FWC Working to make regulations easier to understand

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is taking steps to make Florida’s fishing rules easier to read, understand and enforce.

Current regulations are full of inconsistencies and confusing language which has caused some problems in the past.

So now the FWC is bowing to public pressure to streamline current marine fisheries rules by standardizing the format and rule language for 20 species chapters and relocating the regulations for swordfish, wahoo and sheepshead to new rule chapters of their own, separate from chapters dealing with other species.

The FWC also plans to create a new “General” chapter, which will house definitions and regulations that can be applied to all marine fisheries.

The rule-cleanup proposal, which will be brought before the Commission for final approval at its June meeting in Lakeland, is the first phase of a more extensive rule-cleanup process.

The public is encouraged to offer input on the proposal by attending one of two public webinars.

The next Webinar is Wednesday from 6 to 8 p.m. 

To take part in one of the webinars go to MyFWC.com/Fishing and click on “Upcoming Public Workshops.”

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