Flint Riverkeeper, Victory

 On Tuesday, Flint Riverkeeper and our allies in the fight for fishing rights on Georgia Rivers received word Governor Kemp had signed SB 115 into law, cementing the right to fish in navigable waterways. For almost 12 months the Flint River has been the epicenter of this fight. Property owners alongside Yellow Jacket Shoals have long sought to restrict fishing by the public on this section of the Flint. “No Fishing” signs have periodically come and gone along the banks and islands in the shoals. 

When “Fishing by Permit Only” signage began to appear at public canoe launches along the river last spring, the river community reached its boiling point and began asking for protection. This was quickly followed by the Colonel of GA DNR’s Law Enforcement Section stating the Upper Flint was considered navigable and therefore fishing could not be restricted by landowners. The landowners responded with a lawsuit against the state, claiming “right of soil” based upon a 1988 GA Supreme Court case supporting their fishing rights claim and linked to an ostensible state land grant of the river bottom. You can read the 1988 court case HERE and the landowners’ suit HERE. 

This area of Georgia’s law is vague, murky, cloudy, and open for manipulation. It has seen little update from the English Common Law adopted by Georgia at the time of statehood and modified at times such as in the 1863 property code. It appeared that the state had ample and excellent arguments to defend the case and defend angler rights. You can read the state’s response to the landowner complaint HERE, and the state’s motion to dismiss the case HERE. But, just days before the scheduled court hearing GA DNR, who last summer sided with the Georgia’s anglers and made excellent initial response to the case, issued a surprise settlement in the lawsuit in favor of the landowners. You can read the case settlement order HERE.

Acting quickly on the last day of the legislative session the Governor’s office, the Georgia Wildlife Federation, the Georgia Hunting and Fishing Federation, the Southern Environmental Law Center, Altamaha Riverkeeper, and Flint Riverkeeper stripped a Senate bill of its original language with the permission of the author, and replaced it with language that codifies anglers’ rights on navigable waterways, even when a river bottom is granted by the government. You can read the text of the bill HERE.

Then, on the 2nd of May, Governor Kemp signed the bill. You can read his signing statement HERE. This signing makes law out of the language in SB 115. 

We are extremely grateful to the Governor, his staff, Representative David Knight, Senator Josh McLaurin, House Rules Chairman Richard Smith, Speaker of the House Jon Burns, Lt. Governor Burt Jones, Mike Worley of the Georgia Wildflife Federation, William Woodall, lobbyist for the Georgia Hunting and Fishing Federation and the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), April Lipscomb of the SELC, and Fletcher Sams of Altamaha Riverkeeper for the roles they played. Gordon Rogers, Flint Riverkeeper, said, “I’ve never seen a finer team produce such an excellent product in such a short period of time. True professionals, they are, each and every one of them a friend of Georgia anglers and other river users.”

What happens now? ….

There have been many concerns expressed by some about SB 115 and the new law . . . . On the same day that the Georiga General Assembly passed SB 115 the House also passed HR 519 to establish a study committee on the topic of fishing rights. You can read the text of the bill establishing the committee HERE. There are quite a few topics that the study committee could take up. One of the most interesting and important will be which of Georgia’s fresh waters are navigable and which or not, and/or methods of determination. Once Speaker Burns constitutes the committee and they establish an agenda and schedule we will keep you updated, Several things are certain: SB 115 does NOT apply to Georgia’s non-navigable waters, a concern of many who opposed the bill, and it does not redefine navigable/non-navigable. Neither does it have any bearing on state or federal pollution or wetlands-fill laws, another concern raised the day it was passed and during the time prior to the Governor signing the bill. The bill bears on public rights on Georgia’s navigable rivers, only.

We celebrate this great victory with our conservation partners and all Georgia anglers, and we repeat our gratitude to Governor Kemp and the many others who made it happen.