Sec. 66.111. SALE AND PURCHASE OF CERTAIN FISH. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) no person may buy or offer to buy, sell or offer to sell, possess for the purpose of sale, transport or ship for the purpose of sale, or barter or exchange:

(1) freshwater crappie, bass of the genus Micropterus, striped bass and hybrids of striped bass, white bass, walleye, sauger, northern pike, muskellunge, trout of the family Salmonidae, flathead catfish; or

(2) any other fish taken from the public fresh water of this state.

(b) Subsection (a) of this section does not apply to:

(1) a fish, other than a bass of the genus Micropterus, reared in private water under a fish farmer's license;

(2) a fish possessed legally outside this state and transported into this state;

(3) bass of the genus Micropterus reared in private water under a fish farmer's license and marketed for the purpose of stocking the water of this state;

(4) nongame fish regulated under Chapter 67 of this code;

(5) channel catfish of more than 14 inches in length or blue catfish of more than 14 inches in length taken from the public fresh water of Angelina, Bowie, Camp, Cass, Chambers, Franklin, Freestone, Gregg, Hardin, Harris, Harrison, Jasper, Jefferson, Lamar, Leon, Liberty, Madison, Marion, Montgomery, Morris, Nacogdoches, Navarro, Newton, Orange, Panola, Polk, Red River, Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, Shelby, Titus, Trinity, Tyler, Upshur, or Walker County, the public fresh water of the Neches or Trinity River in Houston County, the public fresh water of the Colorado River in Bastrop, Colorado, Fayette, Matagorda, or Wharton County, or the public fresh water of Falcon Lake in Starr or Zapata County.

(c) The fish shipped into this state must have a bill of lading with the shipment stating the number, pounds, and species of fish in the shipment, their place of origin, the name and address of the shipper, the name and address of the receiver, and the date of the shipment. The receiver of the shipment must keep the bills of lading on file for not less than one year from the date of shipment.

Acts 1975, 64th Leg., p. 1405, ch. 545, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1975. Amended by Acts 1975, 64th Leg., p. 1204, ch. 456, Sec. 2, eff. Sept. 1, 1975; Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 908, ch. 416, Sec. 1, eff. Aug. 27, 1979; Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 267, art. 3, Sec. 110, art. 4, Sec. 3, eff. Sept. 1, 1985; Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 827, Sec. 7, eff. Aug. 26, 1985; Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 608, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1987; Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 586, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1991; Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 409, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995; Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 912, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.

Amended by:

Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 760 (H.B. 1181), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2019.