Minn. bill would remove bass seasons to expand youth and resort angling opportunities

A Minnesota House committee heard testimony on House File 2824, a bipartisan bill that would remove seasonal restrictions on largemouth and smallmouth bass, allowing anglers to target bass outside the current spring opener.

The bill’s author, Representative Nash, said the change would make it easier to hold bass-focused youth tournaments and benefit lake-region resorts and general commerce. “There is nothing that cannot be solved by going out and dropping a line and doing a little bit of fishing,” Nash said.

Supporters, including nonprofit advocates and a Minnesota Department of Natural Resources official, told the committee they view the proposal as low risk to bass populations while expanding recreational opportunities. Mark Holston, executive director of the Sport Fishing Foundation and Coalition, described the bill as a “small step” to provide more opportunity for anglers statewide. Jim “Jimmy” Bell, president of the Student Angler organization, said the bill would help sustain recent growth in youth angling and generate license sales that support DNR work.

Brad Parsons, fishery section manager for the Minnesota DNR, told the committee the department has tracked bass populations for decades and supports the assessment that the change poses no conservation threat. Parsons said bass in many lakes are spawning later — “more into May and June as opposed to March and April” — and that spring water temperatures and shallow fishing conditions make hooking mortality from catch-and-release “extremely low.” He said the department has “looked very closely” at the biology and sees “no biological reason” to oppose the change.

Committee members asked questions about the data and management approach. Parsons cited a DNR analysis of 53 years of netting and survey data showing average annual increases of about 4.5% for largemouth bass and 3.4% for smallmouth bass. Representative Hansen asked whether a time-limited sunset (five or 10 years) should be considered. Parsons replied the department expects to continue its long-term surveys and believes any needed adjustments can be handled through the agency’s rulemaking process.

Committee members also asked about licensing logistics. Parsons said Minnesota fishing licenses begin March 1 and run through the end of the following February; the bill would allow targeting bass in the late-winter period now closed until the spring opener.

After testimony and questions, the committee moved to lay House File 2824 over for possible inclusion in a future bill. The motion to lay the bill over was made by the committee chair and the committee recorded the bill as laid over.