New fishing regulations in Kansas will let you catch more catfish for less money
Children under 16 who want to fish for trout in Kansas must buy a permit starting Jan. 1. But for others, the cost of fishing for just a day will get cheaper.
On Thursday, the Kansas Wildlife Parks and Tourism Commission made changes governing outdoor recreation in the state.
It increased cabin rental fees at Atchison State Fishing Lake and the Mined Land Wildlife Area in southeast Kansas, decided to let anglers catch more Blue catfish in Wichita and reduced the cost of a one-day fishing license.
Additionally, the commission added several bodies of water, including two Wichita lakes, to the list of Kansas Aquatic Nuisance Species Designated Waters, where it’s illegal to transport live fish from.
Wichita South Lake, Wichita West KDOT Lake and Linn Valley Lake in east-central Kansas were added to the list for the presence of white perch and zebra mussels, invasive species that cause harm to native species and environments.
Youth Licenses
The commission reinstated a trout permit for Kansas children under 16, which will cost $7 and allows them to keep five trout. Before Jan. 1, when the change takes place, youth could fish for free and keep up to two trout. Adult permits will still cost $12.
“A few years ago, it was decided that ... as a recruitment tool, we could allow children to fish without a trout permit in trout waters,” said Doug Nygren, Kansas Fisheries Division Director. “It’s going to be an inexpensive permit, but it will be enough that we can count those children’s purchase for federal aid certification.”
Reinstating the children’s fishing permit will increase the number of certified license holders in Kansas. That means the state can receive more Sport Fish Restoration funding, which is federal funding allocated to states based on the number of license holders.
“It’s just a situation where we can take advantage of the new certification rules, as well as generate a little bit more revenue,” Nygren said. “These trout have become pretty expensive. It’s an expensive program, but it’s a very popular program and the state permit helps offset the cost of the purchase and we also use that as the match for the federal aid grant that we have.”
One-Day Fishing Licenses
Commissioners also approved a reduction in the cost of one-day fishing licenses. For residents, the licenses went from $8.50 to $6, and for non-residents, the price dropped from $14.50 to $10.
“We were selling around 60,000 of these before the fee increase in 2016 and now we’re selling around 35,000,” said David Breth, Fisheries Programs Specialist with the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism. “We are reducing this to try to get our numbers up and increase our certification number.”
Like the reinstatement of the youth licenses, the commission hopes the move will increase the number of certified license holders in Kansas so the state can receive additional funding.
Changes in Creel Limits
The commission also approved changes to creel limits, or the number of fish caught in a day, to several locations around the state.
Most significantly, the commission approved an increase in the number of Blue Catfish that can be caught in southeast Kansas, from 5 a day to 10 a day, due to the high numbers of catfish. The change took place in six rivers, including the Arkansas River starting south of Wichita’s Lincoln Street Dam to the Oklahoma state line.
“We feel it would be appropriate to let people exploit these if they happen to be in a location at a time where the fish are willing to bite,” Nygren said. “There’s no reason to not allow the harvest of them, especially when our neighbor to the south, Oklahoma, would like to see some of these numbers cropped off.”
Cabin Rate Changes
The commission also agreed to an increase for a nightly rate of $107 to stay in the cabins at Mined Land Wildlife Area in southeast Kansas and Atchison State Fishing Lake in northeast Kansas. For the past decade, the rate has been $70 a night.
Previously the Public Lands Division of Kansas Wildlife Parks and Tourism operated and maintained cabins at five different lakes. Due to high costs and low occupancy, they turned all the cabins into office space, except the ones at Mined Land and Atchison.
“While occupancy is better at those two locations, revenue is not keeping up with expenses, so for that reason, we are requesting that we increase the nightly rental rate at those two locations from $70 to $107 a night,” said Stuart Schrag, director of the Public Lands Division. “The $70 a night is not helping us with expenses exceeding revenue.”
The next commission meeting is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Jan. 14. Out of respect for the Governor’s recommendations, the meeting will be held virtually on Zoom and live-streamed on the department’s Youtube page, said Gerald Lauber, the commission chairman.
This story was originally published November 22, 2020 at 5:01 AM.
