Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

This same mind set should be applied to the right to keep and bear arms. It is a birthright that is protected and requiring a license, a fee, and to register with the government is excessively intrusive also.

ok so now what .... a $25 federal fee? ... thanx Don

what a moron! will he provide legal services to challenge the feds when fisherman are prosecuted for not having a federal license?

Hooray for the Govna! I wish his principles could be applied to ALL government actions.

Rhode Island's history tells us the state has always had a mind set of its own. Gov. Carcieri is taking a good stand against the General Assembly and the federal government. I totally agree with the Governor and I don't do any fishing be it salt water or fresh water. I also feel $18 is a high amount just for a fresh water fishing license. The ocean is for everyone to enjoy. This license fee is just another tax. The heck with the federal government. They, too, are seeking ways to generate income charading a license fee as a tax.

People in this state seem to be OK with paying a fee to the gov't for everything and do not demand any accountability for how these dollars get spent. I don't get it. Gov Carcieri is exactly right on this one. A federal licensing fee could be challenged in court and such a challenge would probably be successful. For whatever reason, no one in this state seems to have that kind of ideology (challenge the government), evidenced by the fact that we keep returning the same hacks to office every election cycle. The governer is simply protecting our rights as a state, and not simply giving in to federal pressure. The 10th amendment is one of the more powerful of the Bill Of Rights, yet the majority of people don't get this! The 5 best words in the US Constituion, repeated over and over - "Congress shall make no law..."

Thanks Gov. I'm glad somebody in the state has common sense. Maybe the GA should spend their time looking at ways to cut spending... Not raising revenue.

HOORAY FOR THE GOVERNOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HE IS THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN STANDUP TO THIS USELESS BUNCH OF DO NOTHING GENERAL ASSEMBLY!!

SO SMART THEY CANNOT THINK OF ANYTHING BUT TO RAISE TAXES TO SOLVE THE STATE'S PROBLEMS!!

HOORAY! HOORAY!!

The real irony here is that the Feds will spend more money trying to police/enforce this law than will be generated by it. Another example of of "When all else fails" enact a tax! As an independant, I resent the GA's unwillingness to cut spending by consolidating school districts or reducing the size of RI's bloated govt.

Too many firemen, police, teachers, town workers, city workers, and state workers in RI to ever have a chance to vote out the liberal hacks. These parasitic groups are on the tit big time and survive only if the hacks stay in power.

Sad as it is, I'd rather pay more to the feds than to union feed bag in this state. You know, like death and taxes that the $7 fee would go to the black hole of the general fund.

Why is it so advantageous to let the Feds rather than the State collect the money... There should be no licensing but if the option is giving money to the Feds rather than the Stater I would rather keep the money in RI.

I do not belive the Governor ever caught a fish...Nice job to the photoshop expert.

I dont have any problem paying the fee if the money is going for the revitalization of waters we are fishing. The $18 I pay every year that people say is steep was put to good use opening up private water shed fishing areas to the public, growth of fish through hatcheries not to mention boat ramps that were either repaired or built hortly after that huge hike in the freshwater license. So yes I would pay $7 or $25 a year for a "birth Right" that I love and could feed me and my family for years to come. Its merely pennies on a dollar a year.

I applaud the governor for taking a principled stand. However, I certainly hope he is lining up a legal challenge to the federal requirements to back up his position. It would be patently unfair to saddle RI'ers with a $25 federal registry fee just so the governor could make a point with what would have been a $7 fee.

I do, however, agree with 'dave from ashaway'; I'd rather give my money to the feds than to RI government to manage any day of the week.

Has anyone actually looked at this bill?? The only thing is does is generate a data base so that government officials can identify you for the purpose of incessant phone calls to inquire about your catch. It's completely idiotic. But since it's a government program that demands more taxes with no accountability, our GA went along with it. Good for you, Gov. Does anyone really believe that all the members of that family of seven that shows up with 39 rods is going to get a license???

PIAVA "weed" SUPPORTS ANOTHER TAX. AND ALSO SUPPORTS ILLEGAL AILIENS.

Has anyone actually looked at this bill?? The only thing is does is generate a data base so that government officials can identify you for the purpose of incessant phone calls to inquire about your catch. It's completely idiotic. But since it's a government program that demands more taxes with no accountability, our GA went along with it. Good for you, Gov. Does anyone really believe that all the members of that family of seven that shows up with 39 rods is going to get a license???

The whole "licensing" thing is wrong. A fee so that the feds can keep track of recreational fishing? Disingenuous at best. Even the state fee for fresh water fishing is bogus as the only fish the state stocks is trout in which you pay $5 for a trout stamp. The rest (bass, etc.) the state doesn't touch.

The state's arguement of using fishing license fees to maintain state waters is B.S. In all my years of fishing and hiking, I never once saw a DEM cop patrolling to check licenses, a DEM employee liftng a finger to maintain a state water body, or even a DEM employee anywhere near a state management area besides taking money from you for a camping fee or the occaisional DEM cop driving around in his 4wd looking important (I did once catch a DEM cop discharging his weapon at targets at the sand pits on Division Road). The state is also overrun with deer yet hunting licenses are high.

The state has cut staff and services/functions to save money but they sure aren't helping us to save money or to relax using the recreational resources.

Glad the governor was standing up for our "Birthright" when they doubled the freshwater fishing and the hunting fees a few years back. $33.00 for a combo license plus $12.50 for each deer tag plus $5.50 for a trout stamp. Makes it pretty expesive to enjoy some outdoor recreation.

I'll not get a license to fish salt water be it issued by the state or the federal government. If I am arrested for fishing without a license, it will cost more to proscecute me than any fine levied. This is a pseudonym for another tax. It's about time we stood up and said "Enough is enough!" Before long they will be issuing licenses to inhale fresh air or see the sun. This is wrong, wrong, wrong.

I give the governor credit for citing the 10th Amendment in vetoing this bill. The government already sticks its nose in our personal affairs much too much. Imposing a fee would get the camel's nose under the tent. No thanks.

So the fee would simply establish a list where government could call fishermen to ask questions about their catches, eh? Baloney. There are plenty of fishermen who would gladly volunteer to be on a "Do-Call" list without having us pay a fee.

Also, the money is supposed to go back into supporting the sport itself. I simply have no confidence that little by little the state wouldn't start skimming some and putting it directly into the general fund. Forget it.

Its about time ! New York is also fighting the law. The politicians are filing suit against the feds. They received a Charter from England prior to the birth of this country which has been held up in court. It states the ocean and bays are free and under the rules of the trustees (local
Goverment). They are fighting it big. Many tackle
shops have banded together and refuse to sell them. How about that!

Granted that there do exist yahoos with yachts who practice "recreational" fishing. However, most people fish to feed themselves and their families, and indeed that is a birthright.

Perhaps there should have been stiff licensing fees during the past century when industry dumped all kinds of nasty carcinogenic material into our rivers and landfills so that our waterways are no longer safe to fish.

What licensing schemes might we be seeing next as government attempts to refill the coffers? Will I need a license for my victory garden and rain barrel?

So, how can the Feds force mandatory health care down our thoats? Where are they enabled to do so in the Constitution? Isn't such regulation also "reserved to the people"?

What has it come to? Little Jonny or Mary can't go fishing with thier $10 Zebco rod and reel anymore...

I thought getting a message at a Japanese spa was a RI birth right but Carcieri did not veto that one. If the girls could charge a $7 licensing fee per customer everybody would make out on the deal.

If it means that my taxes wont go up then overide this veto. If it generates a source of money for the state, which is in dire need, then so be it.

Nice news!

Thank you governor Carcieri... Salterwater fishing is the only thing left for poor people to fish and bring to their family table.

Hell with congress or the fed!!!

will a federal license cover all coastal states or just the state you live in? I can live with a fed. license if it covers all states as I fish several states through out the year.A state run license would only cover that one particular state.

I have no problem paying the Freshwater fee as the state spends a lot of money stocking the ponds for the kids and constantly proving the money is going to a good cause. Saltwater makes no sense.

Good job Gov,
keep citing the Tenth Ammendment, it is a powerful tool.

Yes I consider Salt Water Fishing a birth right, and I am glad someone stood up and said this.

The last thing - we need as family fisherman, is the men in uniforms, parading down a dock to ticket people for tossing in a line in the water.

Captn Joe Sullivan
Pennsylvania