Starting in July, in Virginia, it will be a crime to interfere with the work of commercial watermen or their equipment, including their boats.
That new law comes from Delegate Hillary Kent’s “Right to Fish” bill, HB 1256, which Governor Youngkin signed on April 4th.
It will be a Class 1 misdemeanor for any person who knowingly and intentionally interferes with or impedes the operation or commercial fishing activity. Convictions carries a potential sentence of up to 12 months in jail and a fine up to $2,500.
For the first offense, a person found guilty loses the ability to have hunting and fishing licenses for 1 year. Additional convictions bar individuals from having those licenses for 3 years.
Also, anyone who is convicted will be required to complete boating safety education.
Kent, is a native of the Northern Neck, which is home to the contentious Omega Protein menhaden fish factory in Reedville. When presenting the bill in the General Assembly, her and members of Ocean Harvesters fishing crews that work with Omega testified about threatening incidents they faced.
This bill was truly bipartisan not facing any opposition in either house of the General Assembly.
“This bill recognizes the importance of our state’s seafood industry by creating protections for commercial watermen and deterring unlawful interference,” Kent said in a statement after the bill was signed.
“This new law will provide restitution against those who purposefully inhibit fishing and destroy the property of commercial watermen. It will reinforce the continued viability of our fishing and seafood industries, which are necessary to the economic and cultural fabric of the Northern Neck and all of the Commonwealth.
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