State Court Strikes Down Fishing License

The New York State Supreme Court struck down a state saltwater fishing fee for many Long Island residents Tuesday, marking victory for Southampton and six other towns that challenged the imposition of a $10 yearly fishing license — though the state Department of Environmental Conservation has vowed to appeal.

At the heart of Southampton's challenge is the Dongan Patent, a 1686 Colonial land grant protecting the right to fish in town waters.

"It was spelled out since the very beginning that fishing is a right that is free in the town of Southampton," said Eric Shultz, the secretary-treasurer of the Southampton Town Trustees, on Thursday.

The law requires all fisherman older than 16 to obtain a saltwater fishing license from the DEC for $10 each year.*

"Originally it was $27, but when the state started to get push back on the price of the fee, they dropped it down to $10 to make it more palatable," Shultz said. "But who knows where fees are gonna go."

The trustee said that while $10 may seem nominal, the fee would increase over time. "This was basically just a revenue grab by the state," he said.

Southampton Town was joined in its case against the state by East Hampton, Shelter Island, Brookhaven, Southold, Huntington and Oyster Bay. Joseph Lombardo, the Southampton senior assistant town attorney, served as lead counsel for the plaintiffs.

The decision, by Justice Patrick Sweeney of the state supreme court in Islip, states that the fee violates the rights of the people in towns under the jurisdiction of the Dongan Patent and similar land grants, "and may not be enforced upon those who seek to fish in the waters regulated by the respective towns."

"If we had not challenged this state law, we would have seen a continuous erosion of town rights to regulate their waters, a scenario which we were just not willing to accept," Lombardo was quoted as saying is a press release.

Shultz said the court decision does not come as a surprise because the trustees were confident the Dongan Patent was strong enough to sustain judicial review.

"The state's rationale for the saltwater fishing license was simply to collect statistical data for the federal government," the Sweeney wrote in his decision. "While the state has the right to regulate fishing, this statute has nothing to do with the regulation of fishing per se or anything which would be paramount to deprive the rights of the towns to control fishing within their jurisdiction."

Sweeney went on to say, "The rationale advanced by the state in this action that it may issue a saltwater fishing license to apparently save taxpayers from a federal registry free which may be higher than the state would charge is not a sufficient reason to interfere with the jurisdiction of the respective towns."

Anglers outside of the seven plaintiff towns will still be subject to the license requirement, according to DEC spokeswoman Maureen Wren.

"The state supreme court saw right through the rationale of the state of New York in enacting this law," state Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. (I-Sag Harbor) said in a press release Thursday. "This ill-considered law went far beyond what was required by federal law relating to the collection of statistical data and invaded the home rule powers of the Town Trustees guaranteed by the Dongan Patent. The only reason for this law was to impose a tax for the privilege to fish."

Thiele has introduced legislation to repeal the license and replace it with a free, one-time registration requirement.

Wren pointed out that as of Jan. 1, 2011 fishermen who do not hold a state marine fishing license must carry proof that they have registered with the National Saltwater Angler Registry. For 2011, the state license in the less expensive option, just $10. The federal license is $15.

"Another important distinction is that fees for federal registration are kept by the federal government, but fees for the state license remain in New York to be used for in-state marine resources projects and programs," Wren said.

Shultz said that in anticipation of taking in $3 million in revenue from the licensing fee — money that was supposed to be spent to enhance local fisheries — the state reduced the Department of Environmental Conservation's budget by $3 million.

"All your doing is replenishing what was taken out and put into the general fund," he said.

* Correction: An earlier version of the story misstated when the fee for a saltwater fishing license was imposed. The fee took effect Oct. 1, 2009.