Landmark Real Estate.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Mon 06th Feb 2012 11:02:14]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Healthy inshore fisheries will boost coastal and inland businesses, tackle shop owners say]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2370]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[While few people doubt the positive influence of healthy inshore saltwater fisheries on coastal businesses, not many stop to realize they also would benefit many inland businesses.

There is also a pronounced tendency to underestimate the degree of the influence, especially to businesses well inland from the coast. Owners of several tackle shops were adamant that their economic viability should be included in discussions as legislators consider the option of granting gamefish status to speckled trout, red drum and striped bass.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Fri 03rd Feb 2012 16:02:16]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Experience is sole reason hundreds of thousand go fishing every year, saltwater fisheries management review committee told]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2368]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[The state legislature's Committee on Marine Fisheries met for the second time on Thursday (Feb. 2) this time to hear comments from stakeholders in the saltwater fishing industry.

Speakers gave their testimonies about the troubled state of North Carolinas saltwater resources, the management of those resources by a state agency (the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission) and how proposed changes will affect the states economy, their lives and the lives of coastal residents.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Thu 02nd Feb 2012 12:02:44]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Study used by Perdue shows recreational fishing more important than commercial fishing]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2358]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Statistics that Gov. Bev Perdue used to try and convince the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to continue the dredging of Oregon Inlet last year provides plenty of fodder for those supporting changes in the way North Carolina manages its saltwater fisheries resources.

The plea by Perdue actually shows recreational saltwater fishing is far more important to the state's economy than commercial fishing, which strengthens the argument for protection of red drum, speckled trout and stripers by granting those species gamefish status.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Thu 26th Jan 2012 11:01:07]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Visiting fishermen say gamefish protection would benefit coastal tourism and economies]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2326]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Even in the current depressed economy, fishermen plan their vacations around catching fish. Its the opinion of many fishermen that North Carolina is losing out on plenty of tourist dollars that could wind up in the states economy if the legislature designates red drum, speckled trout and striped bass as gamefish.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Tue 17th Jan 2012 09:01:03]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Ex-commercial angler: North Carolina needs to chart new saltwater course]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2309]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Charles Brown of Gloucester hails from a fifth-generation Down East fishing family, and proudly proclaims, Ive done it all.

All includes dredging for shrimp and oysters, crabbing, setting gill and pound nets for flounder, and working as a deckhand on an ocean-going scallop boat. He also worked 18 months as a handyman for the National Park Service at Core Banks until a freak accident in 2000 nearly killed him. Hes also been a waterfowl guide, like his father, grandfather. uncles and great uncles.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Fri 13th Jan 2012 08:01:27]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Albea: North Carolina can fix whats wrong with saltwater management]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2307]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Joe Albea, 57, remembers when Pamlico Sound was full of big croakers and gray trout, along with many other species.

Croakers and gray trout were the two breadwinners in the sound back in the 70s, said Albea, a Greenville native who produces and hosts two UNC-TV shows: Carolina Outdoor Journal and Exploring Carolina. Fishing was great for recreational and commercial anglers then, but we didnt have the big trawlers out there.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Fri 06th Jan 2012 12:01:25]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Numbers tell the tale of North Carolinas saltwater gamefish decision]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2283]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Two numbers jump out of the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries 2010 report on the state of the Tarheel States saltwater fisheries.

The total commercial catch from the states coastal waters was slightly more than 72 million ponds, while the recreational catch was between 14 and 15 million pounds.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Fri 06th Jan 2012 07:01:03]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[East revealed as foe of saltwater changes]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2288]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[The General Assemblys Committee on Marine Fisheries tasked with recommending changes to the management of saltwater fisheries held its first meeting yesterday (Jan. 4), and listened to North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries Director Louis Daniel III and N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission Executive Director Gordon Myers.

At that meeting, one of the study committees members made it clear he did not favor protecting redfish, speckled trout and stripers by granting those species gamefish status.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Wed 04th Jan 2012 14:01:29]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Coastal senator wants fair saltwater review]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=2278]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Anyone in the recreational or commercial fishing camps who believes the North Carolina General Assemblys Saltwater Review Committee will be a rubber stamp for their view of saltwater resources management is probably mistaken, a co-chairman of the committee told North Carolina Sportsman.

Although the 16-member committee was formed after the tabling last spring of House Bill 353  a proposal to give spotted seatrout, red drum and striped bass gamefish status  other topics may be more pressing to individual legislators, according to Sen. Harry Brown (R-Onslow/Jones).]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Fri 24th Jun 2011 10:06:01]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Legislative study committee created to reorganize saltwater management]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=1950]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[As promised by game-fish bill sponsor Darrell McCormick (R-Iredell, Surry, Yadkin), HB 353 might not have survived the crossover deadline, but a major study of how saltwater resources are managed was the outcome of extreme opposition to the bill.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Wed 15th Jun 2011 10:06:19]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Gamefish status bill dead, but likely to be reincarnated in 2012 short session of N.C. Legislature]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=1935]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[The coastal saltwater gamefish status bill, HB 353, didnt pass the June 9 crossover date to be considered in the second portion of the 2011 session of the North Carolina General Assembly.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Fri 20th May 2011 10:05:30]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Game-fish bill on track to move from North Carolina House to Senate]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=1883]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[The home stretch is in sight for the fate of House Bill 353, the piece of legislation that would declare red drum, spotted seatrout and striped bass as game fish in North Carolina. coastal waters. The bill must be approved by the House and moved to the Senate by June 9 to continue through the legislative process.

Before the piece of legislation can receive approval by the House, a public hearing must be held by the House Committee on Commerce and Job Development. North Carolina Sportsman has learned a hearing could be held as soon as the week of May 23-27.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Fri 29th Apr 2011 10:04:56]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Pender County Commission meets on H.B. 353]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=1859]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Pender County commissioners on April 4 voted unanimously to pass a resolution opposing House Bill 353, which would grant gamefish status to several saltwater fish species.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Thu 10th Feb 2011 10:02:20]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[CCA North Carolina weighs in on striped bass trawls]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=1724]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[CCA North Carolina is requesting the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission to completely eliminate trawling as permissible fishing gear for striped bass, the organization has announced.]]></description>
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<pubDate><![CDATA[Fri 28th Jan 2011 10:01:54]]></pubDate>
<title><![CDATA[Push for gamefish status continues]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.northcarolinasportsman.com/details.php?id=1698]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[Sportsmens groups are pushing to have a bill re-introduced into the legislature to reclassify red drum and spotted seatrout as gamefish.

The bottom line for such a bill would make reds and specks catchable only by hook-and-line. Netting, which always has been allowed, would be prohibited.]]></description>
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