House Bill No. 387

Introduced By simon



A Bill for an Act entitled: "An Act requiring the department of fish, wildlife, and parks to annually, before hatchery fish stocking occurs, issue for public comment information on all hatchery fish stocking activities that the department plans to conduct; and amending section 87-3-201, MCA."



Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Montana:



Section 1.  Section 87-3-201, MCA, is amended to read:

"87-3-201.   Department control over fish hatcheries -- annual public notification of stocking. (1) The department has full control of all state fish hatcheries and is responsible for their construction, maintenance, and operation. All that construction work done under contract or otherwise shall must be done under control and supervision of the director. The department shall administer the taking and collecting of all spawn, the hatching of all spawn and eggs, and the rearing, propagation, and distribution of fry, fingerlings, and fish. The department may purchase as many eyed eggs as are necessary to keep the hatcheries of the state supplied with eggs and in full operation. The department shall make every reasonable effort to collect sufficient eggs from the public streams or lakes of this state to supply the hatcheries and for that purpose may build, equip, and use fish traps and nets at any time of the year in all public waters. The department may purchase the eyed eggs of fish not propagated in this state for the purpose of stocking the waters of this state.

(2) The department shall annually, before hatchery fish stocking occurs, issue for public comment information on all hatchery fish stocking activities that the department plans to conduct. The information must include:

(a) all bodies of water in which the department plans to stock fish;

(b) the fish species to be planted in each body of water;

(c) the PREDOMINANT existing fish species in the body of water to be stocked and the number of fish per mile of each species;

(d) the reason for the stocking;

(e) the expected result and REFERENCING OF supporting documentation, including impacts on the fishery; and

(f) the history of the planted fish, including:

(i) where the eggs originated;

(ii) the hatchery in which the fish were raised; and

(iii) any hatcheries where the fish lived prior to introduction into the fishery.

(F) THE SOURCE OF THE FISH OR EGGS; AND

(G) THE HATCHERIES IN WHICH THE FISH WERE OR ARE EXPECTED TO BE RAISED."

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