Committee advances catfish enforcement bill after testimony on large commercial netting and pay‑lake trade

A state Senate committee on wildlife advanced a bill aimed at stopping commercial netting and the transport of trophy catfish after numerous witnesses described large‑scale removals from the Mississippi River and subsequent sales to northern pay‑to‑fish ponds.

Witnesses told the panel that commercial netting crews working on border rivers have removed large catfish and moved them to private holding ponds, then shipped them out of state for sale. ‘‘They take these fish, and they're huge fish…they sell them for $4 or $5 a pound,’’ said Roy, a witness introduced by a committee guest, describing investigative findings and local observations. Roy also provided tournament and spending figures to underline the fishery’s local economic value.

Jerry Brown, chief of fisheries, told the committee that enforcing river‑border catches is difficult because the Mississippi River runs between multiple states and that one practical regulation could be to prohibit transporting live catfish over 34 inches. ‘‘So one way we could do that in our rules is to stop the transport of live catfish over 34 inches,’’ Brown said, adding that curbing live transport would reduce shipments to pay lakes.

The chair and other members heard several local stakeholders describe the economic benefit of tournament fishing in Vicksburg and the risk to that income if trophy fish are removed. ‘‘If that fishery dies, then we die, and it needs to be stopped,’’ said Charles Tony, a Vicksburg business owner who identified himself during public comment, urging the committee to act.

The chair’s introductory material and multiple witnesses cited multi‑state enforcement efforts, including a referenced Kentucky investigation that alleged hundreds of thousands of pounds of fish had been taken and many criminal charges pursued in that probe. Witnesses characterized the problem as both a conservation and an economic issue for river communities.

A sponsor and committee member moved to add a reverse‑repealer provision to the bill to preserve legislative flexibility and keep deliberations open while the committee gathers additional enforcement and jurisdictional language. The committee approved the amendment, adopted a committee substitute as amended and voted to report the bill out of committee for further consideration. The record shows the action was taken by voice vote; a roll call tally was not specified in the transcript.

The committee said it will continue working with agency staff and local stakeholders on the technical language, enforcement mechanisms and exceptions for subsistence or legitimate commercial fisheries before the bill advances further.