New Jersey’s black sea bass season will reopen on May 17 and runs through June 19 with a 10 fish bag limit and size limit of 12-1/2 inches. The fishery will reopen again with one-fish bag limit from July 1 through August 31 with the same 12-1/2-inch size limit. After a brief September closure as required by mandatory cutbacks on the 2023 fishery, New Jersey’s black sea bass fishery reopens again on October 1 with a 10-fish bag limit through October 31, and then a 15-fish bag limit from November 1 through December 31 with the same 12-1/2-inch size limit.
As per requirements passed down from NOAA Fisheries through both the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (MAFMC) and Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), all states along the Atlantic Coast were required to keep their same fluke regulations in place again for 2023, while also coming up with regulations to meet a 10% cutback in black sea bass and scup (porgy). To meet the 10% cutback in porgy harvest in New Jersey, the season was essentially halved to an August 1 through December 31 season, with a 30 fish bag limit and a 10-inch size limit.
Find more regulations on a state-by-state basis at TheFisherman.com.
