Legislation to ensure public access to fishing streams in Alaska, or House Bill 144, was sent to the Governor for his signature yesterday.

The legislation was brought to the House by Representative Les Gar, Democrat from Anchorage last year. It passed the House on a vote of 38 yeas. In February, the Senate voted for the bill as well with a vote of 20 yeas to 0 Nays.

“I want to thank the Speaker for sending this bill to the governor and the legislative body for their support in protecting Alaskans’ access to fishing streams for this and the next generation. In other states you have to pay access fees to fish a stream, or are simply blocked from this public resource. We don’t ever want that to happen in Alaska,” said gara.

The legislation will inexpensively promote access to important fishing streams by encouraging voluntary land trades or purchases with willing landowners so Alaskans have public easements to travel to and along fishing streams that would otherwise be lost over time. Prized roadside streams including Montana Creek, the Anchor River and the Salcha River, which Alaskans fish for trout and grayling, have between one and three miles of land that, when developed, will no longer allow for public access so fishermen can fish up and down those streams. Other streams face the same potential fate.

Gara said, “By working cooperatively with interested landowners now, we can make sure Alaskans have access to our great fishing waters for generations to come.”

“As we have seen recently in several western states, stream access cannot be taken for granted. Annual reporting by DNR on Alaska stream access will go a long way towards assuring stream access for future generations,” said Mark Huber, President of the Alaska Fly Fishers Association.

House Bill 144 is supported by the Alaska Fly Fishers Association, the Alaska Sportfishing Association, the Alaska Outdoor Council, and the Kenai River Sportfish Association.