February 7, 2025 — Should party boats have different regulations for fluke than, say, surf fishermen?
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission and the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council are floating an idea to split several recreational fisheries into two separate management sectors, a strategy that fishermen have raised before at fishery meetings but never really got any air under it.
The federal regulatory bodies are currently scoping the idea and has opened the question to comment, giving the public until March 20 to submit their opinions. The separate management would just be for the summer flounder, porgy, sea bass and bluefish fisheries.