If you give a darn about how the Maryland Chesapeake Bay striped bass season is being regulated, we hope you saw Fisheries Update: Summer 2020 MD Striper Regs Proposed. We’re not going to re-hash the whole deal, so if you missed it, please give it a read now. But since the DNR has announced a May 11 webinar at 6:00 including public comment on the schedule, we will reiterate a few highlights:
- Recreational anglers get one fish per day, charter boat anglers get two fish per day, and August 16 through August 31 are shut down—no fishing for striped bass. This was proposed in Option 2.
- The entire summer could have been kept open if both recreational and charter boat anglers were allowed one fish per day; this was proposed in Option 1.
- The Option 2 regs, the one now being put forth for implementation, received 279 comments in support. (Option 3, allowing for some shifting of the closure dates, received 73 comments in support).
- The Option 1 regs, not being considered at this point, received 1,252 comments in support.
It’s difficult to understand how the public comment period for this action begins May 8 and is supposed to run for 30 days — considering that the summer season is already well underway while the comment period is still "open." Be that as it may, anglers, the May 11 webinar is your last chance to make your opinion heard by the state before this process is finally complete. If you wish to let the DNR know what you think about these regulations, how this process has unfolded, or other items you have an opinion on regarding the summer and fall striped bass fishery regs, click on the Public Hearing Document, which includes links to join in, a meeting agenda, and links to see the latest changes in fishing regs.
