At its January 2002 meeting, the Council identified individuals from its membership to join DEC staff on a Council-DEC work group to assess and make recommendations on new commercial license eligibility requirements and related issues. The law that contains these requirements sunsets at the end of 2003 and the Council and DEC need to prepare and make recommendations for their revision/renewal to the Legislature by fall 2002. Councilors involved in this effort include Messrs. Davi, McBride, Yaxa, Jordan, and Wise.

Mr. Wise said that this group would also begin its work before the next Council meeting. He stated that it would be important for the work group to reach out to include in a substantive way other individuals outside DEC and the Council. This was necessary if the recommendations of the work group are to reflect a broad consensus among the commercial fishermen of New York and other interested parties. Mr. Colvin recalled the efforts of Mr. Arnold Leo in earlier Council-DEC efforts of this kind and suggested he be contacted regarding the present effort. Councilor Freierman offered to have supplemental person identify through the Long Island Commercial Fishermens Association.