68B-8.003. General Conditions and Restrictions

(1) ELIGIBILITY.

(a) A SAL or FMSEA Certification will not be issued to a person and no person shall conduct activities under a SAL if, during the 36-month period prior to the application or activity, that person has been charged with a violation of a rule in Title 68, F.A.C.; Chapter 370, 372 or 379, F.S.; or 50 CFR Parts 622, 635, 640, 648, 654, 660, or 679 unless that person has received a final disposition of acquittal or dismissal of such charged violation.

(b) A Stock Collection and Release SAL, an Aquaculture Broodstock Collection SAL, or a Snook SAL will not be issued to a person and no person shall conduct activities under such SAL, if that person has been charged with a violation of a provision of Section 597.004, F.S., or Chapter 5L-3, F.A.C.

(c) A SAL will not be issued for an activity that is allowed under the marine recreational fishing regulations, with the exception of an Aquaculture Broodstock Collection SAL.

(d) A SAL will not be issued to a third party contractor.

(2) APPLICATION, ISSUANCE, AND LICENSE PERIODS.

(a) A person may apply for and be issued a SAL at any time and a SAL shall be valid for 12 months from the date of issuance with the following exceptions:

1. The period of validity of a Scientific Research SAL will be based on the duration of the proposed activity, provided that the duration is no longer than is necessary to achieve its stated purpose and it does not exceed 36 months from the date of issuance. The period of validity for a Scientific Research SAL issued for prohibited species shall not exceed 12 months from the date of issuance.

2. An Education/Exhibition SAL involving the collection of prohibited species may only be applied for April 1 through April 30 or October 1 through October 31.

3. An Aquaculture Broodstock Collection SAL is only valid so long as the SAL holder also holds a valid aquaculture certificate of registration issued pursuant to Section 597.004, F.S., and Chapter 5L-3, F.A.C.

4. The period of validity of a Governmental Purpose SAL will be based on the duration of the proposed activity, provided that it is no longer than is necessary to achieve its stated purpose.

5. The period of validity of a Nonprofit SAL is 36 months.

(b) A person may apply for and shall be issued a FMSEA Certification upon completion of workshop training and a FMSEA Certification is valid for 36 months.

(3) TRANSFERABILITY OF LICENSE OR CERTIFICATION. A SAL or FMSEA Certification is not transferable. If a SAL or Certificate holder changes his or her affiliation, the SAL or Certificate is no longer valid and must be amended or re-issued.

(4) SCOPE OF AUTHORITY. A SAL or FMSEA Certification does not authorize any activity outside of state waters, within zoned areas of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, or within the boundaries of any federal park. For purposes of this subsection, “zoned areas of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary” means Sanctuary Preservation Areas, Special Use Areas, Research Only Areas, and Ecological Reserves.

(5) LAW ENFORCEMENT NOTIFICATION. The holder of a SAL or FMSEA Certification must notify the nearest Commission Law Enforcement Dispatch Center not later than 24 hours prior to conducting activities under a SAL or FMSEA Certification. Notification shall consist of a float plan detailing locations, dates, and times of activities. Deviations from the float plan are permitted only after 24-hour advance notification to the nearest Commission Law Enforcement Dispatch Center. Float plans are valid for the duration of the SAL or FMSEA Certification unless rescinded by the SAL or FMSEA Certification holder.

(6) AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL.

(a) No more than 10 individuals shall be authorized to conduct activities pursuant to a SAL unless justification for additional personnel is provided by the applicant and additional personnel are necessary to achieve the stated purpose of the SAL.

(b) Authorized personnel on a FMSEA Certification will be limited to the certification holder, teaching assistants, and up to 100 students per collecting trip. Both the teaching assistants and students must be operating under the direct supervision of the Certification holder and there must be at least one adult per ten students.

(7) RELEASE OF MARINE ORGANISMS. No marine organism that has been maintained in captivity shall be released unless the release is authorized by a SAL or FMSEA Certification or the release is conducted in accordance with the “Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Policy on the Release of Marine Organisms, September 2009” which is hereby adopted as a rule of the Commission and is incorporated herein by reference. However, the release restrictions of this subsection do not apply to:

(a) Catch-and-release activities that occur during the course of recreational fishing.

(b) The use of a marine organism for bait.

(c) The temporary possession of bycatch or of a marine organism that is temporarily retained in order to conduct directed commercial fishing activities, provided that the marine organism is not retained any longer than is necessary to accomplish the directed harvest.

(8) TAGGING OF MARINE ORGANISMS. No marine organism shall be tagged unless such tagging activity has been authorized pursuant to a SAL or FMSEA Certification. The tagging restrictions of this subsection do not apply to directors of a fishing tournament or their designee, who may tag up to five (5) fish per tournament for purposes of awarding prizes to tournament participants. For purposes of this section, a “tag” means any internal or external device or other marking, placed in or on an organism for the purpose of identification.

(9) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. Required reporting documentation must be submitted within 30 days after expiration of the SAL.

(10) TRANSFERABILITY OF MARINE ORGANISMS.

(a) A SAL or FMSEA Certification is not required if a marine organism harvested pursuant to a SAL or FMSEA Certification is being moved through formal transfer or loan between facilities that meet the eligibility requirements in subsection 68B-8.003(1), F.A.C., and that are certified aquaculture facilities or are conducting scientific research, education, or exhibition activities. A marine organism authorized for sale under subsection 68B-8.003(11), F.A.C., is not considered a transfer or loan. In lieu of a SAL or FMSEA Certification, documentation must be permanently maintained by a facility that possesses a marine organism harvested pursuant to a SAL or FMSEA Certification and transferred or loaned to that facility. The documentation must include the following:

1. A copy of the SAL or FMSEA Certification authorizing the harvest of the marine organism.

2. The chain of possession from initial harvest to current possession.

3. If the transfer or loan involves a certified aquaculture facility, a copy of the aquaculture facility’s valid certification.

4. A detailed description of each marine organism being transferred or loaned including common name, scientific name, size, and sex.

5. Number of each type of marine organism being transferred or loaned.

6. Date of transfer, or beginning and ending date of loan.

7. Name, address, and contact person for the transferring facility and for the receiving facility.

8. Signatures from representatives of the transferring and receiving facilities acknowledging that the transfer was completed or the loan was initiated.

(b) The receiving facility is responsible for maintaining a marine organism in its possession in accordance with any terms and conditions set forth by the SAL or FMSEA Certification that authorized the harvest of the marine organism.

(11) POSSESSION AFTER LICENSE OR CERTIFICATION EXPIRATION. The Commission recognizes that a marine organism collected pursuant to a SAL or FMSEA Certification may need to be retained for a period of time that extends beyond the expiration date of the SAL or FMSEA Certification issued for its harvest. For this purpose, the following conditions must be met for marine organisms collected pursuant to a SAL or FMSEA Certification to be legally possessed beyond the expiration of a SAL or FMSEA Certification:

(a) All documentation required for reporting must be submitted to the Commission within 30 days of expiration of the SAL.

(b) Following the expiration date of the SAL or FMSEA Certification, the original SAL or FMSEA Certification or a copy is sufficient documentation to authorize possession of a marine organism harvested pursuant to a SAL or FMSEA Certification. Such documentation must be promptly produced at the request of an authorized law enforcement officer.

(12) SALE OF MARINE ORGANISMS. A marine organism harvested pursuant to a SAL or FMSEA Certification shall not be sold or consumed unless it was harvested pursuant to a Gear Innovation SAL, Governmental Purpose SAL, Dredge SAL, or a Nonprofit Corporation SAL, and the sale was conducted in accordance with any condition of sale required by such SAL.

(13) CONSUMPTION OF MARINE ORGANISMS. A marine organism harvested pursuant to a SAL or FMSEA Certification shall not be consumed unless the marine organism was harvested pursuant to a Gear Innovation SAL, Governmental Purpose SAL, or Dredge SAL.

(14) ISSUANCE AND RENEWAL. A SAL or FMSEA Certification issued pursuant to this chapter will not be issued or renewed unless all conditions of a prior SAL or FMSEA Certification held by the applicant were met, and the reporting requirements for the prior SAL were submitted.

(15) SUSPENSION AND REVOCATION. The Commission will suspend or revoke a SAL or FMSEA Certification if it finds that the SAL or FMSEA Certification holder has violated any provision in Chapter 379, F.S., Commission rules or orders, or terms or conditions of the SAL or FMSEA Certification, or has submitted false or inaccurate information in his or her application. Suspensions and revocations will be imposed in accordance with Chapters 120 and 379, F.S.

Rulemaking Authority Art. IV, Sec. 9, Fla. Const. Law Implemented Art. IV, Sec. 9, Fla. Const. History–New 7-1-04, Amended 11-19-09.