Senator Ken LaValle and Assemblyman Fred Thiele announced that Governor Andrew Cuomo has signed legislation the two State Legislators sponsored, S.5112/A.7270, which will prohibit those holding a marine and coastal district food fish landing license from landing blackfish or tautog taken from waters outside the marine and coastal district for commercial purposes.

Under current law, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has the authority to issue a commercial food fish landing license to State residents and non-residents alike. The commercial food fish landing license was originally developed to allow large US trawlers that fish the federal waters of the East Coast to land their catch in New York. Holders of this license are allowed to land fish in New York for commercial sale that were harvested outside of State waters, either in the exclusive economic zone or in waters of another state. Aside for a minimum age requirement of 16, there are no eligibility requirements to receive a food fish landing license. In particular, there is no fishing income eligibility requirements for this license as there are for all other State-issued commercial fishing licenses in New York State.

With significant increases in demand and high dockside prices for live blackfish in ethnic markets, the incentive is high for those possessing a food fish landing license to go offshore and catch blackfish and return to New York to sell them. More so, these individuals are free to fish for blackfish outside of the recreational open season in New York.

It is these opportunistic fishermen who have been unable to obtain a commercial food fish license, a license which would allow one to take and land food fish harvested from state waters and to land food fish taken from waters outside the state for commercial purposes, who are essentially using the landing license as a fishing license, and hurting the blackfish population and the commercial fishing industry.