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ENGROSSED SENATE
BILL NO. 777 By: Jett of the Senate
and
West (Rick) of the House
An Act relating to wildlife; amending 2 O.S. 2021,
Section 6-313, which relates to commingling with wild
aquatic species; prohibiting certain sales; allowing
certain harvest under certain conditions; authorizing
the Department of Wildlife Conservation to manage
certain conditions for certain possession; allowing
the Department to manage certain transactions;
providing for promulgation of rules; allowing the
Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and
Forestry to assess certain import fees under certain
circumstances; requiring each shipment to possess
certain certificate; amending 29 O.S. 2021, Section
2-115, which relates to definition of game fish;
expanding definition; and providing an effective
date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 2 O.S. 2021, Section 6 -313, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 6-313. A. All catfish, minnows, fingerlin gs, fish,
frogs, and other aquatic species which are legally produced,
pursuant to the provisions of this act Sections 6-311 through 6-317
of this title, shall be confined to the lands and waters of the
licensee in such a manner so as to prohibit:
1. Contact with wild fish or other aquatic spec ies in public
waters; and
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2. Such wild fish or other aquatic species in from being
commercially harvested from public waters from and becoming a part
of the commercial production sold as a wild-born commodity. As u sed
in this paragraph, “wild-born” means wild fish or aquatic species
born in public waters and not introduced though aquaculture .
B. 1. Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, the
Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry shall not
restrict the manner in which persons, l icensed pursuant to this act
Sections 6-311 through 6-317 of this title, gather or impound
aquatic species raised within the impoundments in their commercial
operations.
2. No person shall sell or attempt to sell ga me fish and/or
paddlefish obtained from public waters that have been commingled
with privately produced fish subject to the provisions of this act
Sections 6-311 through 6-317 of this title regarding the capture of
wild fish or aquatic species for direct s ale. A licensed producer
may collect both game fish and nongame fish broodstock from public
waters using any legal means of take for use in propagation of fish
only in a recirculating aquaculture system up to, but not exceeding,
the normal possession limi t for a person holding a recreational
fishing license; provided, that the licensed producer complies with
all applicable terms set forth by the Department of Wildlife
Conservation. Additionally, such individual broodstock may not be
sold and cannot be rel eased back into the wild. Production of fish
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species considered to be species of special concern, excluding
paddlefish (polyodon spathula), along with species prohibited under
agency rules and federal threatened and endangered species , is
prohibited.
C. No licensee may receive, free of charge, any catfish,
minnow, fingerling, fish, frog or other aquatic species from the
state or federal government Meat and any other finished products for
human consumption that result from fish spawned in a captive system
may be sold in this state or out of stat e; provided, that the
producer or seller obtains the necessary export permits. Live fish
of such propagations may also be sold subject to certain
restrictions as set forth by rule by the Department .
D. The Department may establish a process to facilitate
broodstock transactions between the state and licensed in -state
aquatic propagators. The Department is authorized to assess a fee
necessary to maintain such process and the oversight required for
broodstock transactions. Fees imposed shall be reasonable ,
accessible, and transparent, with clearly defined application
requirements, publicly available guidance, and established timelines
for application review and approval. The Department may promulgate
all rules necessary for the implementation of this subsection.
E. The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry
may assess import fees for any entity selling live fish within this
state that does not possess a valid license for commercial
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production of aquatic species issued by the Oklahoma Depar tment of
Agriculture, Food, and Forestry along with an Oklahoma address
subject to regular inspections. Fees shall reflect the costs in -
state producers are subjected to when exporting to other states.
Each shipment shall include a valid Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service health certificate.
SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 29 O.S. 2021, Section 2 -115, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 2-115. “Game fish” is a fish normally sought after by
sportsmen, and includes only largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, white
bass, spotted bass, black crappie, white crappie, northern pike,
trout, sauger, saugeye, striped bass, hybrid striped bass, walleye,
blue catfish and channel catfish. Blue catfish and c hannel catfish
are herein defined to mean “forked tail” catfish.
SECTION 3. This act shall become effective November 1, 2025.
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Passed the Senate the 27th day of March, 2025.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
Passed the House of Represe ntatives the ____ day of __________,
2025.
Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives