Montana Administrative Code

12.6.801 BOATING CLOSURES (REPEALED) Authorizing statute(s): 87-1-301, 87-1-303, MCA Implementing statute(s): 87-1-303, MCA History: Eff. 12/31/72; AMD, Eff. 4/5/76; AMD, Eff. 3/28/80; AMD, 1984 MAR p. 502, Eff. 3/30/84; AMD, 1990 MAR p. 1003, Eff. 6/1/90; AMD, 1995 MAR p. 1935, …

12.6.901 WATER SAFETY REGULATIONS (REPEALED) Authorizing statute(s): 23-1-106(1), 87-1-303, MCA Implementing statute(s): 23-1-106(1), 87-1-303, MCA History: Eff. 12/31/72; AMD, Eff. 5/18/76; AMD, Eff. 8/5/76; AMD, 1978 MAR p. 1391, Eff. 9/29/78; AMD, 1979 MAR p. 1197, Eff. 10/12/…

12.7.1001 DEFINITIONS For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply: "Roe" means paddlefish eggs removed from the fish prior to processing; "Caviar" means roe washed, screened, cooled and salted; "Processing" means the washing, screening, cooling and salting of ro…

12.7.1002 SELECTION OF CORPORATION AND NOTICING The fish and game commission will select a nonprofit corporation duly incorporated and certified under the Montana Nonprofit Corporation Act to receive paddlefish roe donations and process and market the roe as caviar. The selection…

12.7.1003 CRITERIA IN SELECTING NONPROFIT CORPORATION The commission shall consider the following criteria in selecting a corporation for conducting paddlefish roe donation and marketing program: overall feasibility of the corporation's proposal; estimated benefits to the public …

12.7.1004 OPERATING PLAN A general operating plan shall be submitted with the proposals. The plan should include the following: fish and egg handling and record keeping procedures; precautions to be taken to avoid wasting the paddlefish resource; the mechanism for securing eggs f…

12.7.1005 RECORDS The selected corporation shall be required to keep the following records which will be available for department inspection upon request. The daily total number of fish from which roe are taken; recording tag numbers from all fish; the daily total weight of roe c…

12.7.1006 PERMIT The organization submitting the best proposal as determined by the commission will be issued a permit from the department to operate the paddlefish roe donation program. The permit will be conditioned to require operation as proposed and as required by these rule…

12.7.101 APPLICATION Any person desiring to harvest nongame fish from any body of water in the state, or whitefish by nets or traps from the Kootenai River or from its tributaries within one mile of the Kootenai River, for sale or commercial distribution must make written applica…

12.7.102 COMMERCIAL FISHING LIMITATIONS On any water of the state, except Fort Peck reservoir, commercial fishing will be limited to one operator unless the department determines that additional harvest would be beneficial. Also special regulations regarding gear, limits, seasons…

12.7.103 CLASSES OF PERMITS AND FEES Permit fees for a commercial fishing permit and species that may be taken are as follows: Class A--$500 per year which authorizes the taking of all nongame species designated by the department for commercial purposes; Class B--$200 per year wh…

12.7.104 RECORDS The permittee shall keep written records of all his operations and transactions relating to the taking, sale of, or other disposal of fish. The permittee shall make reports on commercial fishing activities to the director on forms provided by the department. Thes…

12.7.105 DISPOSAL OF FISH All species of fish except those taken as provided in ARM 12.7.103 shall be returned alive and unharmed to the waters from which they came. All dead game fish shall be cut and sunk. Authorizing statute(s): Secs. 87-1-201, 87-1-301 MCA Implementing statut…

12.7.1101 PURPOSE (IS HEREBY REPEALED) Authorizing statute(s): 87-1-201, MCA Implementing statute(s): 87-1-257, MCA History: NEW, 1990 MAR p. 1461, Eff. 7/27/90; REP, 1996 MAR p. 1840, Eff. 7/4/96.

12.7.1102 DEFINITIONS (IS HEREBY REPEALED) Authorizing statute(s): 87-1-201, MCA Implementing statute(s): 87-1-257, MCA History: NEW, 1990 MAR p. 1461, Eff. 7/27/90; REP, 1996 MAR p. 1840, Eff. 7/4/96.

12.7.1103 ELIGIBILITY (IS HEREBY REPEALED) Authorizing statute(s): 87-1-201, MCA Implementing statute(s): 87-1-257, MCA History: NEW, 1990 MAR p. 1461, Eff. 7/27/90; REP, 1996 MAR p. 1840, Eff. 7/4/96.

12.7.1104 PROJECT APPLICATION Application for program funding must be submitted on forms supplied by the department. Applicants proposing projects on lands other than their own must include written consent of the landowner and/or lessee for the project, including an agreement for…

12.7.1105 PROJECTS Program funding may be provided for costs of design, planning and construction of projects which will conserve and enhance fish and wildlife habitat. Potential projects may include but are not restricted to the following: Fish habitat improvement; Barrier remov…

12.7.1106 PROJECT REVIEW AND ASSESSMENT Applications for program funding will be reviewed in March and September of each year. Applications reviewed at each time will be those complete applications received before March 1 or before September 1, respectively. A program committee w…

12.7.1107 PERMITS Projects approved for account funding that require a permit under the Natural Streambed and Land Preservation Act ( 75-7-101 et seq., MCA) must be submitted to the respective county conservation district for review. The project applicant is responsible for obtai…

12.7.1108 INSPECTION AND PAYMENT BY DEPARTMENT Funds granted from the account shall be used only for purposes described in the application. Accurate records must be kept by the project applicant or sponsor. An itemized invoice of expenses and receipts approved by the applicant mu…

12.7.1109 PROJECT MAINTENANCE Projects funded under the program such as fences, bridges, culverts, irrigation diversions, bank rock rip-rap or other channel stabilization measures will become the property of the landowner. Fish habitat improvement projects such as spawning channe…

12.7.1110 EVALUATION Restoration projects involving devices to improve fish habitat, such as digger logs, K-dams, wing deflectors, trash collectors, boulder placement, bank cover, gabions, jetties, or any variations thereof, shall be evaluated by the applicant. A tentative evalua…

12.7.1111 RECORDS Records will be kept on each funded project and a fiscal year report will be prepared by the department. Authorizing statute(s): 87-1-201, MCA Implementing statute(s): 87-1-257, MCA History: NEW, 1990 MAR p. 1461, Eff. 7/27/90.

12.7.1112 EFFECT OF RULE VIOLATIONS Any person or organization falsifying financial statements or using river restoration funds for purposes other than the intended project will be disqualified from further participation in the program and will be required to reimburse the depart…

12.7.1201 PURPOSE The purpose of these rules is to adopt procedures to implement the functions of the commission and the department in the future fisheries improvement program established in 87-1-272 , MCA. The purpose of the program is to restore essential habitats for the growt…

12.7.1202 DEFINITIONS As used in these rules, the following definitions apply: "Commission" means the fish, wildlife and parks commission. "Department" means the Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. "Native fish" means fish species that were present in a given water body prior…

12.7.1203 PROJECT RANKING AND APPROVAL Eligible projects that have been approved by the review panel will be reviewed, evaluated and ranked by a committee that includes at least two department personnel with a background in fishery biology and an understanding of the habitat requ…

12.7.1204 PERMITS The project applicant is responsible for obtaining all necessary permits required to complete the project. Permits must be obtained prior to project initiation to qualify for payment of funds. Authorizing statute(s): Sec. 87-1-201, 87-1-301 MCA Implementing stat…

12.7.1205 INSPECTION AND PAYMENT BY DEPARTMENT Funds granted from the account shall be used only for purposes described in the final project agreement. Itemized invoices of expenses and receipts approved by the applicant must be submitted to the department for payment. Payment ma…

12.7.1206 PROJECT MAINTENANCE Projects funded under the program such as fences, bridges, fish screens, or other channel restoration measures will become the property of the landowner. Fish habitat improvement projects such as spawning channel development, fish barrier removal, fi…

12.7.1207 PROJECT MONITORING Restoration projects shall be evaluated by either the applicant or the department according to terms stipulated in the project agreement. Monitoring will be conducted on each completed project at times agreeable to the landowner. The type and frequenc…

12.7.1208 EFFECT OF RULE VIOLATIONS Any person or organization falsifying financial statements or using program funds for purposes other than the intended project will be disqualified from further participation in the program and will be required to reimburse the department for a…

12.7.1301 APPLICATION PROCESS AND CRITERIA FOR A SCIENTIFIC COLLECTORS PERMIT The application for a scientific collectors permit must contain the following: name, address, phone number, affiliation and qualifications of the applicant as well as any associates who will be involved…

12.7.1401 COOPERATIVE FISHING ACCESS AGREEMENTS The department may provide monetary benefits under 87-1-285 , MCA, to a landowner who enters into a cooperative agreement with the department to allow public fishing access across or on the landowner's property. In determining wheth…

12.7.1501 GENERAL PURPOSE As determined by the department, these rules pertain to the department's response to the detection of a species of fish in public waters where the department has not authorized the presence of that species. These rules are intended to cover all placement…

12.7.1502 DEPARTMENT'S INITIAL RESPONSE AND ACTION PLAN The department shall begin an initial investigation within 30 days after the report of the presence of an unauthorized species in an attempt to confirm that an unauthorized placement has occurred and to estimate the distribu…

12.7.1503 MANAGEMENT ACTIONS The department's action plan for responding to a confirmed unauthorized species may include, as determined by the department, the following management actions for eradication or suppression: prohibit or discontinue stocking the water body if the prese…

12.7.1504 ADAPTIVE MANAGEMENT APPROACH FOR UNAUTHORIZED SPECIES The department may amend its management objectives for a body of water if after a reasonable period of time the department concludes that: the management actions have succeeded and the department has accomplished the…

12.7.1505 REPORTING REQUIREMENTS The department shall maintain an electronic repository utilizing a standardized format to document the initial investigation and subsequent management actions taken in response to each unauthorized species. Documentation must include, but is not l…

12.7.201 APPLICATION A commercial bait fish seining license is required for: the collection of any nongame bait fish, as identified in the current fishing regulations, for the purpose of selling or commercial transportation and distribution; or the possession of 24 dozen (288) or…

12.7.202 ISSUANCE The department shall issue a commercial bait seining license upon approval of an application. The license must specify the terms of the license. The department will not license any applicant who has ever had a commercial bait seining license revoked. Authorizing…

12.7.203 REVOCATION The director may revoke a license based on sufficient evidence of violation of seining laws, regulations, or terms of the license. Authorizing statute(s): 87-4-609, MCA Implementing statute(s): 87-4-601, 87-4-609, MCA History: Eff. 12/31/72; AMD, 2016 MAR p. 5…

12.7.204 APPEAL A person may appeal a determination to deny an application or revoke a license. The contested case provisions of the Montana Administrative Procedure Act, Title 2, chapter 4, part 6, MCA, will apply. Authorizing statute(s): 87-4-609, MCA Implementing statute(s): 2…

12.7.205 HEARING PROCEDURE (REPEALED) Authorizing statute(s): 87-1-301, MCA Implementing statute(s): 87-3-204, 87-4-602, MCA History: Eff. 12/31/72; REP, 2016 MAR p. 585, Eff. 4/9/16.