Outside Iowa: Iowa bass regs on the mend
If you have spent any sizable amount of time on Iowa’s bass waters of the past couple of years, I think you’ll quickly agree the fishery is not that great. There is a myriad of reasons behind statement, but one of the primary factors is due to no bass management program whatsoever.
I have been working very closely with a movement to redirect our struggling bass fishery and in the process I have learned that the Iowa DNR Fisheries has an unfortunate bias against bass fishing and bass anglers, therefore they have chosen to completely neglect the largest group of anglers in the state.
I find this unacceptable and wanted to help bring the information to the forefront of Iowa’s dedicated bass anglers. This is not to suggest that other species should be ignored, rather that if we want to improve the state’s bottom line and our fisheries as a whole, more attention needs to be given to the largest spenders—bass anglers.
A few editions back, we talked about the prospect of bringing bass fishing in as a sanctioned high school sport, and the support has been awesome so far! With that said, we still need to garner as much support as possible to get this concept off the ground.
If you haven’t yet, please email Jeremy King at kingj_40@yahoo.com and express your interest in getting your local school involved. King is leading the charge to bring competitive bass angling to our high schools.
What do current bass fishing regulations have to do with HS bass fishing? Well, the resource is in poor shape, and if we want our kids addicted to the outdoors, we need to pass it on to them in as best of shape as possible. A few regulation changes will begin to make things better for them to enjoy.
As of Feb. 20, a new bill was introduced that will get this entire process moving. Bill SF-229 can be boiled down to a couple of changes within our current regulations. First, it waives length limits during all permitted bass tournaments as long as those fish are released alive after weigh-in. Secondly, it would open an optional five-fish possession limit during permitted tournaments—both changes are free and no additional licenses would be needed.
This will open up other bodies of water for tournament fishing purposes and thus reduce the extremely high pressure on today’s very popular competitive bass angling lakes. Biologically, it simply reduces fish stress. Above that it will provide substantial opportunity for our kids to enjoy competitive bass angling without an over abundance of unnecessary restrictions.
This bill needs your support and I highly encourage you to take this as a Call-To-Action and contact your local state representatives and the Natural Resource Committee Members and let them know you support Bill SF-229 and the improvement of Iowa’s bass waters.
In today’s image, you’ll notice a QR code placed on the photo. Use your smartphone QR scanner to quickly access the information you’ll need to contact your legislatures. But you can read more about this bill and much more info by visiting our official website: basswarden.weebly.com.
These are the first of many changes to come in making Iowa’s bass fishing as productive as possible. This is the beginning. Get involved with our grass-roots movement and be a part of bringing our next generation into the sport we all love so dearly!
Thank you very much for your support!
Feel free to contact King or myself with any questions. We are happy to help!
Live It Up!
Thomas resides with his wife and two children in Guthrie Center, Iowa. He is the Managing Editor with North American Fisherman, official publication for North American Fishing Club. For questions or archived articles please visit www.outsideiowa.com; tha481@gmail.com