Chap. 302.—An ACT to amend and re-enact Sections 3163, 3193, and 3265, as
amended, of the Code of Virginia, and to amend the Code of Virginia by adding
three new sections numbered 3146-b, 3200-a, and 3200-b, the amended and new
sections relating to the oyster and shellfish industry, revocation of licenses,
authorizing the establishment of seed areas and the planting of oyster shells by
the Commission of Fisheries, regulating the size and weights of certain fish
that may be legally taken. authorizing and prescribing the rates of charge for
the taking of certain shellfish and extending application for oyster ground.

[H B 307}
Approved March 26, 1946,

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That sections thirty-one hundred sixty, thirty-one hundred
sixty-three, thirty-one hundred seventy-three, thirty-one hundred ninety-
three, thirty-two hundred ten, thirty-two hundred eighteen. and thirty-
two hundred sixty-five, as amended, of the Code of Virginia be amended
and re-enacted and that the Code of Virginia be amended by adding three
new sections numbered thirty-one hundred forty-six-b, thirty-two hun-
dred-a, and thirty-two hundred-b, the amended and new sections being
as follows:

Section 3146-b. The Commission of Fisheries after ten days no-
tice to any person having a license issued by it may revoke such license
for violation of the seafood laws. The person whose license has been so
revoked shall have an appeal of right to the circuit court of the county or
corporation court of the city wherein such license was issued for a re-
view of the action of the Commission which shall be given notice of such
appeal. The court or judge in vacation shall hear and determine such
appeal as soon as may be. Each license which has been revoked shall
be sent to, and retained by, the Commission.

No person whose license has been so revoked shall thereafter engage
in the activities for which such license was issued until his license is re-
instated or a new license issued him. For engaging in such activities
contrary to the provisions hereof any person so doing shall be subject to
a fine of not less than ten dollars nor more than five hundred dollars for
each day of violation.

Section 3163. Regulating the size of fish that may be caught.—
It shall be unlawful to take, catch, or have in possession any sturgeon
less than five feet in length; or any rock fish of less than twelve inches
in length, or more than twenty- -five pounds in weight; or any trout less
than nine inches in length: or any spot less than six inches in length: or
any bluefish less than eight inches in length; or any bonito fish less than
twenty inches in length: or any croakers (grumblers) less than seven
inches in length; or any black drum bass less than twelve inches in
length; or any red drum bass less than twelve inches in length; or any
hog fish less than six inches in length; or any mackerel less than ten in-
ches in length; or any mullets less than six inches in length; or any pom-
panos less than seven inches in length; or any porgie or moon fish less
than ten inches in length; or any star-butter fish less than six inches in
length; or any other butter fish less than seven inches in length; or any
roundhead or sea mullet less than seven inches in length; or any sea bass
less than five inches in length; or any sheephead less than twelve inches
in length; or any black bass less than eight inches in length; or any mud
shad less than seven inches 1n length; or any white sand perch less than
five inches in length; or any yellow or ring perch less than seven inches in
length; or any blue nose perch less than seven inches in length; or any
bream less than eight inches in length: or any hickory shad or any
other shad less than ten inches in length: or any catfish less than nine
inches in length. All measurements to be from nose to tip of tail. Any
such fish caught by any person shall be at once returned to the water ; and
in order that any such fish caught in any fixed fishing device may be re-
turned to the water alive, all persons fishing such devices shall cull out
and return to the water all such fish as they are taken from the net and
betore placing the same inside of their boat. And whenever any fisher-
man or dealer is found to have as much as ten per centum of the bulk of
his catch under the minimum size herein prescribed, he shall be deemed
guilty of violating the provisions of this section, except as to trout, in
which case any fisherman or dealer shall be deemed guilty of violating the
provisions of this section only when he 1s found to have as much as ten
per centum of the bulk of his catch under the minimum size herein pre-
scribed as to trout. If any dealer offers for sale any fish under the sizes
hereinbefore stated, he shall be deemed guilty of violating the provisions
of this section. ,

Section 3193. Oyster Planting Grounds; What Ground May Be
Applied For; Eligible Applicants; How to Apply; Notice to Be Post-
ed; Newspaper Notice.—

(1) The residue of such water front in excess of what is already
assigned, or 1s reserved for the riparian owner, and the residue of the
beds of the bays, rivers, creeks, and shores of the sea other than natural
oyster beds, rocks, or shoals, as defined by law and included in the Bay-
lor survey, may be occupied for the purpose of planting or propagating
oysters thereon.

(2) Application for assignment of oyster-planting ground may be
made by any resident of the State, or by any firm, or corporation char-
tered under the laws of this State for the purpose of oyster culture and
the oyster business: and it shall be lawful for nonresidents to be stock-
holders in such a firm or corporation provided said firm or corporation
employ only resident labor 1n planting, cultivating, selling, and marketing
the oysters grown on the ground or land so occupied; and provided its
priticipal place of business for selling, and marketing said oysters be
maintained within this State, and the provisions of this section shall be
incorporated in any lease of oyster ground to any such firm or corpora-
tion, the violation thereof shall forfeit the lease.

(3) All applications for assignment of oyster-planting grounds
shall be made in writing to the inspector of the district wherein the ground
lies, in duplicate. The application shall state as near as may be the num-
ber of acres applied for and definite location, with the name of one or
more prominent points or objects adjacent to said ground. <A duplicate
copy of this application shall be immediately forwarded to the office of
the Commission of Fisheries by the inspector. It shall be the duty of any
resident, firm, or corporation desiring to obtain a location for planting or
propagating oysters to apply to the inspector of the district in which
such land lies to have the location ascertained, designated, surveyed, and
assigned.

(4) No assignment shall be made of any piece of ground containing
more than ten acres until notice of application has been published once
a week for at least four weeks in some newspaper published in the coun-
ty wherein the said ground lies; and if no newspaper be published in
the said county, then it shall be published once a week for at least four
weeks in some newspaper having general circulation therein. This said
provision is in addition to the sixty-day posting of the application re-
quired.

(5) Notice of the said application shall be posted by the inspector
for not less than sixty days at the courthouse of the county in which the
ground lies, and at two or more prominent places in the vicinity of said
ground. , ;

(6) Sixty days after posting of the notice of application, the in-
spector shall notify the county surveyor, or such surveyor as may be
designated by the Commission of Fisheries, to proceed to survey said
ground, conforming to the rules and regulations of the Commission of
Fisheries, and make a plat in duplicate of the same. The surveyor shall
forward the plat of survey to the office of the Commission of Fisheries to
be approved by the engineer of the Commission within thirty days, before
same is assigned by the inspector. The ground shall be marked, at the
expense of the applicant, at the time the survey is made, and at the direc-
tion of the surveyor, with suitable stakes, smooth and free from snags
and spurs; provided that where the War Department of the United
States Government forbids the use of such stakes on account of inter-
ference with navigation, such other markets, as may be permitted by the
said War Department and approved by the Commission of the Fisheries,
may be used instead of stakes; and such suitable stakes or other markers,
as aforesaid, shall be kept by the lessee in their proper places at all times
during the continuance of such lease, so as to conform accurately to the
survey. Should such stakes or other markers be removed, rot down, or
be carried away, the lessee shall replace them in their proper places ; and
if he fails to do so within thirty days after being notified by the inspec-
tor of the district in which the ground lies, the said lessee shall have no
claim against any person for trespassing on said ground in any manner.

(7) Any applicant for oyster-planting ground shall pay to the sur-
veyor for his services one dollar per acre or fraction thereof for three
acres or less; fifty cents per acre or fraction thereof for each acre more
than three and up to and including ten acres; twenty-five cents per acre
or fraction thereof for each acre more than ten and up to and including
thirty acres; fifteen cents per acre for each acre and fraction thereof more
than thirty acres up to and including fifty acres, and ten cents per acre
for all over fifty acres; and for drawing plat of ground (which shall be
in duplicate), fifty cents per corner for each corner up to and including
four corners, and twenty-five cents per corner for all additional corners
over four. The surveyor shall have the same privileges and rights as to
the collection of his fees as does the inspector.

8) No assignment, except in Chesapeake Bay, shall exceed two
hundred and fifty acres. No applicant, after having had as much as two
hundred and fifty acres of oyster ground assigned to him, shall again
make application for another assignment of oyster grounds within six
months from the day his assignment was recorded and completed as the
statutes hereinafter provide. If an assignment be not made within six
months after the expiration of the notice required by statute to be posted
for sixty days, such application shall, upon the expiration of the six
months, lapse and become null and void, unless an extension is allowed
by the Commission, of not more than ninety days.

(9) No person, firm or corporation shall own or operate more than
three thousand acres of oyster grounds in the waters of this State other
than the Chesapeake Bay; and should ground in excess of three thou-
sand acres be acquired by original assignment to the assignee, or be
assigned to him or them by a lawful holder of said oyster ground, or as
heir or distributee, or by devise or bequest, he or they shall, nevertheless,
have a right to lawfully hold the same for and during the period of one
year and shall have a legal right to assign the same. Should no assign-
ment be made within one year, the oyster-planting ground so acquired, in
excess of three thousand acres, shall revert to the Commonwealth of Vir-
ginia, and may be applied for by any person having a legal right to do so.

(10) Application for planting ground in Chesapeake Bay in waters
from fifteen feet or more in depth shall be made to the Commission of
Fisheries, which shall have the right to accept or reject any such applica-
tion as it may deem best for the public interests ; and the number of acres
to be assigned to any applicant shall not exceed five thousand acres, pro-
vided that such assignment shall not interfere with the established fishing
rights. Any such application, surveying, and marking shall conform to
the law pertaining to oyster-planting grounds.

(11) The annual rental per acre in the Chesapeake Bay, in waters
from fifteen feet or more in depth, therefor shall be such an amount
per acre as the Commission of Fisheries may designate, but in no case
shall it be less than fifty cents per annum per acre. After notice of an
application has been posted and/or published for sixty days as herein-
before required, the ground surveyed, and plat made in duplicate, the
inspector shall assign the ground to the applicant; provided that, if in
the judgment of the Commission of Fisheries it shall be wise to do so;
and further provided that the applicant pay to the inspector the surveying
charges, if the survey 1s made by an agent of the Commission of Fisheries,
and the annual rental prorated from the date of the assignment to the
next rental year, this proration to be computed on the total number of
acres to be assigned, and a recording fee of two dollars for each assign-
ment of not in excess of ten acres; two dollars and fifty cents for each
assignment in excess of ten acres but not in excess of twenty-five acres,
and three dollars for each assignment in excess of twenty-five acres.
When these provisions have been met, the inspector shall then assign the
ground to the applicant, and no person, firm, or corporation shall be con-
sidered a lawful renter of oyster-planting ground until he shall have first
complied with these said provisions.

(13) Such an applicant shall pay to the inspector the annual rental
for the said ground at the rate of one dollar per acre per annum, except
as provided for in the Chesapeake Bay, and for bathing ground and
riparian rights; said rental to be due on the first day of September of each
year after the date of the assignment: and if not paid on or before De-
cember fifth, a five per centum penalty shall be added to the annual rental
charge, and the inspector may proceed to levy for rental and penalty.

(14) Each assignment shall continue in force for a period of twen-
ty years from the date of assignment ; and if such applicant shall hold such
ground for the full period of twenty years and at the expiration thereof
decide to continue to hold the same and to have the lease renewed, then,
provided such ground is still open to lease under the then existing law,
such applicant shall have prior right over all others for a renewal of the
lease of the ground; subject to any such laws or regulations as the Gen-
eral Assembly may enact or prescribe, and to such rental as may be then
fixed by law. The interest in such ground shall be construed as a chattel
real, and at the death of the renter pass into the hands of the personal
representatives for the benefit of any creditors or heirs of the decedent.
Should any lessee of oyster-planting ground, or bathing ground, have his
ground, or any portion thereof re-surveyed or should be re-assign any
or all of the ground, this said re-survey or re-assignment shall not be
construed to be a twenty-year renewal of his lease, or as a new assign-
ment of such ground, but shall be deemed to be a continuation of the
original assignment, subject to all the limitations and conditions under
which such grounds were originally assigned.

(15) Any person, firm or corporation in possession of any oyster-
planting ground which has not been assigned according to law shall have
no preference as to having the same assigned to him, but such ground
shall be open to the first applicant.

(16) The plat and assignment, as soon as practicable after com-
pletion, and after the said ground shall have been assigned to the said
applicant, shall be filed for record by the inspector in the office of the
Commission of Fisheries, and in the office of the clerk of the county bv
the Commissioner of Fisheries. The county clerk shall forthwith record
the assignment and plat in a well-bound and substantial book, such re-
cording to be indexed in the name of the assignee, and thereupon at once
a written memorandum shall be posted by the clerk of the court at the
front door of the courthouse, stating the name of the assignee, the date
of recordation, the number of acres assigned, and the general location of
the ground. The clerk of the court shall receive the said plat and assign-
ment and record the same, and shall be paid by the commission for hs
services a fee of two dollars for cach assignment of not in excess of ten
acres: two dollars and filtv cents for each assignment of in excess of ten
acres but not in excess of twenty-five acres, and three dollars for each
assigninent in excess of twenty-five acres. After the same has been re-
corded the assignee is entitled to withdraw the original from the clerk's
office.

(17) Each inspector shall send in to office of the Commission of
Fisheries not later than the fifth of each month all assignments made by
him during the preceding month, such assignments to be reported on
blanks provided the inspector by the Commission, and these forms to
state the name of applicant to whom assigned, the waters where, the num-
ber of acres, the date of assignment, and the address of the applicant.

(18) To any person, after having complied with all requirements,
as set forth in the statutes necessary to have ground assigned to him, the
State will guarantee the absolute right to the renter to continue to use
and occupy such ground for the term of the lease, subject, only to the
right of fishing in waters above the said bottoms and riparian rights, so
long as the rent for each year is paid not later than December fifth of
such year. No person exercising such right of fishing shall use any de-
vice which is fixed to the bottom, or which, in any way, interferes with
such renter’s rights, or damages such bottoms, or the oysters planted
thereon.

(19) The lessee of any oyster-planting ground or bathing ground,
the rent of which is to be paid to the following September of any year,
may abandon his or her holdings at any time without being liable for the
payment of the rent for the following year, provided they notify the in-
spector, deputy inspector or the Commissioner of Fisheries in writing of
their intention so to do before September first. Said notice, when re-
ceived by the inspector or deputy inspector, shall be immediately for-
warded by such inspector or deputy inspector to the office of the Com-
missioner. ,

Section 3265. Licenses to take crabs; amount of tax; restrictions
on privileges; display of license number and letters—Any resident of
this State desiring to take or catch crabs for market or profit from the
waters of the Commonwealth, or waters under its jurisdiction, by any of
the means hereinafter or any person desiring to engage in the business of
buying or marketing crabs for picking or canning the same in any way,
shall pay to the oyster inspector of the district in which he resides the
taxes and be subject to the provisions set forth in the following subsec-
tions:

(1) For each person taking or catching soft crabs otherwise than by
dip nets or hard crabs, or peelers, with net, ordinary trot line, hand rake,
or hand scrape, pushed or pulled, or with any device other than dip net
or hand line, two dollars and fifty cents; provided that no boat shall be
used to pull or push any rake or scrape except as provided tor in sub-
sections three and four of this section:

(2) For each person taking or catching crabs with patent trot lines,
ten dollars and fifty cents; provided, no steam or motor boat shall be
used in the taking or catching of soft crabs, and provided that it shall be
unlawful for any person to use ordinary trot lines, or patent trot lines, for
the taking or catching of crabs, in the waters of Moore’s Creek, Jackson
Creek, or Broad Creek in the county of Middlesex.

(2%) For each person catching blue crabs by means of device made
of wire or thread net and commonly known as a crab pot, ten dollars
and fifty cents for each calendar year, for fifty such pots or any lesser
number; provided that no person shall employ more than fifty pots nor
secure more than one license, but any person holding a patent trot line
license may fish fifty pots without securing a pot license, or any person
holding a pot license may fish patent trot lines without securing a patent
trot line license, provided further that after January one, nineteen hun-
dred forty-five no such pot or device shall be used which is made of wire
or thread of a size less than one and one-half inches.

(3) For each sail boat to be used for the purpose of taking or catch-
ing hard crabs with scrapes or tongs, and for each power boat under
thirty-two feet in length used for the purpose of taking or catching hard
crabs with scrapes or tongs, five dollars and fifty cents;

(4) For each power boat over thirty-two feet in length used for the
purpose of taking or catching hard crabs with scrapes or dredges, twenty-
six dollars ;

(5) For each picking or crating house, eleven dollars ;

(6) For each canning and packing house, twenty-six dollars;

(7) For each boat used in buying crabs, or for each person or firm
engaged in marketing hard crabs by barrel or crate, five dollars and fifty
cents; but no person who is licensed to catch crabs shall be required to
procure further license for marketing or shipping his own catch, and any
person who has procured a license for a boat under subsection five here-
of shall have the privilege of using the license for the purpose of taking
hard crabs with patent trot lines or with any other device allowed to be
used under this section for the remainder of the season in which the license
was issued during the season not prohibited by law ;

(8) No scrape or dredges shall be used for catching crabs between
the first day of April and the first day of December of any year ; provided
that the Commission of Fisheries, when in its judgment it is deemed ad-
visable on account of weather conditions and not contrary to the public
interest to do so, may open any season on the sixteenth day of Novem-
ber and it may likewise extend any season to the sixteenth day of April;
nor shall scrapes or dredges be used at any time of the year in any of
the rivers, or their estuaries, inlets, or creeks for the purpose of taking
crabs. This subsection shall not apply to the waters of Chesapeake Bay
or Hampton Roads, nor to the eastern or ocean side of Accomack and
Northampton counties, nor to taking or catching of soft crabs or the crab
known as the “peeler’ crab;

(9) It shall be unlawful for any person to catch, take or have in
possession at any time a hard crab which measures less than five inches
across the shell from tip to tip of spike, except the crab commonly known
as the peeler crab, nor any buckram (a paper shell crab) or any soft
crab measuring less than three and one-half inches from tip to tip of
spike, nor any peeler measuring less than three inches from tip to tip of
spike; or to destroy them in any manner, but shall immediately return
same to the water alive when taken out of the net or scrape;

(10) A peeler crab for the purpose of this section is a crab that has
a soft shell fully developed under the hard shell, or a crab on which there
is a pink or white line or rim on the edge of that part of the “back fin”
next to the outer section of this fin;

(11) It shall be lawful for any person holding the proper license
to take or catch “sponge” crabs from any of the waters of this State, or
any of the waters under its jurisdiction, from the first day of April ta
the thirtieth day of June, both inclusive, in any year; provided that the
Commissioner of Fisheries may, when he deems it in the interest of con-
servation, close or shorten the season for taking sponge crabs as herein
defined, after giving fifteen days’ notice of his intention so to do, such
notice, in writing, to be posted at the office of the Commissioner, and a
copy thereof mailed to each inspector ;

(12) In licensing a person for taking crabs with boat the inspec-
tor shall cause to be placed at a conspicuous point on the starboard side
of such boat, or on the mast thereof, a number, and the number or num-
bers shall be kept displayed during the crabbing season by the master
of the boat ;

(13) Any person failing to comply with any of the provisions of
this section, or in any way violating the same, shall be fined not less than
ten nor more than two hundred dollars for each offense, provided that
nothing in this section shall apply to anyone taking or catching crabs for
immediate household use.