I have to admit I am very confused as to what WDFW thinks it is doing with the descender device and why.

This rule change was proposed by Puget Sound Anglers to cover all of WA marine waters when fishing for halibut, ling, cabezon and rockfish. Staff altered it to apply to only Puget Sound waters (as if conservation of overfished offshore rockfish is not a worthy goal) yet expanded it to apply when fishing for any bottomfish - meaning kids fishing for perch/sole in shallow water still need a descender aboard and ready to deploy. How likely are they to need to descend an ESA listed rockfish????

Here is a link to the initial proposal as submitted which Staff recommended move forward: http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations/rule_proposals/2017-2018/original.php?id=DFW429038-17.

The summary reads as follows:

"New Rule Proposal:
While fishing for Lingcod, Halibut, Cabezon, and Rockfish in all Marine Waters you must have a fish descender device on board and readily available to descend rockfish that are caught as by-catch."


Here is a link to the CR-102 Proposed Rule Making as submitted by WDFW to the Office of the Code Reviser : http://wdfw.wa.gov/about/regulations/2016/wsr_16-19-059.pdf.

(5) In Catch Record Card Area 4 east of the Bonilla-Tatoosh line
and Areas 5 through 13: It is unlawful for any person to take, fish
for, or possess bottomfish or halibut taken for personal use, to fail
to have onboard the vessel a fish descending or fish recompression device,
rigged for immediate use, and capable of rapidly returning fish
to depth of capture.


And here is the current pertinent portion of the WAC which explicitly is limited to inland waters:

http://apps.leg.wa.gov/wac/default.aspx?cite=220-56-115

(5) In Catch Record Card Area 4 east of the Bonilla-Tatoosh line and Areas 5 through 13: It is unlawful for any person to take, fish for, or possess bottomfish or halibut taken for personal use, to fail to have onboard the vessel a fish descending or fish recompression device, rigged for immediate use, and capable of rapidly returning fish to depth of capture.

So now the Department has issued a News Release that descenders are required in offshore marine waters. Is this some form of Freudian acknowledgment that they really should have made it applicable to all marine waters?

And, if not, the question remains as to why Staff approved the original rule change proposal and then made significant changes without any discussion.

Did I mention I am confused???