Sands to Crist: Extend Saltwater Fishing Renewal Deadlines

House Democratic Leader Franklin Sands, D-Weston, sent a letter to Gov. Charlie Crist asking him to extend the June 30 deadline for renewing saltwater products licenses for Florida fishermen.

Stressing the impact the oil spill in the Gulf has had on Floridas seafood industry, Sands called upon Crist to extend the deadline and pull the plug on permit fees.

Without knowing how long they will be able to continue harvesting and selling fresh seafood from the Gulf because of the threat of oil pollution to offshore fishing grounds, many commercial harvesters and retailers are delaying the renewal of saltwater products licenses, commercial retail licenses and commercial wholesale licenses, wrote Sands. The Florida Wildlife Conservation Commission has informed me that of the approximately 19,000 harvesters and retailers who purchased licenses for the current year, to date only about 9,000 have been renewed.

By issuing a moratorium on permit fees, we might be able to allow seafood harvesters and sellers to continue working while they assess the economic uncertainties of their industry, wrote Sands.