NEWS RELEASE

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

October 19, 2000

CONTACT: Mark Trainor (850) 488-8842

FWC URGES BASS CLUBS TO SEND APPLICATIONS 90 DAYS PRIOR TO EVENT

Bass clubs throughout Florida wanting special exemptions to conduct tournaments on state waters are reminded to get applications to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) regional offices 90 days prior to a planned event.

FWC Biologist Tom Champeau, who is based at the Lakeland regional office, said about 40 percent of the applications reaching him are not allowing enough time to process requests.

When granted special tournament exemptions, bass clubs are issued a form to fill out at the event's conclusion, requesting data on the number of participating anglers, the number of fish caught, and the weight of the largest fish entered.

"About 20 percent of the clubs are not returning these forms, which supply us with useful, timely and informative data," Champeau said.

Information about FWC's largemouth bass tournament permits and applications can be obtained at www.state.fl.us/fwc/fishing/permits/index.html.