AB 2465: Hunting and sport fishing licenses: decline in sales: advisory group.

Existing law requires every person 16 years of age or older who takes any fish, reptile, or amphibian for any purpose other than profit to first obtain a sport fishing license for that purpose, with specified exceptions, and to have that license on his or her person or in his or her immediate possession when engaged in carrying out any activity authorized by the license. Existing law requires the Department of Fish and Wildlife to issue an annual sport fishing license to a resident or nonresident upon payment of the applicable fee. Under existing law, the annual sport fishing license is valid for the period of a calendar year, or, if issued after the beginning of the year, for the remainder of the year.

This bill would require the department, on or before February 1, 2019, 2020, to convene a hunting and sport fishing industry group, to be known as the R3 Group, with R3 standing for Recruitment, Retention, and Reactivation. Under the bill, the purpose of the R3 Group would be to collaborate with the department to identify barriers to hunting and sport fishing that contribute to the decline in sales of hunting and sport fishing licenses. The bill would specify the membership of the R3 Group and provide for the R3 Group to identify the above-described barriers to hunting and sport fishing, develop and approve recommendations for removal of those barriers, and submit to the Legislature, as provided, a report containing the approved recommendations.