More anglers got out of the house and out on the water in 2009 as fishing license sales rose by 4.7 percent in states that participate in the fishing license sales index, released by the Recreational Boating & Fishing Foundation (RBFF) and the American Sportfishing Association (ASA). Florida, Minnesota, North Carolina and Texas, four of the 12 participating states, are among the Top 10 states in terms of the impact anglers have on the nation's economy.
The 12-state index represents recreational fishing in the United States. Eight of those states recorded higher license sales increases from January through December of 2009 over the previous year, according to Southwick Associates, a research firm that monitored the license sales information.
"Although the RBFF/ASA Fishing License Sales Index is a strong indicator of fishing license sales, it isn't an exact measure of all fishing license sales nationally. However, should the 4.7 percent rise hold true nationwide, it would represent one of the largest percentage increases in fishing license sales in over 30 years," said ASA president and CEO Mike Nussman.
Said RBFF president and CEO Frank Peterson: "We feel confident that our national Take Me Fishing direct mail marketing program and other efforts designed to reach lapsed anglers contributed to the 2009 rise in fishing license sales."
According to Southwick Associates, fishing license sales increased at a faster rate in the first quarter of 2009 compared to the second quarter. Increases of 20 percent or more were common in the first quarter. However, a larger volume of sales occurred in the second quarter – the peak period for license sales nationally – and had the greatest effect on 2009 sales.
In general, more fishing licenses are sold during the second quarter (April, May, June) than any other time of the year. Although the growth rate for license sales eased slightly in the latter half of the year, sales were still up for a majority of states in the index.
State natural resource agencies reporting license sales numbers in 2009 were Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Texas and Utah. They were selected on their ability to provide consistent license sales data to illustrate both a national and regional perspective. As more states expand their data reporting capacity, the number of reporting states will increase. For participating coastal states, adjustments were made to account for new federal saltwater license requirements that went into effect in 2009.
"The typical angler spends $176 a year on just fishing tackle alone and contributes over $40 annually to conservation via license dollars and excise taxes," said Nussman. "When the license sales index moves by just a tenth of a point, 40,000 anglers have entered or quit sportfishing. Even a small uptick in the index represents big changes in recreational fishing participation."
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