This newsletter was originally published on or around May 1, 2025

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Chitina Dipnetters Association PO Box 35230 Ft. Wainwright, AK 99703 Chuck Derrick, Pres. cderrick@chitinadipnetters.com

May 1, 2025

Chitina Dipnetters:

It is not often that the Chitina Dipnetters Association asks for your immediate help in a matter of importance to our fishery, but in this matter your help is needed!

In the Alaska legislature, House Bill 125 (HB125) seeks to establish seats on the Board of Fisheries (BOF) designated by fishery type. The seats would be represented as follows: 2 commercial, 2 sport, 2 subsistence, and 1 scientific. If this bill passes in its current form, Personal Use (PU) users, aka dipnetters, will have no representation on the Board of Fisheries! The BOF sets fishery policy across the state, including salmon allocation, catch limits, season opening dates, boundaries, gear limits and many other topics important to dipnetters! All of the state’s Personal Use fishermen will be unrepresented and disenfranchised at the Board of Fish if this bill passes in its current form.

There are 40,000ish Alaska residents who depend on the Chitina and South Central Alaska personal use dipnet fisheries, not to mention the untold number of Alaska residents who partake in the various other Alaska PU fisheries, so this would directly affect a high percentage of the state’s population.

The Personal Use designation is a statutorily created entity that recognizes fisheries offering larger bag limits that allow Alaska families to harvest reasonable amounts of Alaska’s natural resources to supplement their families’ annual food supply. PU is not commercial, as by law we cannot sell our harvest. PU is not subsistence as it fails to meet all 8 criteria established by the BOF to identify subsistence uses. Although a sport fishing license is required to participate in a PU fishery, PU is also not classified as a sport use and is restricted to Alaska residents only.

HB125 was drafted by Representative Nellie Jimmie (House District 38 - Bethel and surrounding area). HB125 has passed out of the House fisheries sub-committee and is currently in the House Resources Committee. CDA has sent comments to both committees asking that the bill be amended to provide Personal Use representation. So far no amendments have been added. The House Resources Committee meets again tomorrow, Friday, May 2, at 1pm. I know this is very short notice, but I am asking all of you to send an email to House.Resources@akleg.gov stressing that you are a PU dipnetter and want HB125 amended to give representation to Personal Use fishery users. Please get your comments in today or tomorrow by noon.

Thank you, Chitina Dipnetters Assn. cderrick@chitinadipnetters.com