Subd. 1. New commercial fishing licenses prohibited.

The commissioner may not issue a new commercial fishing license that allows netting of game fish on Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake.

Subd. 2. Restrictions on fish and nets.

The following rules and restrictions shall apply to all commercial fishing operations conducted in Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake unless otherwise changed by rule of the commissioner under authority of section 97A.045, subdivision 4:

1. (a) Any fish, except largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, rock bass, muskellunge, crappies, sturgeon, and sunfish, may be taken subject to all other restrictions contained in the game and fish laws.
2. (b) Pound net mesh and staked trap net mesh may not be less than 2-1/2 inches nor more than four inches stretch measure in the pound or crib.
3. (c) Gill net mesh may not be less than four inches stretch measure, and may not be more than 30 meshes in width.
4. (d) Fyke net mesh may not be less than 2-1/2 inches nor more than four inches stretch measure in the pot or crib. Fyke nets may not have a hoop or opening more than six feet in height, wings more than 100 feet in length, nor a lead more than 400 feet in length.
5. (e) Submerged trap net mesh may not be less than 2-1/2 inches nor more than three inches stretch measure in the heart, pot, or crib. A submerged trap net may not have a pot or crib exceeding 150 square feet in area, a lead exceeding 300 feet in length, nor a pot or lead exceeding 12 feet in depth.

Subd. 3. Net limits for individual operators.

A person may not operate more than six pound nets, 4,000 feet of gill nets, eight submerged trap nets, ten fyke or staked trap nets, or one pound net station.

Subd. 4. Net location.

Nets may only be set at a place consented to by the commissioner.

Subd. 5. Net limits for Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake.

The maximum amount of nets permitted to be licensed shall be:

1. (a) In Lake of the Woods, 50-pound nets, 80,000 feet of gill nets or 160 submerged trap nets, and 80 fyke or staked trap nets. Licenses for submerged trap nets may be issued instead of licenses for gill nets in the ratio of not more than one submerged trap net per 500 feet of gill net, and the maximum permissible amount of gill nets shall be reduced by 500 feet for each submerged trap net licensed.
2. (b) In Rainy Lake, 20-pound nets and 20,000 feet of gill nets.
3. (c) When a licensee has had a license revoked or surrendered, the commissioner shall not be required to issue licenses for the amount of netting previously authorized under the revoked or surrendered license.
4. (d) Commercial fishing may be prohibited in the Minnesota portions of international waters when it is prohibited in the international waters by Canadian authorities.
5. (e) The commissioner may adopt rules to limit the total amount of game fish taken by commercial fishing operators in Lake of the Woods in any one season and shall apportion the amount to each licensee in accordance with the number and length of nets licensed.

Subd. 6. Walleye limits; Lake of the Woods.

The commissioner shall limit the maximum poundage of walleye that may be taken by commercial fishing operators in Lake of the Woods in any one season on the following schedule:

SEASONAL COMMERCIAL

YEAR WALLEYE TAKE IN POUNDS

1984 164,000

1985 150,000

1986 135,000

1987 120,000

1988 100,000

1989 80,000

1990 60,000

1991 30,000

1992 0

The allocation of walleye poundage among the licensees shall be determined by rule of the commissioner.

Subd. 7. Walleye limits; Rainy Lake.

The commissioner shall limit the maximum poundage of walleye that may be taken by commercial fishing operators in Rainy Lake in any one season on the following schedule:

SEASONAL COMMERCIAL

YEAR WALLEYE TAKE IN POUNDS

1984 14,500

1985 12,500

1986 10,500

1987 8,500

1988 6,500

1989 4,500

1990 2,500

1991 1,000

1992 0

The seasonal commercial walleye take in pounds in Rainy Lake shall be allocated among the licensees by rule of the commissioner.

Subd. 8. Gill nets; Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake.

Gill net licenses on Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake shall be canceled after the 1987 license year. A gill net licensee whose license is canceled as provided in this subdivision retains the walleye quota held at the time of cancellation, subject to the quota phase-out schedule in subdivision 6 or 7. Notwithstanding subdivision 1, the licensee may be issued a pound or trap net license for the netting of game fish in accordance with the quota of the licensee.

Subd. 9. Walleye quotas; sale, transfer.

An existing licensee may transfer the walleye quota allocated to the licensee under subdivision 6 or 7 to any other existing licensee or, after July 1, 1985, the licensee may sell the quota to the state. If a licensee sells the quota to the state, the licensee must sell the quota for all years remaining in the quota schedule as provided in subdivision 6 or 7. A sale to the state shall be at the present wholesale value of the quota as determined assuming the following:

1. (1) an allocation to the licensee of the same proportion of the total remaining walleye quota as allocated in the year of sale; and
2. (2) a walleye wholesale price in the round of $1.15 per pound. A licensee may elect to receive payment for a sale to the state in a lump sum or in up to four annual installments. A quota sold to the state cancels and is not available for reallocation to another licensee. When a walleye quota is sold to the state and canceled, the gill net license of the licensee is canceled.

Subd. 10. Taking eggs for propagation; commissioner's rule.

The commissioner may require a person licensed to take fish for commercial purposes in the waters covered by this section to take eggs for propagation purposes when it can be done in connection with the licensed commercial fishing. The eggs must be taken under rules prescribed by the commissioner.