(A) Commercial equipment, excluding vessels, used in the salt waters of this State and in fisheries for anadromous and catadromous species in any waters of this State must be licensed by the department. The owner and operator are responsible for obtaining a license:
(1) to use a trawl or trawls, and the cost is one hundred twenty-five dollars for residents and three hundred dollars for nonresidents;
(2) to use traps, and the cost is twenty-five dollars per fifty traps and one dollar for each trap thereafter for residents, and one hundred twenty-five dollars per fifty traps and five dollars for each trap thereafter for nonresidents;
(3) to use a channel net for taking shrimp, and the cost is two hundred fifty dollars for each net;
(4) to use a gill net for taking shad, herring, or sturgeon, and the cost is ten dollars per one hundred net yards or a fraction thereof for residents and fifty dollars per one hundred net yards or a fraction thereof for nonresidents, and to use any other gill net or haul seine the cost is ten dollars per one hundred net feet or a fraction thereof for residents and fifty dollars per one hundred net feet or a fraction thereof for nonresidents;
(5) to use hand-held equipment to take shellfish, including tongs, rakes, and forks, at no cost;
(6) to use a drag dredge, and the cost is seventy-five dollars for residents and three hundred seventy-five dollars for nonresidents;
(7) to use other mechanically operated or boat assisted equipment, other than equipment used to set or retrieve licensed equipment, and the cost is one hundred twenty-five dollars for residents and six hundred twenty-five dollars for nonresidents;
(8) to use trotlines with baits or hooks, and the cost is ten dollars for residents and fifty dollars for nonresidents for each line having not more than fifty baits or hooks per line;
(9) to use any other commercial equipment, and the cost is ten dollars for each type for residents and fifty dollars per type for nonresidents.
(B) The vessel on which a trawl or trawls is to be used must be specified on an application to the department and maintained current. The owner of a trawling vessel must furnish the name and address of the vessel master. Failure by the owner to supply or update the information required for the application so as to keep the information current at all times is a misdemeanor punishable as provided in this section.
(C) No person under the age of sixteen years may operate a trawler as master.
(D) No person may hold or apply for a separate license resulting in avoidance of a license fee differential specified in this section.
(E) Each net required to be licensed must be licensed separately.
(F) Other than vessels solely transiting the State in interstate commerce, any vessel on or from which commercial equipment is used or transported must display on its port and starboard sides current identification decals provided by the department.
(G) The department may require an owner or operator who uses commercial equipment without being present to affix an identification number and tag issued by the department to each piece of commercial equipment while the commercial equipment is in use. The owner and operator are responsible for assuring the number and tag are affixed.
(H) Only those types of commercial equipment specifically allowed by this chapter may be used for commercial purposes; provided, the department may grant permits for additional equipment types as stated in Section 50-3-340.
(I) A person who violates subsection (A)(1), (A)(3), (A)(7), or (H) is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not less than five hundred dollars nor more than five thousand dollars or imprisoned for not more than thirty days and must have his saltwater privileges suspended for twelve months.
(J) A person who violates subsection (A)(2), (A)(4), (A)(6), (A)(8), (A)(9), (D), (E), (F), or (G) is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not less than two hundred dollars nor more than five hundred dollars or imprisoned for not more than thirty days.
(K) A person who violates subsection (A)(5), (B), or (C) is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not less than twenty-five dollars nor more than two hundred dollars or imprisoned for not more than thirty days.
(L) Any commercial equipment which is used while not properly licensed, permitted, or tagged or any equipment used for commercial purposes not specifically allowed for commercial purposes by this chapter is considered contraband and must be seized by the department and disposed of as provided by law.
HISTORY: 2000 Act No. 245, Section 2; 2002 Act No. 342, Section 10.