Title FGC, California Fish & Game Code

(a) Drift gill nets shall not be used to take shark or swordfish from February 1 to April 30, inclusive. (b) Drift gill nets shall not be used to take shark or swordfish in ocean waters within 75 nautical miles from the mainland coastline between the westerly extension of the Cal…

Thresher shark taken with drift gill nets shall not have the pelvic fin severed from the carcass until after the shark is brought ashore. (Added by Stats. 1988, Ch. 589, Sec. 2.)

Notwithstanding Section 8394, the director may close the drift gill net shark and swordfish fishery, the swordfish harpoon fishery, or any area where either or both fisheries are conducted, if, after a public hearing, the director determines the action is necessary to protect the…

(a) A permittee shall be subject to the provisions of this article whenever the permittee is using a drift gill net, unless the permittee has surrendered his or her permit to the department. (b) A permittee may surrender his or her permit by notifying the department of his or her…

It is unlawful for any permittee to sell swordfish taken by him or her to other than the persons described in Section 8032 or 8033. (Amended by Stats. 1988, Ch. 246, Sec. 7.)

Any license issued pursuant to Sections 8032 to 8036, inclusive, may be revoked or suspended by the commission, when requested by the department, upon a conviction for a violation of Section 8043 for failure to report, or for inaccurately reporting, shark or swordfish landings by…

(a) The Legislature finds and declares that the intent of this article is not to permit or encourage the taking of marlin for commercial purposes. (b) It shall be a misdemeanor for any person operating under a permit pursuant to this article to sell or possess for sale or persona…

(a) By March 31, 2020, the department shall establish a program to transition the holders of drift gill net permits issued pursuant to Section 8561 out of the drift gill net fishery that includes the following conditions: (1) A permittee who chooses to participate in the transiti…

This article does not create or recognize a property right in fish expected to be caught using a permit issued pursuant to Section 8561. (Added by Stats. 2018, Ch. 844, Sec. 8. (SB 1017) Effective January 1, 2019.)

This article shall be known and may be cited as the Nearshore Fisheries Management Act. (Added by Stats. 1998, Ch. 1052, Sec. 14. Effective January 1, 1999.)

The Legislature finds and declares that important commercial and recreational fisheries exist on numerous stocks of rockfish (genus Sebastes), California sheephead (genus Semicossyphus), kelp greenling (genus Hexagrammos), cabezon (genus Scorpaenichthys), and scorpionfish (genus …

The following definitions govern the construction of this article: (a) “Nearshore fish stocks” means any of the following: rockfish (genus Sebastes) for which size limits are established under this article, California sheephead (Semicossyphus pulcher), greenlings of the genus Hex…

Funding to pay the costs of this article shall be made available from the revenues deposited in the Fish and Game Preservation Fund pursuant to Sections 8587, 8589.5, and 8589.7, and other funds appropriated for these purposes. (Added by Stats. 1998, Ch. 1052, Sec. 14. Effective …

Any person taking, possessing aboard a boat, or landing any species of nearshore fish stock for commercial purposes shall possess a valid nearshore fishery permit issued to that person that has not been suspended or revoked, except that when using a boat to take nearshore fish st…

(a) The commission may adopt regulations as it determines necessary, based on the advice and recommendations of the department, to regulate nearshore fish stocks and fisheries. Regulations adopted by the commission pursuant to this section may include, but are not limited to, req…

Funding to prepare the plan pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 7072 and any planning and scoping meetings shall be derived from moneys deposited in the Fish and Game Preservation Fund pursuant to Section 8587 and other funds appropriated for these purposes. (Added by Stats. 1…

The commission shall temporarily suspend and may permanently revoke the nearshore fishing permit of any person convicted of a violation of this article. In addition to, or in lieu of, a license or permit suspension or revocation, the commission may adopt and apply a schedule of f…

(a) Fees received by the department pursuant to Section 8587 shall be deposited in the Fish and Game Preservation Fund to be used by the department to prepare, develop, and implement the nearshore fisheries management plan and for the following purposes: (1) For research and mana…

For the purposes of this article, “prawns” or “shrimp”, or both, include all of the following species: (a) Spot prawn (Pandalus platyceros). (b) Ridgeback prawn (Sicyonia ingentis). (c) Coonstrip prawn (Pandalus danae). (d) Pacific ocean shrimp (Pandalus jordani). (e) Bay shrimp …

Prawns or shrimp may be taken for commercial purposes under the regulations of the commission. (Added by Stats. 1984, Ch. 1271, Sec. 18.)

Except as provided in this article, prawns or shrimp may be taken in any waters of the state. (Added by Stats. 1984, Ch. 1271, Sec. 18.)

From Point Conception south to the Mexican border, prawns or shrimp may be taken with prawn or shrimp traps only in waters 50 fathoms or greater in depth. (Amended by Stats. 1994, Ch. 935, Sec. 12. Effective January 1, 1995.)

(a) Prawns or shrimp may be taken for commercial purposes with a trawl net, subject to Article 10 (commencing with Section 8830) of Chapter 3, or in either a prawn trap or a shrimp trap, subject to Article 1 (commencing with Section 9000) of Chapter 4. (b) No other species shall …

The following definitions govern the construction of this article: (a) “Marine aquaria pet trade” means any activities connected with collecting, holding, selling, and displaying live aquatic marine life for pet, hobby, curio, or display purposes. “Marine aquaria pet trade” does …

(a) It is unlawful for any person to take, possess aboard a boat, or land for marine aquaria pet trade purposes any live organisms identified in subdivision (b), unless that person has a valid marine aquaria collector’s permit that has not been suspended or revoked. At least one …

(a) Notwithstanding Section 8140 or subdivision (b) of Section 8597, specimens of the following groups or species shall not be taken, possessed aboard a boat, or landed for commercial purposes. Taking, possessing, or landing of any of the following species in a commercial operati…

(a) Marine organisms identified in subdivision (a) of Section 8597 shall not be taken except by the following methods: (1) Hook and line. (2) Drop net. (3) Dip Net. (4) Trap. (5) Hand. (6) Slurp gun. (7) Spatula. (b) Chemical anesthetics, poisons, or irritants shall not be used o…

(a) The fee for a marine aquaria collector’s permit shall be three hundred thirty dollars ($330). (b) A person engaged in taking, possessing, or landing marine species under a marine aquaria collector’s permit shall not take, possess aboard a boat, or land any species under the a…

Notwithstanding any other provision of this code, the director may close any portion of the fishery established under this article or any area in which this fishery is conducted, if, upon written finding, the director determines the action is necessary to protect any organisms li…

Notwithstanding Section 12000, a violation of this article or any regulation adopted thereunder is punishable by a fine of not less than two thousand dollars ($2,000) or more than five thousand dollars ($5,000). (Added by Stats. 1992, Ch. 742, Sec. 14. Effective January 1, 1993.)…

(a) It is unlawful to take any white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) for commercial purposes, except under permits issued pursuant to Section 1002 for scientific or educational purposes or pursuant to subdivision (b) for scientific or live display purposes. (b) Notwithstanding sub…

The department shall cooperate, to the extent that it determines feasible, with appropriate scientific institutions to facilitate data collection on white sharks taken incidentally by commercial fishing operations. (Added by Stats. 1993, Ch. 1174, Sec. 3. Effective January 1, 199…

The commission may adopt regulations to manage basking sharks. A basking shark may not be taken commercially unless the commission adopts regulations for that activity and the taking is in accordance with those regulations. (Added by Stats. 1999, Ch. 483, Sec. 25. Effective Janua…

(a) Notwithstanding Sections 5670, 5672, 8341, and 9050, native and nonnative mollusks may be taken in Districts 12 and 13 and moved to other areas to be purified for human consumption under rules and regulations established by the commission. Those regulations may include, but a…

(a) The State Department of Public Health may make sanitary surveys of mollusk-growing areas or may use sanitary surveys of mollusk-growing areas made by qualified state or county agencies, and based on that information may classify those areas for purposes of harvesting and movi…

If examinations are conducted by the State Department of Public Health pursuant to this article for purposes of certifying the quality of shellfish-growing waters, certification of water quality shall be commenced within 30 days and completed within six months of the filing of an…

Any person who moves any native mollusks taken under regulations of the commission from Districts 12 and 13 for purposes of purification for human consumption shall pay a royalty, as the commission may prescribe, of not less than two cents ($0.02) per pound of mollusks so taken. …

(a) The Legislature finds and declares that commercial salmon fishing is in the public interest and that the preservation of commercial salmon fishing directly affects the health and welfare of the public. The Legislature further finds and declares that, due to past declines in s…

The following definitions govern the construction of this article: (a) “Agent” means the person designated in writing by the owner as the owner’s representative. (b) “Change of ownership” means the transfer of ownership of a permitted vessel to a new owner. (c) “Commercial salmon…

It is unlawful to take or possess salmon for commercial purposes on a vessel unless all of the following conditions are met: (a) The vessel is registered with the department pursuant to Section 7881, and the owner of the vessel has a valid commercial salmon vessel permit for the …

(a) Except as provided in this section, it is unlawful to take salmon for sport purposes on a permitted vessel. (b) Subdivision (a) does not prohibit taking salmon for sport purposes under a sportfishing or a sport ocean fishing license, which is issued pursuant to Article 3 (com…

Except as otherwise provided in this article, a permit shall be renewed prior to expiration. Each permit issued by the department shall display the expiration date on the face of the permit. (Amended by Stats. 1996, Ch. 870, Sec. 20. Effective January 1, 1997.)

Except as otherwise provided in this article, the department shall issue a permit, upon application and payment of the renewal fees pursuant to Section 8235, that is valid for the subsequent permit year, to the owner of a permitted vessel that is registered with the department pu…

Except as otherwise provided in this article, the department shall issue a permit, upon payment of the transfer fees pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 8239 and surrender to the department of the permit for the use of the permitted vessel, to the owner of a replacement vessel…

(a) Except as otherwise provided in this article, the department shall change the designation of the holder of a permit to the new owner of a permitted vessel upon receipt of a notice of change of ownership of the permitted vessel, whether the change of ownership is by contract, …

Except as otherwise provided in this article, the department shall issue a permit to the owner of a commercial salmon fishing vessel that is registered with the department pursuant to Section 7881 for the new entry of that vessel into the commercial salmon fishery if that owner i…