Nobody knows exactly how many bass fishing tournaments are held in New York each year, only that there’s more than ever.
That’s the main reason why the state Department of Environmental Conservation is now proposing a new regulation that would implement a statewide bass fishing permit and reporting system. If it goes forward, the regulation would take effect Jan. 1, 2025.
“If you were to ask me how many tournaments there are per year in New York, I couldn’t tell you,” said Steve Hurst, DEC’s Bureau of Fisheries chief. “We weren’t really concerned up until a few years ago about this. Fishing’s been good, but the number of tournaments has ballooned quite a bit.”
Information derived from the proposed permit system would help tournament directors avoid scheduling conflicts, Hurst said. “The smaller kayak tournaments may not want to be on the water when a pro bass tournament is there,” he said.
Likewise, a recreational angler accessing DEC’s tournament website will be able to find where and when bass tournaments are happening in order to plan fishing trips.
Tournament catch data would also help DEC to better manage the state’s bass fisheries, DEC said, noting that data collected from the proposed registry would bolster the agency’s regular collection of biological data on bass populations across the state.
Hurst called the proposed regulation “an instrument for us to gather data” and not a “heavy handed or far-reaching” rule.
While the impact of fishing tournaments on bass populations has been widely studied, it’s “really variable depending on the water body,” Hurst said. “It’s the number of tournaments, how close they are together, the number of people. We don’t know any of that. What this [new registration system] does is provide the baseline data to create a learning environment for us.”
Tournament directors will be able to access DEC’s online registration system beginning Sept. 1 to apply for a permit. There is no fee.
Bill Perkins cruises across Oneida Lake while competing in the 2021 Bassmaster tournament. Under a proposed regulation, DEC will require permits for bass fishing tournaments after Jan. 1, 2025.B.A.S.S.
For purposes of the proposed regulation, DEC defines a fishing tournament as:
- an organized competition among anglers or teams of anglers that is based on a measure of fishing success, such as the cumulative weight or length of targeted fish species
- is operated on one day, or a set of contiguous days
- has a minimum of 10 competitors
Under terms of the proposal, DEC would have the ability to deny permits. It’s highly unlikely that DEC would deny a permit early on but “years down the road,” said Hurst, it might become necessary in order to protect bass populations in a particular body of water.
“Maybe our bass population indices indicate something wrong with recruitment. We may not know why, but we don’t want to compound it,” Hurst added. “Or we may not want to risk things, and so we back off. The registry really provides the platform for learning and improved management.”
Furthermore, the proposed regulation allows DEC to set conditions on bass fishing tournaments.
“One thing that we may do—we haven’t gotten there yet—we may have best practices for tournament directors to follow,” Hurst said. For instance, if the tournament has a weigh-in station, DEC might make recommendations for the amount of dissolved oxygen in the holding tanks, he said.
The proposed tournament permit shouldn’t be confused with DEC’s temporary revocable permit already required for fishing tournaments with more than 20 people using a DEC boat launch site. Many bass tournaments directors will need both permits if the registry regulation goes forward.
New York is one of only two states among 13 northeastern states that do not have some type of permitting or registry system for bass tournaments. At the same time, it has become one of the top bass fishing destinations in the nation. In 2023, six of the state’s waterways made Bassmaster Magazine’s 100 Best Bass Lakes list, including the number two spot.
In creating the registry proposal, DEC consulted national bass organizations such as Major League Fishing and Bassmasters, both of which regularly hold televised bass fishing tournaments on various New York water bodies, including Cayuga Lake, Oneida Lake, and the St. Lawrence River, among others.
“They welcome it,” Hurst said, “because they want to contribute the data. It’ll be good. I think we’re going learn a lot from this, and it will help improve our management.”
For more information, visit DEC’s Bass Fishing Tournament Permit webpage.
Comments on the proposed regulation can be emailed to Regulations.Fish@dec.ny.gov, or mailed to the Inland Fisheries Section, NYS DEC, 625 Broadway, Albany NY 12233-4753. All comments must be received by June 10, 2024.
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Steve Featherstone covers the outdoors for The Post-Standard, syracuse.com and NYUP.com. Contact him at sfeatherstone@syracuse.com or on Twitter @featheroutdoors. You can also follow along with all of our outdoors content at newyorkupstate.com/outdoors/ or follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/upstatenyoutdoors.