Our Sportfishery. Our Future.
Protecting Michigan's Sportfishing Heritage
We partner with citizens, organizations, communities and companies to protect and conserve Michigan's sportfishery and fishing opportunies for future generations

A New Opportunity to Protect
Michigan's Sportfish
Without new legislation to update and promote conservation and restoration of Michigan's sportfish, our fishing heritage is threatened.
Michigan Sportfishing Alliance

In The News
Walleye, lake trout could become Michigan commercial catch
- mlive: November 5, 2023
Bills would allow commercial walleye fishing on Great Lakes, ban catching perch for profit
- mlive: August 29, 2019
Great Lakes anglers backing laws to further regulate commercial fishing
-mlive: October 25, 2019
Michigan House OKs bills that ban commercial perch fishing on the state’s Great Lakes
-mlive: February 6, 2020
Great Lakes fish feud moves to Michigan Senate
-Interlochen Public Radio: February 14, 2020
Conservation efforts from the past are creating a booming fishing economy in the Saginaw Bay
-Route Bay City: March 19, 2020
Michigan’s dying commercial fishing industry fears state bills will be final nail in the coffin
-mlive: July 27, 2020
The biggest challenge to Michigan's sportfishing heritage
Michigan’s commercial fishing regulations have not been updated since the 1960s, and most of the state statute language dates to 1929. Commercial license fees have not been modified since 1968 and are inadequate to fund the program’s administration and enforcement. Today, recreational anglers bear the burden of subsidizing the commercial industry… funds that could otherwise be used for habitat improvement, fish stocking, fisheries education programs, and more. This legislation is supported by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Michigan United Conservation Clubs, local, state and national conservation organizations, and communities around the state.
The recreational fishing community seeks proposed legislation that uses a common sense and scientific approach to managing our fisheries resources. We support legislation that:
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Creates a list of all species available for commercial harvest, in turn protecting game species
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Requires commercial netters to check their nets regularly and regulates the allowable gear in relation to the time of year and location of net.
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Requires commercial netters to publicly disclose GPS coordinates of nets
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Establishes penalties for the taking, possessing or selling of specific species. Game fish unlawfully taken will incur a higher fine
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Creates penalties for a person intentionally obstructing the legal taking of fish
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Updates the commercial netting fee structure so that the commercial industry moves toward paying its own costs for management and administration
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Allows the DNR to better enforce and promulgate laws related to commercial netting - currently that authority resides with the legislature
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Requires the DNR to conduct a bycatch study at least once every three years in at least three active commercial fisheries and use the results of those studies to adjust harvest, allowable gear, and other license conditions.