Today Senator Carrie Ruud (R-Breezy Point) presented a minnow importation bill in the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources Policy and Legacy Finance. This legislation seeks to allow healthy certified Shiners to be imported into the state with a permit from the Commissioner.

“I’ve carried this bill for many years but wanted to bring it forward again this year because of how important this issue is for our bait industry,” said Senator Ruud. “When I first introduced this bill in 2017, the industry was in a semi-crisis and there wasn’t enough bait to meet fishing demands. Now we find ourselves in an even worse situation. Last year, we had the highest record of fishing licenses sold within the last 20 years, and the demand has pushed the bait dealers back into a frustrating situation.”

When this issue surfaced in 2017, the legislature funded a Department of Natural Resources study on the potential risks of importing bait. In that report, the DNR acknowledged Minnesota’s environment was not conducive to producing shiners, yet they stated opposition to importing minnows.

If enacted, this bill would require that all imported minnows be certified “healthy” according to the World Health Organization for Animal Health or the Fish Health Section Blue Book of the American Fisheries Society. To alleviate any potential concerns over “invasive species,” this bill would also require that minnows originate from a biosecure facility that has tested negative for invasive species in the past 12 months.

“I’ve heard from Anglers that have spent up to $19 per dozen for Shiners because of shortages, and that’s just outrageous,” continued Senator Ruud. “Our bait dealers have been frustrated with this for years, and we’ve done nothing to help them out. People are bringing minnows into the state illegally, and we want to encourage anglers to buy minnows from our reputable bait dealers. We’ve been talking about this for five years, yet the DNR isn’t doing anything to solve the problem. It’s time we figured this out.”