Title 9

It shall be the duty of every captain of every licensed vessel, when called upon by an inspector so to do, to assist that officer, both in person and with his boat and crew, in making any arrest for any violation of this chapter, and such captains shall use such force at their co…

(a) Except as provided in subsection (b), jurisdiction of an alleged violation of this chapter shall be in the district court of the county where the offense is alleged to have been committed. (b)(1) For the purposes of determining jurisdiction of violations of the marine resourc…

If upon the hearing the offense is established, the judge of the district court must fine each of the offenders as is provided for in the section of this chapter which is violated or as otherwise provided by law and, if the fine is not paid, must commit him or them to jail and mu…

The proceedings before the district court must be carried on in the name of the State of Alabama, and the parties convicted, or either of them, may appeal from the sentence of condemnation and fine following the procedure set forth in Chapter 12 of Title 12. If the judgment is af…

The sale of the boat or vessel is not stayed by an appeal unless the appellant enters into a bond in a penalty of twice the value of the boat or vessel, her tackle, etc., the value to be determined by the judge of the district court, with sufficient surety, payable to the State o…

If the judgment is not stayed by the execution of bond as aforesaid, the sheriff must, after the expiration of 10 days, advertise and sell the boat or vessel, her tackle, etc., in the same manner as the sales under execution and, after deducting all necessary expenses of the seiz…

(a) The Commissioner of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources may require the possession of an endorsement or stamp in order to harvest or attempt to harvest specific species or species groups of marine resources. The commissioner shall establish the requirements a…

It shall be unlawful to have in possession or use for the taking of saltwater fish or other seafoods seines, nets or trawls with a mesh of a size other than that prescribed by the rules and regulations of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources of the State of Alabam…

It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to have in possession on board a boat in the waters of Alabama or in use, any seine, trammel net, gill net or other device for the taking or catching of saltwater fish or other seafoods having in length on the cork or main …

(a) Each license or permit issued by the Commissioner of Conservation and Natural Resources or his or her authorized agent shall state the name of the applicant. (1) If the applicant is a resident of the State of Alabama, the applicant shall pay the following fees: a. One hundred…

No person shall do, or attempt to do, any of the following: sell, trade, or barter, or buy, trade for, or barter for, any saltwater game fish specified in Section 9-12-113 or by regulation of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. The first offense of this section …

Each and every person, firm, or corporation holding a seafood dealer’s license issued by the Commissioner of Conservation and Natural Resources or his or her authorized agent shall under oath make a monthly report to the Director of the Marine Resources Division of the Department…

All saltwater finfish commercially harvested in the State of Alabama, except those lawfully taken by purse seine, shall be landed in this state and reported through a properly licensed Alabama seafood dealer. Other seafood products commercially harvested in this state shall be la…

It shall be unlawful for any packer, commissionman, dealer, shipper or boatman to refuse to open his place of business or boat where fish, oysters or other seafoods may be dumped, kept or stored, except his actual residence, for inspection by any officer whose duty it is to inspe…

Possession or operation of any illegal tackle or any illegal fishing devices or use of any boat or vessel that is not licensed as required by this article shall be considered prima facie evidence that it is kept or used for unlawful purposes, and such possession or operation or u…

The judge of probate, the commissioner of licenses or such person not residing at the county seat in which the county courthouse is located and duly appointed by the Commissioner of Conservation and Natural Resources and so authorized by him shall have authority to issue all lice…

Judges of probate and other persons authorized and designated to issue licenses shall charge for each license issued under the provisions of this article $1.00 in addition to the prescribed cost for each license issued, which amount shall cover services required by the provisions…

The proceeds from the sale of all licenses and all fees required by any of the provisions of this article shall go to the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and shall be used by such department for the administration of its Division of Marine Resources, except as ma…

Unless otherwise provided specifically in this article, a violation of any of the provisions of this article shall be a Class C misdemeanor, punishable as provided by law, except that the minimum fine shall not be less than one hundred dollars ($100). (Acts 1943, No. 587, p. 590,…

(a) It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to take shrimp by commercial shrimp trawling in waters closed to commercial shrimping by law or regulation. “Commercial shrimp trawling” means the taking or catching or attempting to take or catch shrimp by any trawl or…

A recreational gill net license may be issued to anyone wishing to utilize a 300-foot or less gill net for noncommercial purposes for a fee of $50.00. Persons taking fish from Alabama waters under the auspices of the recreational gill net license may not sell, barter, or offer fo…

(a) The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources shall immediately approve the hardship licenses selected on November 17, 1995, pursuant to Executive Order No. 12. (b) An individual approved pursuant to subsection (a) shall be subject to the same renewal qualifications as…

(a) Any person taking crabs for commercial purposes or using more than five crab traps for personal, noncommercial purposes must first obtain and have in possession a “crab catcher’s” license. The fee for said license shall be $50.00 and shall be paid to the Department of Conserv…

(a)(1)a. Any person who engages in the selling, brokering, trading, bartering, or processing of any fresh or frozen seafood, whether on a consignment basis or otherwise, is a seafood dealer and shall purchase a seafood dealer license for a fee of four hundred sixty-five dollars (…

(a) The State Board of Health is authorized to inspect the waters of the state where oysters are grown and harvested. When the State Health Officer shall determine that the waters surrounding the oyster beds are unsafe for the harvesting of said oysters, the State Health Officer …

All seafoods existing or living in the waters of Alabama not held in private ownership legally acquired and all beds and bottoms of rivers, streams, bayous, lagoons, lakes, bays, sounds and inlets bordering on or connecting with the Gulf of Mexico or Mississippi Sound within the …

A natural oyster reef is declared and defined as not less than one acre in continuous area of any bottoms of any bay, sound, bayou, creek, inlet or any other body of salt or brackish water on which oysters grow naturally, or have grown naturally, in quantity sufficient to warrant…

All the beds and bottoms of the rivers, bayous, lagoons, lakes, bays, sounds and inlets within the jurisdiction of the State of Alabama are the property of the State of Alabama to be held in trust for the people thereof, but the owners of land fronting on such waters where oyster…

Should any privately leased riparian bottoms be subsequently determined to be natural oyster reefs, said lease or leases shall be canceled by the Commissioner of Conservation and Natural Resources; and, from the ruling so cancelling such lease or affecting the riparian rights, an…

In addition to the powers heretofore enumerated, the Commissioner of Conservation and Natural Resources shall have power to lease to any citizen of Alabama or firm or corporation organized under the laws of this state and doing business within its limits, for the purpose of oyste…

Upon forfeiture of a lease, the lessee may, in the reasonable discretion of the Commissioner of Conservation and Natural Resources, be allowed additional time to remove from said leased parcel as may seem proper, upon such terms as may be prescribed by the Commissioner of Conserv…

It shall be unlawful to drag any seines over the public reefs or private oyster grounds in this state. (Acts 1919, No. 259, p. 242, § 10; Code 1923, §2746; Code 1940, T. 8, §122.)

(a) A standard measure for oysters is established which shall consist of a tub or other round vessel of the following dimensions: It shall measure 17 inches in diameter, inside at the bottom, and 21 1/2 inches in diameter, inside at the top, and 14 1/2 inches, inside, from the bo…

The Commissioner of Conservation and Natural Resources may establish by rule oyster management stations to be used by persons or boats harvesting or landing oysters taken from the public reefs or public water bottoms of this state. The oyster management stations so established in…

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources shall provide the necessary patrol boats and shall appoint a deputy inspector for each patrol boat who shall be a seafaring man, competent to act as captain of the boat on which he may be assigned, and the Department of Conserv…

The Director, Marine Resources Division, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources is hereby authorized and it shall be his duty to patrol or cause to be patrolled from time to time as he may see fit all those areas in Alabama territorial waters upon which are located priv…

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources or its duly authorized agent or agents shall have authority to board any boat, barge or other watercraft which is engaged in the taking or catching of oysters or shrimp or to enter the place of business of any person, firm, cor…

It shall be the duty of each owner or lessee of any private reef to have established an accurate survey by a registered surveyor of the bottoms, beds, or reefs under his or her control, and each corner shall be clearly marked and defined with the owner’s or lessee’s name clearly …

(a) All oysters taken from the public reefs of this state shall be culled and sacked, and each sack tagged and identified in accordance with the requirements of the rules of the state Department of Public Health, prior to leaving the public reefs or water bottoms where taken or o…

The Director of the Marine Resources Division, or his or her agents, under the direction and control of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, may cultivate, transplant, or replant the public reefs of the state or may employ boats, crews, and laborers to cultivate …

It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to fish, catch or take oysters from any of the oyster reefs in the State of Alabama by the use of any tongs, dredge, rake or other mechanical device during the hours between sunset and sunrise of each day. (Acts 1936-37, Ex…

Owners of private oyster reefs, beds, or bottoms and the lessees or designated permittees of such reefs, beds, or bottoms may use any mechanical means at their disposal and at any time between the hours of sunrise and sunset, including the use of mechanical rake dredges, to culti…

The taking of live oysters by means of rake dredges as provided for in Sections 9-12-37 through 9-12-41 shall be under the supervision of the Commissioner of Conservation and Natural Resources, and all rights granted to any person, firm or corporation by the provisions of Section…

Should the private individual, firm or corporation operating under the conditions set forth in Section 9-12-39 or any of the permittees of said individual, firm or corporation be found guilty of harvesting undersize oysters as provided for by regulations governing the harvesting …

(a) The Marine Resources Division may establish by rule a shell fee to be used for the replanting of oyster cultch material on the public reefs of this state or for otherwise managing the oyster resources of this state. This fee shall be charged on a per sack basis to all seafood…

(a) The Commissioner of Conservation and Natural Resources shall set by rule areas that are closed for commercial and recreational shrimping subject to the restrictions provided in subsection (b). (b)(1) All inside waters, as defined by rules adopted by the Commissioner of the De…