Proposed Action: Commercial Fishery Line Marking Prohibition

Notice of Department Rulemaking: Commercial Fishery Line Marking Prohibition (Add Section 181 Title 14, California Code of Regulations (CCR)) 

June 27, 2025

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (Department) has published the Notice of Proposed Action to add Section 181 to Title 14, California Code of Regulations (CCR). 

Fish and Game Code Section 9056 authorizes the Department to adopt regulations regarding the marking and color coding of lines used in state managed fisheries.  

The Department proposes to add Section 181, Prohibition on the Use of Line Markings Assigned to Another Fishery, to Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations. Section 181 prohibits all state-managed commercial fisheries from using line marking patterns assigned to another state fishery on the U.S. West Coast. This is necessary to prevent any misidentification of the entanglement source during marine life entanglement events. In concert with line marking requirements, the proposed regulation will help identify the commercial fishing gear responsible for each marine life entanglement, enabling the state to develop effective mitigation measures to reduce such incidents.    

In accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act, the Department provided notice of the proposed regulatory action with the Office of Administrative Law for publication in the California Regulatory Notice Register on June 27, 2025. 

Written Comment Period

Any interested person, or their authorized representative, may submit written comments on the proposed action to the Department. All written comments must be received by the Department via mail or email no later than Monday August 11, 2025, to the contact as follows: 

California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Regulations Unit
Attn: Daphne Nandino, Analyst
P.O. Box 944209
Sacramento, CA 94244-2090

Email: Regulations@wildlife.ca.gov

Public Hearing

A virtual public hearing is scheduled by as follows:
Date: Tuesday, August 12, 2025
Time: 1:00 p.m. to 2:00p.m.
Location: Teleconference and Webinar
Join the webinar(opens in new tab)

The current rulemaking file for this proposal consists of the following documents:

• Notice of Proposed Action(opens in new tab): Add Section 181, Title 14, CCR
• Initial Statement of Reasons (ISOR)(opens in new tab): Add Section 181, Title 14, CCR
• Proposed Regulatory Language: Add Section 181, Title 14, CCR (opens in new tab)
• Documents Relied Upon:
  • Benson, S.R. (2019). Biology of Leatherback Turtle off California: Movements, Foraging Ecology, Abundance, and Status. California Dungeness Crab Fishing Gear Working Group, 23 April 2019.  
    https://www.opc.ca.gov/webmaster/_media_library/2019/10/D_Crab_working_group_3-5Sep2019_Leatherback.pdf   
  • Saez L, Lawson D, DeAngelis M. (2021). Large whale entanglements off the U.S. West Coast, from 1982-2017. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Technical Memorandum NMFS-OPR-63A. 50 p.  
    https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/29002  
  • Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. (2025). Proposed Rule Making CR-102 (June 2024) (Implements RCW 34.05.320) WSR 25-03-125 Amending commercial crab gear requirements and implementing comprehensive line marking in the coastal Dungeness crab fishery.  
    https://wdfw.wa.gov/sites/default/files/about/regulations/filings/2025/combined-wsr-25-03-125.pdf  
• STD 399: Economic and Fiscal Impact Statement (available by request by sending an email to Regulations@wildlife.ca.gov with the subject line, "STD 399 Request - Commercial Fishery Line Marking Prohibition 181 Regulation")