Flounder/Red Snapper Seasons & Shrimp Trawl.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2025
H 4
HOUSE BILL 442
Committee Substitute Favorable 4/29/25
Committee Substitute #2 Favorable 5/6/25
Senate Agriculture, Energy, and Environment Committee Substitute Adopted 6/17/25

Short Title: Flounder/Red Snapper Seasons & Shrimp Trawl. (Public)
Sponsors:
Referred to:
March 20, 2025
*H442-v-4*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT TO RESTORE RE CREATIONAL FISHING F OR FLOUNDER AND RED 2
SNAPPER IN NORTH CAR OLINA THROUGH THE CR EATION OF A FOUR -YEAR 3
PILOT PROGRAM AND TO PROHIBIT THE USE OF TRAWL NETS TO TAKE 4
SHRIMP IN COASTAL FI SHING WATERS OR THE ATLANTIC OCEAN WITHIN 5
ONE-HALF MILE OF THE SHORELINE. 6
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 7
8
RESTORE FLOUNDER AND RED SNAPPER SEASONS 9
SECTION 1.(a) Findings. – The General Assembly makes the following findings: 10
(1) In 2024, the Division of Marine Fisheries of the Department of Environmental 11
Quality issued proclamations limiting the recreational harvest of flounder to 12
four days in joint fishing waters and the recreational harvest of red snapper to 13
one day. 14
(2) The recreational fishing industry contr ibutes significantly to the economy of 15
coastal North Carolina. 16
(3) North Carolina's restrictions on recreational fishing of flounder and red 17
snapper are more stringent than any other southeastern state from Virginia to 18
Texas. 19
(4) There is considerable over lap in the fish population between southeastern 20
counties of the State, such as Brunswick County, and South Carolina. 21
(5) Higher creel and season limits in South Carolina in 2024 give that state a 22
significant competitive advantage in the competition for rec reational fishing 23
tourism. 24
(6) State policies regarding recreational catch and release reporting and data 25
analysis overestimate overall mortality, thus skewing the science on the 26
flounder fishery. 27
(7) Coastal fishing charters or individual boats report cat ching large amounts of 28
these species by accident and having to release them, indicating the 29
populations are plentiful. 30
(8) These unnecessarily strict and possibly unscientific restrictions on the 31
recreational fishing industry force recreational fishing customers and captains 32
to move much of their business to South Carolina and Virginia. 33
General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
Page 2 House Bill 442-Fourth Edition
SECTION 1.(b) Directive. – Notwithstanding G.S. 113-221.1 and 1
G.S. 143B-289.52 and any other provision of law to the contrary, the Fisheries Director (as 2
defined in G.S. 113-251), the Marine Fisheries Commission (Commission), and the Division of 3
Marine Fisheries of the Department of Environmental Quality (Division) shall do all of the 4
following: 5
(1) Undertake a supplement to the Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan 6
to i ncrease recreational and commercial access to the southern flounder 7
resource by allowing a recreational harvest season not less than six weeks 8
between May 15 and November 15 of each year with a limit of one fish per 9
person per day, and no seasonal limit; and set a commercial quota with a total 10
allowed catch of 750,000 pounds with quota overages in one year deducted 11
from the following year's quota and any unused quota in one year added to the 12
following year's quota. All other size and manner of take limits, season 13
opening dates, area designations, and specific area and gear sub -allocations 14
implemented through Amendment 3 to the Southern Flounder Fishery 15
Management Plan shall continue to apply. 16
(2) Allow a year-round red snapper season with a limit of two fish per person per 17
day and a 20-inch minimum size limit in State waters. 18
(3) By July 1, 2026, complete a southern flounder stock assessment based on the 19
most recent years of available data. 20
SECTION 2. Report. – The Division shall report the results of the southern flounder 21
stock assessment no later than August 1, 2026, to the chairs and members of the House Wildlife 22
Resources Committee and the Senate Agriculture, Energy, and Environment Committee and shall 23
annually report no later than August 1 thereafter with an assessment of progress in rebuilding the 24
southern flounder stock and an estimated time line of further increasing recreational and 25
commercial access to the southern flounder resource. 26
27
PROHIBIT SHRIMP TRAWLING IN ALL INSHORE FISHING WATERS AND 28
WITHIN ONE-HALF MILE OF THE SHORELINE 29
SECTION 3.(a) G.S. 113-187(d) reads as rewritten: 30
"(d) Any person in charge of a commercial fishing operation conducted in violation of the 31
following provisions of this Subchapter or the following rules of the Marine Fisheri es 32
Commission; and any person in charge of any vessel used in violation of the following provisions 33
of the Subchapter or the following rules, shall be guilty of a Class A1 misdemeanor. The 34
violations of the statute or the rules for which the penalty is mandatory are: 35
(1) Taking or attempting to take, possess, sell, or offer for sale any oysters, 36
mussels, or clams taken from areas closed by statute, rule, or proclamation 37
because of suspected pollution. 38
(2) Taking or attempting to take or have in possession a board a vessel, shrimp 39
taken by the use of a trawl net, in areas not opened to shrimping, pulled by a 40
vessel not showing lights required by G.S. 75A-6 after sunset and before 41
sunrise. 42
(3) Using a trawl net in any coastal fishing waters closed by proclamation or rule 43
to trawl nets. 44
(3a) Taking or attempting to take shrimp using a trawl net in any coastal fishing 45
waters other than areas of the Atlantic Ocean located more than one-half mile 46
from the shoreline. 47
(4) Violating the provisions of a special permit or gear license issued by the 48
Department. 49
General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
House Bill 442-Fourth Edition Page 3
(5) Using or attempting to use any trawl net, long haul seine, swipe net, 1
mechanical methods for oyster or clam harvest or dredge in designated 2
primary nursery areas." 3
SECTION 3.(b) The Marine Fishe ries Commission shall adopt temporary and 4
permanent rules to implement this section. 5
SECTION 3.(c) This section becomes effective December 1, 2025, and applies to 6
offenses committed on or after that date. 7
8
SEVERABILITY AND EFFECTIVE DATE 9
SECTION 4.(a) If any provision of this act or the application thereof to any person 10
or circumstances is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications 11
of this act that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application and, t o this end, 12
the provisions of this act are declared to be severable. 13
SECTION 4.(b) Effective Date; Expiration. – Except as otherwise provided, this act 14
is effective when it becomes law. Sections 1 and 2 of this act expire August 1, 2029. 15