Gov. Ron DeSantis joined other southern state governors, Georgia's Brian Kemp and South Carolina's Henry McMaster, in a letter on Wednesday asking Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick for more state control over red snapper fishing in the South Atlantic.
"We are requesting state management of Red Snapper and other reef fish in the Atlantic," DeSantis said. "Since Florida took over Gulf Red Snapper management, our stock has flourished, and consequently, our season has grown from 3 days to 127 days. Expanding state management would be a boon to Florida's local residents and anglers on the Atlantic coast."
In their case, the governors argued that "flawed data and regulations" by the federal government have threatened the economies of the three states' coastal communities.
In addition, they contended strict guidelines by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), along with previous actions under the Biden administration to cut off public access to the fishery, have "hampered access for our recreational angling communities from exercising their god-given right to fish and support their local economies and way of life."
They also urged the Trump administration to stop the "harmful impacts of Amendment 59 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery.”
NOAA issued a one-day recreational snapper season in the South Atlantic last year, due to overfishing.
"The most recent stock assessment concluded that the population of South Atlantic red snapper is recovering, but remains overfished and that too many red snapper are being caught and discarded dead," NOAA argued.
In contrast, Gov. DeSantis declared a record 126-day Gulf Red Snapper recreational season back in April for 2025.
“Florida is the fishing capital of the world—with 4 million licensed anglers and generations of families who enjoy our waters. After setting a record last year, we’re doing it again with the longest Gulf Red Snapper season in state history, giving Floridians and visitors even more time to fish on Florida’s waterways," DeSantis said at the time. “Smart state management of Gulf waters has allowed us to offer these record-breaking opportunities to Floridians year after year.”
