The Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Commission at its March 5 meeting proposed new regulations for lakes enrolled in the neighborhood fishing program, brook trout size limits for the Cumberland River and a new creel limit for catfish in Taylorsville Lake. The new regulations would take effect in March 2011 if approved by the General Assembly.

The commission recommends all hunting, fishing and boating regulations for approval by the General Assembly and approves all expenditures by the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. Legislators must approve all recommendations before they become law.

During the meeting, commission members proposed establishing uniform daily limits on the number of fish that anglers may keep from lakes enrolled in the Fishing in Neighborhoods (FINs) lakes. Proposed daily limits at these lakes include five rainbow trout, four catfish, 15 sunfish and one largemouth bass. The largemouth bass must be at least 15 inches long for an angler to keep it.

The Cumberland River below Wolf Creek Dam will receive about 10,000 brook trout in 2011. The commission recommended a daily creel limit of one fish over 15 inches on brook trout in this section of the Cumberland River.

The Commission also recommended a 15-fish daily creel limit on blue and channel catfish in Taylorsville Lake. Only one fish of the daily creel limit may be greater than 25 inches long. This regulation applies to only traditional hook and line angling, trotlines, jug lines and limb lines.

For regulatory purposes, the Commission also proposed moving the boundary of Elkhorn Creek from its confluence with the Kentucky River upstream to a permanent marker located just downstream of the first riffle. This means the lower section of creek would not be subject to the existing slot limit on smallmouth bass in place throughout the rest of the Elkhorn.

Commission members also recommended stopping the harvest of flathead catfish in A.J. Jolly Lake in Campbell County for five years. This will help improve the quality of the sunfish population in the lake.

The next Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Commission meeting will be 8 a.m. Eastern time, June 11. Meetings are held at the Arnold Mitchell Building, located at 1 Sportsman’s Lane in Frankfort.

Persons wishing to be placed on the meeting agenda to speak before the Commission on an issue should notify Kentucky Fish and Wildlife in writing at least 30 days in advance. People who are hearing impaired and plan to attend the meeting should contact Kentucky Fish and Wildlife at least 10 days in advance. The agency will provide a translator. Requests for placement on the meeting agenda should be sent to:

Dr. Jon Gassett, Commissioner, Kentucky Fish and Wildlife 1 Sportsman’s Lane Frankfort, Ky. 40601.

The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources manages, regulates, enforces and promotes responsible use of all fish and wildlife species, their habitats, public wildlife areas and waterways for the benefit of those resources and for public enjoyment. Kentucky Fish and Wildlife is an agency of the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet. For more information on the department, visit our Web site at fw.ky.gov.