AUGUSTA – The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife has updated their fishing laws for 2024.
Beginning on January 1, 2024 all waters containing bass in the North Zone will be managed under General Law regulations of “No size or bag limit.” The purpose of this change is to clarify that bass are managed as an invasive species in the North Zone and are not provided protective regulations that would promote, popularize, or enhance their sportfish value in this part of the state.
The law on lead sinkers will also be changed. The current law is as follows: It is unlawful to sell, offer for sale, or use a lead sinker that weighs 1 ounce or less or measures 2.5 inches or less. This does not include artificial lures, weighted line or lines, or jig heads. It is unlawful to sell, offer for sale, or use an unpainted bare lead jig that weighs one ounce or less or measures 2.5 inches or less (Title 12, §12663-B & Title 12, §12664).
Effective September 1, 2024, it is unlawful to sell or offer for sale a painted lead jig that weighs one ounce or less or measures 2.5 inches or less; and effective September 1, 2026, the use of these painted lead jigs will be prohibited.
To find special fishing laws, check out the Fishing Laws Online Angling Tool (FLOAT), a map-based online tool to give you a quick and easy way to see which of Maine’s thousands of inland waters have special fishing laws. The FLOAT tool was updated at midnight on December 31. You will see the year in the upper left corner of the screen. You may need to refresh the page or clear your browser’s cache to see 2024 laws. A new searchable database of special fishing laws is also available.
Remember, in addition to the special fishing laws you still need to view the general fishing laws for a specific water body.
The department is offering a solution to a lack of cell coverage on the water. Just visit mefishwildlife.com/laws and browse by activity. Before you head to the water, follow these instructions to save an offline law book or quick reference guide to your mobile device, save a copy to your computer or print the pages you need for reference. The instructions follow:
From your iPhone:
1. In Safari, go to: mefishwildlife.com/laws.
2. Click the link for the PDF you want to download.
3. When it opens, tap on the share icon in the bottom center of the screen, then tap the orange ‘Books’ icon. The file is now saved in your Books app for offline viewing.
From your Android:
1. In Chrome, go to: mefishwildlife.com/laws.
2. Select the link for the PDF you want to download.
3. Choose to download the file to your Downloads folder
OR
4. Download the Adobe Acrobat Reader app and open the PDF.
For more information on fishing laws, visit maine.gov.
