Senate File 257 - Enrolled Senate File 257 AN ACT RELATING TO BASS FISHING IN THE STATE. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: Section 1. NEW SECTION . 483A.39 Bass fishing tournaments. 1. a. For the purposes of this section, “bass fishing tournament” means an organized fishing event, except for a fishing event sponsored by the department for educational purposes, involving all of the following: (1) An organized event occurring on public water for the purpose of fishing for bass. (2) Participation of six or more vessels or twelve or more individuals in the event, except for an event on the waters of the Mississippi river, where the number of vessels participating shall be twenty or more and the number of participants shall be forty or more. (3) The award of prizes or other inducements for participation in the event. b. For the purposes of this section, “bass fishing tournament” also includes a planned event on public water for the purpose of fishing for bass. 2. A person shall apply for a permit to hold a bass fishing tournament. The commission shall, by rule, specify the requirements to obtain a permit including but not limited to the following: a. Minimum requirements for weigh-in, handling, and release of live bass by tournament participants.
Senate File 257, p. 2 b. Measurement of bass to length and release from a vessel. c. Allowance of up to five bass for weigh-in during the tournament. d. Allowance of possession of bass of any length so long as the bass are kept alive and are released after weigh-in. e. Cleaning of vessels used before and after the tournament in compliance with department guidelines to prevent the transportation of aquatic invasive species. ______________________________ JACK WHITVER President of the Senate ______________________________ LINDA UPMEYER Speaker of the House I hereby certify that this bill originated in the Senate and is known as Senate File 257, Eighty-seventh General Assembly. ______________________________ W. CHARLES SMITHSON Secretary of the Senate Approved _______________, 2017 ______________________________ TERRY E. BRANSTAD Governor