Georgia House Agrees to Senate Substitute for House Bill 443 to Create Reef Fishing Endorsement

ATLANTA — The Georgia House of Representatives on Jan. 28 agreed to the Senate substitute for House Bill 443, a measure to create a special endorsement for reef (offshore) fishing that lawmakers said will fund state-level fisheries surveys. Representative (Attorney) Petrie, speaking for the bill, told the chamber the endorsement would allow Georgia to raise revenue "to do our own surveys" and better measure local fisheries than federal surveys that "encompass the entire Atlantic Coast".

Petrie said the bill had previously carried a late amendment related to raw milk; the House removed that amendment and sent the measure back in its prior form. "In the last minutes of sine die, this bill was sent back with an amendment related to raw milk. And so we are sending this bill back, having removed raw milk, this amendment on raw milk, and putting it back in its previous state," Petrie said.

On the motion that the House agree to the Senate substitute to House Bill 443 as amended by the House, members were called to vote using the electronic machines. The Speaker announced the result: "On the gentleman's motion, the yeas are 165, the nays are 2. The House has agreed to the Senate substitute to House Bill 443 as amended by the House." The clerk read the bill caption during proceedings.

Supporters said the endorsement is intended to raise funds for Georgia-specific fishery work, such as surveys aimed at species like red snapper. Petrie described limits in current federal surveys, saying they "lack any rigor as it relates to accuracy in Georgia," and argued state-funded surveys would provide more precise information for local management. He also noted stakeholders on the Georgia coast had pressed for the change and that the endorsement is similar to mechanisms other states use to fund local fisheries work.

The record shows no roll-call list of individual yes/no votes in the transcript beyond the announced tally. The motion to agree to the substitute was moved by Representative Petrie; a second was not specified on the floor record. The House moved on to afternoon orders after the vote.

What the bill does: according to floor remarks, House Bill 443 establishes a paid endorsement for reef and migratory-fish fishing that will generate revenue earmarked for state surveys and related fisheries work. The chamber recorded the removal of a raw-milk amendment before agreeing to the Senate substitute.

Next steps: the transcript records the House's agreement to the Senate substitute and does not specify immediate further action in this excerpt; the bill was returned to the legislative process with the House-amended language recorded in the day's proceedings.