HB315 Alabama 2010 Session

Under existing law, the Commissioner of Conservation and Natural Resources may establish certain designated ports to be used for the landing of oysters and shrimp by water

This bill would authorize the Commissioner of Conservation and Natural Resources to establish by regulation oyster management stations for collecting harvest information and landing oysters and to delete the reference to the designated ports. This bill would establish the only locations at which certain oysters may be landed and require certain checking in and out by certain commercial oyster harvesters. This bill would delete the provision for the designation of ports for landing shrimp and the prohibition on landing shrimp at any port not designated. This bill would also provide for oyster harvest trip tickets to be issued by the Marine Resources Division and would further provide for penalties

Also under existing law, the owners or lessees of any private oyster reef are required to establish an accurate survey and each corner of the private reef is required to be clearly marked and defined and a copy of the lease and plat is required to be filed with the Marine Resources Division

This bill would require the lease and plat information on file with the Marine Resources Division to be in a GPS format and to be current

This bill would also authorize the Director of Marine Resources to require that the reefs be resurveyed every five years or when the private leased area has substantially changed and would further provide for penalties

Also under existing law, all oysters taken from the public reefs are to be culled where taken, with an overall tolerance of five percent

This bill would further provide for the culling, sacking, tagging, and identification of certain oysters; would further provide for the replacement of oysters; would prohibit any individual sack of oysters from containing more than 10 percent of dead shells and undersize oysters; would delete the provisions which allow for the taking of certain undersized oysters under certain conditions and which allow for the designation of certain reefs for the taking of 25 percent of undersize oysters; and would further provide for penalties and certain license suspension

This bill would repeal the provisions authorizing owners or lessees of private bedding grounds to take seed oysters from the public reefs or authorizing the purchase of seed oysters taken from the public reefs

Also under existing law, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources is authorized to employ boats, crews, and laborers to cultivate the public reefs

This bill would authorize the Director of Marine Resources or his or her agents to cultivate, transplant, or replant the public oyster reefs or to dredge oysters from places where they are too thick and replant them in places that are too thin

Also under existing law, owners of private oyster reefs and the lessees of the reefs are required to post a bond conditioned upon compliance with all statutes and regulations relating to the use of mechanical dredge devices

This bill would delete the requirements for the posting of bonds and would further provide for certain license revocation for violations

Also under existing law, any person, firm, corporation, or association taking oysters from any public reef is required to replant 50 percent of all oyster shells removed from the public reefs and the duty to replant the oyster shells is specifically imposed upon the dealer who purchased the oysters. Under existing law, the dealer, in lieu of replanting the shells, may pay to the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources the reasonable market value of the shells and the cost of replanting the shells

This bill would establish a shell fee to be paid by the dealers to pay for the replanting of oyster cultch material or to otherwise manage the oyster resources of this state. This bill would establish an oyster management fund and would require that all fees collected pursuant to this bill be deposited in this fund

Under existing law, the owners of private oyster leases are required to pay a tax per barrel of oysters harvested

This bill would remove this requirement from the private oyster lease holders

Also under existing law, oysters taken for commercial purposes are required to be sacked and tagged prior to landing

This bill would further provide for certain sacking, tagging, and identification prior to leaving the harvest location; would require certain tagging until emptied or retagged; would provide for the repacking of certain oysters; would further provide for the continued tagging of oyster sacks, and the removal and disposition of certain tags; would prohibit the possession of empty oyster sacks with tags attached; would further provide for the cost of and disposition of funds received from the sale of oyster tags

This bill would further provide for the penalty and the minimum fine for certain violations of Article 2 of Chapter 12, Title 9, Code of Alabama 1975, when a penalty is not otherwise provided

Amendment 621 of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, now appearing as Section 111.05 of the Official Recompilation of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, as amended, prohibits a general law whose purpose or effect would be to require a new or increased expenditure of local funds from becoming effective with regard to a local governmental entity without enactment by a 2/3 vote unless: it comes within one of a number of specified exceptions; it is approved by the affected entity; or the Legislature appropriates funds, or provides a local source of revenue, to the entity for the purpose

The purpose or effect of this bill would be to require a new or increased expenditure of local funds within the meaning of the amendment. However, the bill does not require approval of a local governmental entity or enactment by a 2/3 vote to become effective because it comes within one of the specified exceptions contained in the amendment

Relating to the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Division of Marine Resources, and the regulation of the harvesting oysters and other seafoods; to amend Sections 9-12-28, 9-12-32, 9-12-33, 9-12-35, 9-12-37, 9-12-42, 9-12-67, and 9-12-121, Code of Alabama 1975; to further provide for penalties; to repeal Sections 9-12-34, 9-12-38, 9-12-39, 9-12-43, and 9-12-44, Code of Alabama 1975; and in connection therewith would have as its purpose or effect the requirement of a new or increased expenditure of local funds within the meaning of Amendment 621 of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, now appearing as Section 111.05 of the Official Recompilation of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, as amended.