BOZEMAN — Every two years, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks tackles the management of the state's fisheries. This year, 41 proposals are going before the Fish and Wildlife Commission — including one that could change how anglers fish the East Gallatin River.
The East Gallatin is considered crucial spawning water for Montana's fisheries because fish from the river travel to other waterways across the state.
Morgan Jacobsen of the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks said one proposal would restrict boat fishing on the river.
"The proposal that's on the table now is to limit fishing from a boat. East Gallatin is a smaller river, and sometimes when people have to get out and drag their boat across gravel beds, there's a potential impact on spawning trout that way. That's not the only way we can go about it, and so that's part of why we want to hear from the public to see what other ideas might be out there," Jacobsen said.
WATCH: Montana FWP seeks input on new fishing regulations
FWP is currently in a scoping phase, taking public comment across the state — both for and against the proposals — and accepting new ideas from the public. The Fish and Wildlife Commission will ultimately decide which proposals move forward and which are dropped, setting Montana's fishing regulations for the next two years.
Jacobsen described the commission's role in the process.
"The commission is a body of people who are appointed by the governor, independent from FWP, and they take into consideration the biology, recommendations from Fish, Wildlife and Parks, but also the social component and input from the public," Jacobsen said.
FWP is holding meetings across the state on the proposals. For the roughly 15 proposals covering the East Gallatin and surrounding region, FWP is hosting a public meeting at 6 p.m. on May 19 at Region 3 Headquarters.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
