Game Fish & Parks has issued the form landowners can file to petition for the closure of “Section 8” nonmeandered lakes, the recently formed bodies of water that the Legislature in special session last month deemed open for fishing and other recreation.
The form is one easy page. Along with contact info, landowners simply check the reason or reasons they want to restrict access to the portion of the lake that lies over their land: Privacy, Safety, or Financial Interests. Landowners need to specify the periods of the year they want to close the water and how long they want that closure in effect. Landowners must include a map of the water they want to close and proof of ownership of the land beneath that water. Petitioners can file the form, map, and deed online or by mailed hard copy.
The GF&P Commission still needs to adopt the final rules for this petition process, so they won’t consider and hold public hearings on petitions until at September at the earliest, so all Section 8 lakes will remain totally open for fishing through summer. Then come winter, the Legislature could throw the whole petition process and any closures out, since the special session produced legislation tagged with a sunset clause of June 30, 2018, requiring the Legislature to take the issue up again during its regular 2018 Session.
If the bank holds the deed, is the bank the owner? Or does a mortgaged property’s owner have rights of restriction? How about corporate ownership by a multi-national? How about ownership by a religious institution or a township? How about a property with liens?
If they have a special session to do nothing and nothing that will last, do we wonder why conservatives think government is not a functional part of society?
Old ‘ol, bad ‘ol SD GFP – doing all they can to destroy the North American model of game and fish management and public access to public waters, fishes, and waterfowl.
Porter has an exception point. Only the titled owner of record should hold the legal fictional right of restriction. I had ‘permission’ from the landowner to be then run off by the renter. I had ‘permission’ from the renter to then be run off by the landowner. None of which are readily apparent or easy to discover – especially since most rental agreements are verbal. SD GFP, the legislature, and farm lobby created as obfuscated system as possible to discourage sportsmen from their well-intentioned compliance with the medieval Lords of the Land system that we reverted to for public access to allegedly the public resource of the wildlife and fisheries. Frankly, it’s my hope that license sales and other support continues its downward trend as the ‘game agencies’ reap what they sewed.
I say, to the King belong the beasts, and the King’s minions may slaughter them as they see fit.
While some people pay big bucks for waterside property – regardless of the fact the public is recreationally using the water – instead, South Dakotan’s complain as if it’s a burden – and then they make it the issue of the year.
…whining like complete and total babies.
Suck it up, property owners, you’ve got great property and people want to have fun on the seasonal water pockets.