Assembly Bill 817, the bill that would bring a true 365-day license to California, has cleared hurdles in the California Assembly and passed unanimously, and will now move to the Senate. The bill was first cleared in the Water, Parks & Wildlife Committee in the Assembly, followed by the Appropriations Committee. The bill then passed unanimously on the Assembly floor on June 1st.
California Assemblymember Jim Wood (D-Santa Rosa) introduced AB817 earlier this year to transition California’s calendar-based fishing license to one that’s valid for 365 days from the date of purchase. The bill would also include a mobile phone app designed to make fishing easier and more accessible for more people.
“It’s time for California to abandon its antiquated fishing license sales system,” Wood said. “Modernizing this to a full 365-day license from the date of purchase will encourage more Californians to fish and increase fishing license revenues that fund critical state fishing and conservation programs.”
“Prior to 2020, annual license sales had experienced a decline starting in 1980 to the tune of 55 percent, while the state’s population has increased over 60 percent since that time, Wood said. ‘In 2020, California fishing license sales spiked upward due to increased participation in angling activities brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic, but the long-term trend is still downward.”
“Past bipartisan support underscores the recognition by members of the State Legislature that California’s outdated sport fishing license system does not properly serve anglers in the Golden State,” said Wayne Kotow, Executive Director of CCA CAL. “Providing anglers access to a fishing license that provides greater value and technology that makes fishing more accessible is long overdue.”
“This bill also complements the current California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) R3 program,” Kotow added. “R3 stands for Recruitment, Retention and Reactivation of California anglers , and what better way to achieve these goals than to boost the value of a license purchased by an angler? It’s kind of a no-brainer.”
This is not the first attempt to pass such a bill in California. Just last year, Assembly Bill 1387, also proposed by Wood to establish a 365-day license, was taken off the docket in the fall legislative session due to COVID-19. Similar bills in years past also failed to pass, despite the fact that 14 other states have now transitioned to a 365-day license. According to Rob Southwick and Associates, a national marketing and economics firm which analyses fishing license sales throughout the country, their analysis suggests that states that offer a 365-day license are outperforming revenue of states that only offer a calendar-based license.
The proposed bill would also require the CDFW to create an app by which anglers can display sport fishing and hunting licenses on mobile devices. Several other states offer mobile phone apps that provide anglers information on fishing locations, regulations, fish stocking schedules, campground reservations and more. The bill would also allow anglers to sign up for automatic license renewals.
Under the bill’s language, there will be no increase in the fee charged for the 365-day license versus a calendar license, and if passed, the 365-day license would go into effect on January 1, 2022.
