Section 850.40  Limited Entry

a)         The Department shall issue 5 commercial licenses for taking yellow perch and bloater chub. Each licensee may fish only with the fishing vessel designated on each license.  Five licenses shall be issued for the fishing year that began April 1, 1992, and the Department shall issue licenses from time to time so that 5 valid licenses are always outstanding at any one time.

b)         Allocation of commercial fishing licenses was determined by a public drawing conducted June 27, 1975.  The ranking order in this drawing has been used for expanding numbers of fishing licenses subsequently.  Each commercial fishing license for the 1992 fishing year and thereafter shall be issued as follows:

1)         All valid licenses held by individuals or corporations as of April 1, 1992 shall remain in full force and effect.

2)         Thereafter, licenses shall be issued as necessary to reach and maintain a total of 5 outstanding licenses as follows:

A)        First, to any individual or corporation as described in Section 850.50 who was licensed through a harvest contract pursuant to the public lottery drawing conducted by the Director on June 27, 1975, but such individual or corporation did not hold a valid commercial license for whatever reason on April 1, 1992; provided, that the contractor shall have served any stated period of any license suspension or revocation established by an order of the Director. Among those individuals or corporations that meet the criteria under this item, priority shall be given to the individual or corporation that has been without a valid commercial license for the longest period of time [515 ILCS 5/15-32].

B)        Second, to any other individual or corporation entrant who had his specific name drawn in the public lottery drawing conducted by the Director on June 27, 1975 but was not licensed as a harvest contractor at that time or thereafter.

C)        Third, if there are insufficient license applicants available at the beginning of any fishing year who meet the requirements for licensure under this Section for the Director to issue 5 licenses, the Director shall order and conduct a new public lottery drawing before the commencement of the fishing year and shall draw his applicant list from a roster of qualified operators. Should an eligible candidate whose name is reached on the list for license elect not to receive a license or in the event a licensee's license is revoked for cause, then that eligible applicant or licensee shall be deleted from the eligible list then in effect.

(Source:  Amended at 19 Ill. Reg. 10568, effective July 1, 1995)