CONTACT GEORGIA LEGISLATORS:

A personal message goes a long way! Ask your Georgia State Legislators to protect Redfish (Red Drum, Channel Bass) with appropriate bag, boat and slot limits that will help us recover our fishery to the original healthy 40% Spawning Potential Ratio (SPR) in a more aggressive timeline matching the urgency our neighboring states are showing with 1 Fish creel limits.

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Here are the facts that you can highlight in your phone call and email:

• Over a 40% increase in fishing pressure over the past 10-15 years.

• No slot changes to Redfish regulations since 2002 and no limit changes since 1991, while our neighboring states have been actively revising regulations.

• Our captains and recreational anglers are seeing a decline in Redfish and smaller Redfish under 17" on our flats.

• There is an abundance of data and research to support Redfish regulation changes from the DNR's Coastal Resource Division including feedback from two (2) Redfish Town Hall Meetings, two (2) Redfish Public Hearings and an official Open Comment Survey.

• CRD's Open Comment Survey resulted in 1,300 responses, of which 75% were in favor of ALL three measures for more conservative redfish regulations. This survey was the largest response EVER out of any issue the GA DNR surveyed!

• Proactive fishery management will ensure a healthier fishery and protect it for future generations to enjoy. Everyone benefits from a fast redfish recovery to 40% SPR!

• Are we really putting this fishery in the best position to sustain itself, especially considering that the population continues to increase, technology like fish finders and side-scan sonar makes anglers more effective, and more people are fishing than ever before? Redfish regulations should have been updated just based on these factors alone.

• The 2024 Federal Stock Assessment shows we need a 28% reduction to reach 40% SPR which determines a healthy, sustainable fishery. The Southern States are currently under 20% SPR with 30% SPR being the threshold that determines a fishery is experiencing OVERFISHING and 40% SPR is what has determined a healthy fishery since the 1990's.

• Yet, Georgia pushed to lower the 40% SPR Target down to be the same as the 30% SPR Threshold that determines we are OVERFISHED. Now 30% SPR means we are overfished and that we are healthy!!! The buffer for our fishery was set to 40% SPR for a reason... so we can react to unexpected conditions and allow our fishery enough time to rebound before getting below 30% SPR. 

• South Carolina just approved 1 Fish creel and a 2 Fish Vessel Cap while Florida is at 1 Fish creel with some areas "catch and release" only. WHY IS GEORGIA NOT OFFERING MORE AGRESSIVE REDFISH REGULATIONS to match the urgency our neighbor states are seeting?

• More frequent fishing regulation changes allow a fishery to rebound during challenging times and ensure a healthy sustainable fishery for current and future generations benefiting ALL!