ERIE, Pa. (Sept. 27) – As part of its Fall into Fishing campaign, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) announced today that it was cutting the price of select licenses by 50 percent through the end of the year, a move it believes will attract new participants to the sport and encourage lapsed anglers to return.
“This is another way for us to market to a segment of the population which may be drawn to fall fishing opportunities but haven’t wanted to purchase a full-year license,” said PFBC Executive Director John Arway. “At the same time, we think it’s an enticing offer to lapsed anglers, allowing them to renew their interest in fishing.”
"Fall is our traditional hunting season so we want anglers to get their rods and try hunting for their favorite species of fish,” he added. “From steelhead in Lake Erie tributaries, to striped bass in Lake Raystown to trout in the Lehigh, Upper Delaware, or your local fall stocked trout water, fall is a special time to enjoy fishing Penn's waters."
The half-off promotion begins October 1 and applies to annual resident, annual non-resident and senior resident licenses. The licenses are valid through December 31. With the discount, annual resident licenses will sell for $12.40; annual non-resident $27.40; and senior resident $6.90.
The announcement was made during the PFBC’s quarterly business meeting held here yesterday and today.
During today’s formal business meeting, the Board of Commissioners:
- Approved a final regulatory amendment which removes a no-wake zone on the Delaware River in Bucks County in order to mirror New Jersey state law. The amendment eliminates the no-wake zone from the mouth of Paunacussing Creek approximately 3,000 feet to a point in the vicinity of Green Hill Road. The amendment will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2017.
- Approved a federal pass-through grant of up to $100,000 to the Borough of Bristol, Bucks County, for engineering design management related to a project first funded in 2013. Today’s grant supplements a $1.49 million grant the borough received in 2013 for the construction of 25 dock spaces for transient boaters and day dockage users with large, non-trailerable boats over 26 feet in length. The project will provide these boaters access to the historic Bristol waterfront along the Delaware River. The PFBC worked with the borough to secure the funding through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Boating Infrastructure Grant Program.
- Approved a proposed rulemaking order which would open Harvey’s Lake in Luzerne County to year-round fishing. Under the current regulations, the 658-acre lake is closed to all fishing for a two-week period from April 1 to the opening day of trout season. Trout harvest is permitted at all other times of the year. However, a number of area residents have asked to open the lake to year-round fishing, as it supports excellent fisheries for Black Bass, Walleye, Yellow Perch, Rock Bass and Bluegill. Under today’s proposal, the lake will remain open to fishing year-round, but anglers would be prohibited from harvesting trout from March 1 to the opening day of trout season. If adopted on a final rulemaking, the amendments would go into effect upon publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
- Added 99 waters to the list of wild trout streams and adjusted the section limits of one water. The list can be found on the PFBC website.
- Added four stream sections to the list of Class A wild trout streams. The list can be found on the PFBC website.
- Approved designating Pymatuning Reservoir as a Panfish Enhancement Lake for Crappies, which includes a 20 fish per day creel limit and nine-inch minimum size limit. Fisheries sampling data shows that Crappie abundance and average size peaked in 2012, and have declined in the following years, yielding a fishery unsatisfactory to anglers. The PFBC held a public meeting in Linesville on April 19 to solicit public input on the proposal. The meeting drew 46 attendees, which indicated overwhelming support for the proposed change. The change will go into effect upon publication of a second notice in the Pennsylvania Bulletin. Pymatuning Reservoir, Pennsylvania’s largest inland lake, is located in Crawford County and Ashtabula County, OH. The reservoir is located in Pymatuning State Park, the Commonwealth’s largest state park.
- Removed 15 lakes in 11 counties from the list of Approved Trout Waters Open to Year-Round Fishing and designated them as Stocked Trout Waters. As a result of the change, the lakes will be closed to all fishing from March 1 to the opening day of trout season. The lakes have limited warmwater and coolwater fisheries and are primarily fished for trout. In recent years, anglers have expressed concerns that trout were being targeted during the period between the preseason stocking and opening day of trout season, resulting in subpar opening day trout catches. The change will go into effect Jan. 1, 2017.
- Approved a two-year agreement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the service to collect American Shad eggs from the Potomac River to support American Shad restoration in the Susquehanna River basin. The project will use a total of $240,000 and come from funds paid to the PFBC by electric utility companies as a result of settlement and permit conditions for in-river construction activities.
Media Contact: Eric Levis, Press Secretary