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An Act To Provide Flexibility for Sea Urchin Zones
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 12 MRSA §6749-N, sub-§4  is enacted to read:
 
4.  Sea urchin management areas.     Pursuant to section 6749-X, subsection 3, paragraph C, the Sea Urchin Zone Council may provide recommendations to the commissioner regarding sea urchin management areas. The commissioner may adopt rules to define sections of zones established under subsections 1 and 2 as sea urchin management areas. The commissioner may adopt rules for the sea urchin management areas that are different from those in place in the surrounding zones. A person who holds a license under section 6748, 6748-A or 6748-D is subject to these rules while that person is fishing for sea urchins in the sea urchin management area, and rules adopted pursuant to this subsection may also limit the authority of a license holder who chooses to fish inside a sea urchin management area to fish outside that sea urchin management area. Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
 
SUMMARY
This bill provides the Commissioner of Marine Resources with the authority to adopt rules to create sea urchin management areas. The commissioner may also adopt rules for management areas that are different from those in place in the surrounding sea urchin zones.