13-188-41 Me. Code R. § 30
The state allocation fishery is open until such time as the Department has landings information that the quota assigned to Maine by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission has been reached or could be exceeded. At that time, the Department will notify commercial menhaden license holders by public notice in a newspaper circulated in the area affected, and on the Department's publicly accessible website, of the closing date for the state allocation fishery. It is unlawful to fish for menhaden after the closing date of the state allocation fishery, unless the Department has opened the episodic event fishery, or the incidental catch and small scale fishery.
The Commissioner may extend or reopen the State Allocation Fishery at any time with notice to commercial menhaden license holders, should a quota increase or quota transfer of menhaden be received via allocation adjustments of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Menhaden.
Whenever landings of menhaden are occurring at a rate that the Commissioner is concerned that the entire quota for the state allocation fishery will be reached in a time frame that will negatively impact the supply and availability of bait, the Commissioner may temporarily prohibit the taking of menhaden by commercial menhaden license holders for up to fourteen days. If the Commissioner determines it is necessary to temporarily prohibit the taking of menhaden by commercial menhaden license holders, the Department will notify license holders by a notice in a newspaper circulated in the area affected, direct notice to the email address and phone number provided by the license holder, and on the Department's publicly accessible website, of the date of closing of the fishery and the date on which it will reopen.
When the commercial menhaden fishery is paused by the Commissioner, or if the commercial fishery is closed while transitioning to the Episodic Event Set Aside program, individuals operating a pound net or a fish weir, who also hold a Commercial Pelagic and Anadromous license may take 3 barrels (1,050 lbs) of menhaden as incidental bycatch.
It is unlawful to harvest menhaden prior to the opening of the state allocation fishery which is set for pound net and fish weirs as June 1st, annually. Harvest of menhaden by pound net or fish weirs prior to the third Monday of June may occur seven days a week and is limited to taking 1,050 pounds or 3 barrels daily.
Starting on the third Monday of June, pound net and fish weirs may land, take or fish seven days a week and have a daily landing limit of 5,950 pounds per harvester vessel per day but may not exceed 17,850 pounds weekly.
It is unlawful to harvest menhaden prior to the opening of the state allocation fishery, starting on the third Monday of June, annually, at 12:01 AM. Following the opening of the state allocation fishery and prior to the closure of the state allocation fishery, it is unlawful to fish for or land menhaden except between 12:01 AM to 11:59 PM on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays each week. It is unlawful to fish for, take or possess more than 5,950 pounds per harvester vessel per day. It is unlawful for a harvester vessel to sell, give or transfer menhaden they have taken to any other vessel while at sea. It is unlawful to receive menhaden from a harvester vessel while at sea. It is unlawful for a harvester vessel to complete more than one landing per calendar day. For the purpose of enforcing these limitations, the Department shall use the definitions provided in 41.25.
Exception: A vessel other than the harvester vessel may take fish from a purse seine under an approved designated partnership agreement as specified in 41.06. The vessel removing the fish from the seine is responsible for reporting those fish taken. Vessel daily limits remain at 5,950 pounds per harvester vessel per day.
All menhaden must immediately be stored in barrels, crates, fish tanks or fish totes, or a combination thereof, upon harvest. All menhaden must be contained in barrels, crates, fish tanks or fish totes on both the harvester vessel and the dory towed by the harvester vessel, if utilized.
Following authorization by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, the Department may open an episodic event fishery following the closing of the state allocation fishery.
The Department will notify commercial menhaden license holders by public notice in a newspaper circulated in the area affected, and on the Department's publicly accessible website, of the opening date for the episodic event fishery. When the Department receives notice from the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission that the quota for the episodic event fishery has been reached or may be exceeded, the Department will notify commercial menhaden license holders by public notice in a newspaper circulated in the area affected, and on the Department's publicly accessible website, of the closing date for the episodic event fishery.
Following the opening of an episodic event fishery and prior to the closure of the episodic event fishery, it is unlawful to fish for or land menhaden except between 12:01 AM to 11:59 PM on Mondays and Thursdays each week. It is unlawful to fish for, take or possess more than 7,000 pounds per harvester vessel per day. It is unlawful for a harvester vessel to sell, give or transfer, menhaden they have taken to any other vessel while at sea. It is unlawful to receive menhaden from a harvester vessel while at sea. It is unlawful to complete more than one landing per calendar day. For the purpose of enforcing these limitations, the Department shall use the definitions provided in 41.25.
Pound nets and fish weirs are not subject to the harvest schedule detailed above and may land, take or fish seven days a week. However, the daily landing limit is 7,000 pounds and the total weekly landing limit may not exceed 14,000 pounds.
All menhaden must immediately be stored in barrels, crates, fish tanks or fish totes, or a combination thereof, upon harvest. All menhaden must be contained in barrels, crates, fish tanks or fish totes on both the harvester vessel and the dory towed by the harvester vessel, if utilized.
An incidental catch and small scale fishery for menhaden may occur following the full utilization of the state allocation of menhaden or following the full utilization of both the state allocation and an episodic event fishery.
The Department will notify commercial menhaden license holders by direct notice by email and text to the email address and phone number provided by the license holder in their license application, and on the Department's publicly accessible website, of the opening date for the incidental catch and small scale fishery.
It is unlawful to fish for, take, possess or land more than 5,950 pounds per harvester vessel per day. It is unlawful to fish for or land menhaden except between 12:01 AM to 11:59 PM on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays each week. It is unlawful for a harvester vessel to make more than one landing per calendar day. For the purpose of enforcing these limitations, the Department shall use the definitions provided in 41.25, except that it is unlawful during the incidental catch and small scale fishery for a harvester vessel to sell, give or transfer, menhaden they have taken to any other vessel while at sea. It is unlawful to receive menhaden from a harvester vessel while at sea.
Pound nets and fish weirs are not subject to the harvest schedule detailed above and may land, take or fish seven days a week. However, the daily landing limit is 5,950 pounds per harvester vessel per day and the total weekly landing limit may not exceed 17,850 pounds per harvester vessel per day.
It is unlawful during the Incidental Catch and Small Scale Fishery to use any gear type other than the following: bait gillnets (including anchored/staked gillnets or drift gill nets), cast nets, pots, hand seines, hook and line, pound nets, fish weirs, fyke nets, and floating fish traps.
Bait gillnets cannot exceed 500 feet in length. A hand seine is defined as a seine solely operated by hand with no option to be cinched or pursed by the footrope.
All menhaden must immediately be stored in barrels, crates, fish tanks or fish totes, or a combination thereof, upon harvest. All menhaden must be contained in barrels, crates, fish tanks or fish totes on both the harvester vessel and the dory towed by the harvester vessel, if utilized.
13-188 C.M.R. ch. 41, § 30