(a) The commissioner shall dispose of fish hatchery products or exchange fish or wildlife resources only after they have been tested for certifiable diseases. The testing must have been completed within the 12 months preceding the disposal or exchange. Fish or wildlife resources subject to an exchange must have received a disease-free certification for those certifiable diseases not currently documented in Minnesota. Disease certification must be provided prior to accepting the fish or wildlife resource. When the fish or wildlife resource is not certified as disease-free, they may be stocked or transferred only into waters that already contain that disease.

(b) State hatchery products shall be disposed of according to the following order of priorities:

(1) distribution of fish eggs and fry to state hatcheries to hatch fry or raise fingerlings for stocking waters of the state for recreational fishing;

(2) transfer to other government agencies in exchange for fish or wildlife resources of equal value or private fish hatcheries in exchange for fish to be stocked in waters of the state for recreational fishing;

(3) sale to private fish hatcheries or licensed aquatic farms at a price not less than the fair wholesale market value, established as the average price charged at the state's private hatcheries and contiguous states per volume rates;

(4) transfer to other government agencies, colleges, or universities for cooperative fish management and research purposes; and

(5) sale of not more than $25 fair market value to any school, museum, or commercial enterprise for curriculum implementation, educational programs, public exhibition, or cooperative displays.

History: 1987 c 318 s 3; 1992 c 566 s 18; 1993 c 226 s 16; 1996 c 410 s 42; 2005 c 146 s 43; 2008 c 307 s 12