SECTION 1 repeals and recreates the Great Lakes guide reporting rules, encapsulated in s. NR 20.65, Wis. Admin. Code, in order to restructure the entire section with the updated, more specific guide reporting requirements. Many of these requirements are already in place for licensed charter captains that guide anglers in sport trolling for trout and salmon under s. 29.514, Stats., and were described in general terms under the previous format of s. NR 20.65, Wis. Admin. Code. This section creates a definitions section that applies specifically to s. NR 20.65, Wis. Admin. Code, including definitions for the Great Lakes, fishing guide, and completion of a fishing trip. A definition of “fishing guide” is important for encompassing guides that provide guiding services for open water fishing or ice fishing, and to clarify that “fishing guide” does not include outfitters or other businesses that merely rent out fishing gear or boats that the angler can use under the angler’s independent direction. This definition will help reduce the ambiguity of instances in which, for example, an outfitter rents out a fishing shelter and tows it onto the ice but provides no other assistance to the angler to help the angler find and catch fish. This section also describes the types of information that must be reported, the frequency of reporting, and departmental procedures for notifying the public of the annual reporting requirements. After each guided fishing trip, fishing guides will be required to report their name and customer ID number, the date of the guided trip, the location fished, the number of anglers guided during the trip, the total number of hours fished, information on fish caught as specified on the report form, such as the species, number kept, and how many were tagged fish, and other information required to soundly manage the species taken. The department will annually specify the waters of the Great Lakes and tributaries, species, and time frame for which reporting is required, to tailor guide reporting to the species and areas for which data are needed. As a result, some fishing guides may not be required to report during certain years or certain times of the year. The department will make this information available to licensed guides on December 1, prior to the start of the ice fishing season each year, and the reporting requirements will go into effect on January 1 of the upcoming year.
Finally, this section establishes the methods required for fishing guide reporting. The intent is to require electronic reporting, which provides more accurate data more quickly and easily than paper reports. Most licensed fishing guides in the Great Lakes already have a cell phone or other electronic device with which to enter the trip reports. The department may utilize an existing electronic reporting system to collect the reports. One such option includes the Electronic Fish Harvest Reporting System, which is already in use for commercial fish harvest reporting. This rule would require guides to enter their reports into the electronic reporting system within half an hour of completion of the fishing trip. If the electronic system is down, or if the guide cannot access the system due to an electronic device malfunction, the guide would be required to report each trip on a paper form and complete an electronic submission when the system is again functional or the guide is within cell phone range.
6. Summary of, and Comparison with, Existing or Proposed Federal Statutes and Regulations:
No federal regulations apply. States possess inherent authority to manage the fishery and wildlife resources within their boundaries, except insofar as preempted by federal treaties and laws, including regulations established in the Federal Register.
7. If Held, Summary of Comments Received During Preliminary Comment Period
and at Public Hearing on the Statement of Scope:
The department received no comments during the preliminary public hearing, nor during the accompanying comment period.
8. Comparison with Similar Rules in Adjacent States:
In Michigan, charter captains (both sport trolling charter captains and those using other fishing methods) in the Great Lakes are required to submit monthly reports to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources using an electronic system. The reports contain information on lake fished, date, specific location and hours fished, total number of anglers, total catch of major species, targeted species, and sea lamprey presence on certain salmonids. The Michigan DNR collects this data by sending a notification of reporting requirements to charter captains either by email or by hard-copy mailing, and then follows up with an additional postcard or mail notification and law enforcement contacts for those charter captains that have not yet submitted reports. This approach resulted in a 99 percent compliance rate in 2019-20201.
Illinois also considers charter boats to include those taking anglers on paid fishing trips for any kind of sportfish. The Illinois DNR requires charter sportfishing boat operators to complete daily catch reports, all of which are due by the 15th of the following month. Those who do not comply may be subject to penalties and may not be able to obtain a charter boat permit in future years2,3.
Minnesota requires licensed Lake Superior fishing guides (including charters) to submit monthly fishing reports by the 10th of the following month during the fishing season. Those that do not submit reports three times in a 2-year period may not be eligible for a guide license for up to three years.4
Iowa does not require guide licenses or guide reporting.
Sources:
9. Summary of Factual Data and Analytical Methodologies Used and How Any Related Findings Support the Regulatory Approach Chosen:
These rules are similar to the reporting requirements already in place for licensed charter captains, who guide anglers in sport trolling for trout and salmon in the Great Lakes. The reporting requirements for licensed charter captains are established in s. 29.514 (2), Stats. and s. NR 20.60, Wis. Admin. Code, and require the charter captain to record the licensee’s name and license number, locations fished, number of anglers, number of lines fished, hours fished, the number of each species of fish taken, and other information within ½ hour of completion of the fishing trip. The charter captain must submit all such reports to the department by the 10th day of the following month. Those rules have not imposed any significant inconveniences or costs to the charter captains, but provide important data used in monitoring trout and salmon harvest. Compliance rates for charter captain reporting are estimated to be around 95 percent, while fishing guide reporting compliance rates are highly uncertain. Lake trout and lake whitefish are significant fisheries for both anglers and commercial fishers. Lake trout and lake whitefish harvest from guided trips are currently estimated from the creel surveys conducted on Lake Superior and Lake Michigan and from limited guide reporting on Green Bay. These values are combined with harvest estimates from the general sport creel, charter reports and commercial harvest data (commercial harvest of lake trout is limited to Lake Superior only) to generate a total estimate of harvested lake trout and lake whitefish in Lake Superior, Lake Michigan and Green Bay. These harvest estimates are an input parameter to the statistical catch-at-age models used to generate the total lake trout and lake whitefish abundance estimates for Lake Superior, Lake Michigan and Green Bay from which safe harvest levels are derived. Commercial harvest and charter harvest reporting compliance rates are estimated to be close to 100 percent, improving accuracy of sport harvest by having guide harvest reporting will improve the statistical catch at age models as well as provide valuable population information for other species that do have significant commercial harvest or enough data to develop a statistical catch-at-age model.
Harvest for other key Great Lakes sport fisheries, such as the walleye, yellow perch, smallmouth bass and northern pike fisheries, is also of interest, and the department estimates it from creel surveys and limited guide reporting. However, additional guide reporting would help improve the accuracy of department data for these fisheries.
10. Analysis and Supporting Documents Used to Determine the Effect on Small Business or in Preparation of an Economic Impact Report:
The department does not anticipate any significant costs to licensed fishing guides as a result of this rule. The majority of Great Lakes fishing guides already possess a cell phone or other electronic device on which reports can be entered, and no reporting costs, fees, or fines will be included in this rule. However, this rule would create new mechanisms to increase reporting compliance among fishing guides, which would require fishing guides to learn the new requirements and take action to submit timely reports.
11. Effect on Small Business (initial regulatory flexibility analysis):
This rule will have a minimal economic impact, if any, on licensed guide businesses. The types of information required to be reported under the proposed rule would not generate any costs. The method for reporting may minimally impact some guides under mandatory electronic reporting if those guides do not already possess an electronic device such as a computer or cell phone to enter the reporting information. These guides would have to purchase an electronic device to enter their reports, which is expected to be a minimal cost to each guide.
This rule will not contain any design or operational standards, but will contain new reporting requirements that will apply to licensed guides, including those who guide in sport trolling for species other than trout and salmon.
13. Place where comments are to be submitted and deadline for submission:
Written comments may be submitted at the public hearings, by regular mail, or email to:
Meredith Penthorn
Department of Natural Resources
101 S. Webster St.
Madison, WI 53703
Comments may be submitted to the department contact person listed above or to DNRAdministrativeRulesComments@wisconsin.gov until the deadline given in the upcoming notice of public hearing. The notice of public hearing and deadline for submitting comments will be published in the Wisconsin Administrative Register and on the department’s website, at https://dnr.wi.gov/calendar/hearings/. Comments may also be submitted through the Wisconsin Administrative Rules Website at https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/code/chr/active. RULE TEXT
Section 1 NR 20.65 is repealed and recreated to read:
NR 20.65 Report of licensed guides.
(1) Definitions. In this section:
(a)
“Completion of a fishing trip” means the point of arrival of the guided fishing party at the dock or shore when fishing is complete.(b)
“Electronic reporting system” means a system established or authorized by the department for reporting guided fishing trips and other required information to the department by electronic means. (c)
1. “Fishing guide” means any person that is licensed under the provisions of s. 29.512 (1), Stats., that is actively engaged in guiding, directing, or assisting accompanying persons for compensation or reward in fishing, as defined in s. NR 20.03 (12), on open water or through ice in waters defined in pars. (c), (d), and (e).2. “Fishing guide” does not include a person or business that rents boats, fishing shelters, fishing gear, or related equipment to an angler for the angler’s independent use, provided that the person or business does not offer any additional services to guide, direct or assist the angler with fishing activities.
(f)
“Lake Superior” means Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior and Chequamegon Bay, as well as all tributaries up to the first lake or barrier impassable to fish. (2) General provisions.
(a) Each fishing guide operating in the Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, and Green Bay designated under par. (b) shall report to the department in the manner described in sub. (3) for each trip during which the fishing guide engages in on-water or through-ice guiding activity.
(b) The department shall annually specify the waters of Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, and Green Bay, and the time frame and the fish species for which reporting is required, which shall become effective on January 1 each year. The department shall notify fishing guides with this information no later than December 1 of the preceding year.
(c) The report required under par. (a) for each guided fishing trip shall include detailed information regarding the fishing guide’s and the guide’s clients’ fishing activities, including all of the following:
1.
Name and department of natural resources customer identification number of the fishing guide.5.
Total number of hours fished.6.
Description of fish caught, including species, number caught, number kept, tag numbers, if any, and other related information.7.
Other information required on the report form that the department determines is relevant to the sound management of the species taken. (3) Reporting methods.
