BAY CITY, MI - Several state bills are aiming to bring new regulations to Michigan’s fishing industry and have the potential to greatly impact commercial and recreational fishing on the Great Lakes.

Senate Bill 389 and House Bill 4790 would allow commercial fishing companies to catch and sell a quota of walleye and lake trout. House Bills 4567, 4568, and 4569 would, in part, stop commercial fishing of yellow perch.

Currently, the bills are before committees in each chamber. But already they are getting a lot of attention from sports groups and commercial fishing companies.

Lakon Williams, of the Bay Port Fish Co. that’s operated on Saginaw Bay since 1895, said the first set of bills would reduce waste by allowing her company to keep walleye and lake trout they now catch while targeting perch. Some of those fish suffer air bladder injuries due to pressure changes when they are brought to the surface, she said.

“I can’t even bring those fish in to donate to a local organization. I legally have to throw them over dead or alive,” she said.

But some sport fishing groups don’t support commercial fishing expansion. That includes the Saginaw Bay Walleye Club and the Michigan United Conservation Clubs.

Peter Schaefer, a member of the Saginaw Bay Walleye Club, said the walleye fishery in the bay was created in part by sports anglers through raising hatchery fish.

“SBWC contributed to the planting of over 9 million walleye to help restore our fishery," Schaefer said.

‘We can better manage our natural resources’

State Sen. Kevin Daley, R-Lapeer, represents Bay County and introduced the Senate bill adding walleye and lake trout to the list of fish that can be harvested commercially.

“By updating our laws and expanding the list of catchable fish to include limited amounts of lake trout and walleye, we can better manage our natural resources, help the DNR strengthen enforcement, and help our commercial fishermen compete in the modern economy,” Daley said.

Under the legislation, commercial fishing companies would pay a 5% royalty to the DNR on fish sales. The funds would be sent to the Game and Fish Protection Account.

The bills would establish fishing quotas on the Saginaw Bay for fish like walleye. Yellow perch are not included in the quotas.

Restricting perch fishing

Meanwhile, House Bills 4567, 4568, and 4569 focus on more restrictions on commercial fishing.

One of the main features of the bills is the proposal to remove yellow perch from the list of fish that can be caught commercially on the Great Lakes. Companies who fish on the Saginaw Bay currently rely on yellow perch for the majority of their harvest.

The three bills also aim to maintain the status-quo of not allowing walleye and lake trout to be caught commercially in the Great Lakes.

Commercial companies would be required under the bills to provide the GPS coordinates of their nets and gear to the DNR. In addition, the DNR would be required to conduct a bycatch study at least once every three years to adjust harvest quotas and gear and licensing regulations as needed. A bycatch study focuses on the types and numbers of fish that are caught unintentionally.

Perch for profit

Area commercial fishing companies are keeping a close eye on the bills due to their potential impact on operations. Some on Saginaw Bay say they have seen the growing walleye population and say it’s affecting perch numbers.

“The walleyes are just so overabundant, it’s unreal. We’ve been seeing it for a real long time but now it’s catching up to us," said Dana Serafin, of Serafin Fisheries in Pinconning.

The bills to designate perch as a game fish is a point of concern as well.

“We’re just looking at being treated fair is all," Serafin said.

Sports Fishing’s Stance

The Saginaw Bay Walleye Club and Michigan United Conservation Clubs are supporting restrictions to commercial fishing for yellow perch and opposing expansion of commercial fishing for walleye and lake trout.

Schaefer said walleye club is particularly against proposed game fish quotas in two of the bills, SB 389 and HB 4790.

“The SB 389 and HB 4790 bills will increase commercial netting licenses to 65 from 30 and allow 30% of the allowable catch in Saginaw Bay, a walleye fishery that was recreated by sport fisherman,” he said.

MUCC also maintains a stance against the quotas.

“We want to ensure that our sport fishery thrives so generations from now will be able to reap those benefits. When you start creating quotas and dipping into those quotas with commercial interests, that’s not necessarily something that looks bright in the future," MUCC spokesman Nick Green said.

SBWC and MUCC cite the economic impact of sports fishing in comparison to commercial fishing. Schaefer argues anglers create a $2.3 billion fishing industry, while commercial fishing nets only $5.4 million annually.

Local government action

Local governments have begun to express official positions on some of the bills.

The Bay City Commission passed a resolution Aug. 5 supporting the bills to restrict commercial yellow perch fishing.

“We depend on good fishing, good access to the waterways and our businesses depend on people visiting here,” said Commissioner Ed Clements. “They visit here for a lot of reasons and fishing is one of those reasons, and that’s why we took up this resolution in support of House bills 4567, 4568, and 4569, because its important to our economy that we protect our resources.”

According to Bay County Executive Jim Barcia, the Bay County Board of Commissioners pulled a discussion about supporting bills off the agenda at the Aug. 18 meeting.

Bangor Township Executive Glenn Rowley said township officials currently are researching the bills. The bills will be on the agenda for the Sept. 10 township board meeting for discussion.

All of the bills contain similarities across the board, including a proposal to form nine-member Commercial Fishing Advisory Committee that would be made up of members with interests in the commercial and sport-fishing industries.