Our buddy Zooker pointed out a new law in another post. And it STINKS!
http://www.ncwildlife.org/pg01_License/pg1_NBE.pdf
Warning...opinionated rant follows. Please do not continue to read if you are at risk of becoming offended. Opposing and supporting posts are welcome.
In NC the law has always allowed fishing in your county of residence with natural bait, but this changes in 2007. The Natural Bait Exemption will be repealed.
The NC Wildlife Commision claims the purpose for changing the law is to "capture" revenue from those outlaws that fish with natural bait to avoid buying a license. The exemption was put in place to allow those people living below the poverty level to fish to feed their families.
Does anyone know a fisherman that doesn't fish with artificial bait and therfore required to buy a license anyway?
But now conditions are improved for the impoverished
, under the new law they can fish throughout the state with natural or artificial bait. All they have to do is swallow their pride and tell the state of NC "I'm so poor, I cannot afford to buy groceries and I have to fish to feed my family."
OK, let's institute a law that gigs the tourists when they want to fish at the beach and the residence of NC will just have to suck it up and buy the recreational license too. But wait, that's not enough! Let's go after freshwater folks too!
Recreational freshwater fisherman are already buying the license. Why are they really changing this law?
