EXPORT; MINNOWS AND CRAYFISH H.B. 4242:
SUMMARY OF HOUSE-PASSED BILL
IN COMMITTEE
House Bill 4242 (as passed by the House)
Sponsor: Representative Julie Alexander
House Committee: Natural Resources and Outdoor Recreation
Senate Committee: Natural Resources
CONTENT
The bill would amend Part 487 (Sport Fishing) of the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act to allow a person to export minnows, wigglers, and crayfish from Michigan, if that person held a permit to do so.
The Act prohibits a person from exporting from Michigan any minnows, wigglers, or crayfish, dead or alive, taken either in or outside of Michigan, unless that person is a Michigan resident and holds a permit from the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to do so and wholesale minnow dealer's license. The permit enables a resident licensee to export minnows, wigglers, or crayfish that were harvested from waters outside of the State's jurisdictional border and imported wholesale into Michigan. Under the bill, the permit instead would enable a resident licensee to transport outside of Michigan minnows, wigglers, or crayfish.
Minnows, wrigglers, and crayfish taken from waters within Michigan's jurisdiction may not be exported from Michigan. The bill would eliminate this language.
MCL 324.48729 Legislative Analyst: Dana Adams
FISCAL IMPACT
The bill would have a minor negative fiscal impact on the DNR and no fiscal impact on local units of government. The Department is responsible for licensing dealers and administering regulations that govern commercial harvesting of bait resources (minnow, wiggler and crayfish). The Department receives revenue annually from a variety of bait dealer licensing fees. The Department also monitors commercial dealers' activities by reviewing monthly activity reports submitted by licensed dealers.
According to research performed by Michigan State University in 2016, the annual retail value of the minnows and wigglers that were harvested from State waters was between $5.2 million and $7.8 million. If exportation of bait resources outside the State increased the harvesting of bait resources, there would be a negative fiscal impact on the DNR. That negative impact would be equal to the increase in administrative costs caused by the increased volume of bait resources harvested. Additionally, should an increase in the volume of bait resources harvested strain the bait population, then this could lead to an indeterminant increase in costs for the Department.
|
Resource |
Volume in Gallons |
Wholesale Value |
Retail Value |
|
Minnows |
25,000 to 38,000 |
$900,000 to $1.3 million |
$5.0 million to $7.5 million |
|
Wiggler |
1,200 to 3,500 |
$35,000 to $100,000 |
$150,000 to $270,000 |
|
Source: Ronald Kinnunen, Michigan has a viable and sustainable bait industry, Michigan State University Extension, July 12, 2016. Note: The research did not include estimates for crayfish populations and is the reason they have been omitted. |
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This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.