Striped Bass Fishery Managers Maintain Status Quo for 2025

Striped Bass, photo/Tom Richardson

At its meeting last Tuesday (Dec. 16), the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s (ASMFC) Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board voted to delay any action that would change current regulations to the East Coast striper fishery. The Board will instead work on an addendum to the Striped Bass Management Plan that would adjust regulations, if needed, for the 2026 season.

Striped bass are currently overfished under the current management plan, which has a 2029 deadline to rebuild the fishery.

At the meeting, representatives from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and Maine pushed to reduce striper removals by 9% via new regulations. However, that motion was defeated.