STUMPY POINT, N.C. — A bill in the North Carolina General Assembly, originally meant to restore flounder and red snapper seasons, could now target the shrimping industry. The Outer Banks community feels it could be detrimental to the fishing industry here.
“A lot of my shrimp are caught inside the half mile in the ocean. I mean, that would just be total devastation for us," said Robby Midgett, a longtime fisherman based out of Stumpy Point.
Robby Midgett’s entire life has consisted of being a fisherman based out of Stumpy Point, and his family history in the area goes back more than 200 years.
“My whole life has been selling fish, shrimp, and crabs here," said Midgett.
In the General Assembly, a bill originally meant to help restore flounder and red snapper seasons had an amendment introduced for shrimp trawling. Titled specifically “prohibiting shrimp trawling in all inshore fishing waters and within one half mile of the shoreline,” the amendment has been met with immediate opposition from Dare County community members and elected officials.
“Seventy-five percent of our shrimp here in North Carolina is caught in our sounds and just shortly offshore. That cuts out 75% of the industry in just one fell swoop of a bill, which is astronomically devastating to our fishing industry," said Steve House, vice chairman of the Dare County Board of Commissioners.
"It's very infuriating to see that. The average person is not going to understand the devastating effects this is going to have on small coastal communities that rely on the shrimping industry and the small mom-and-pop restaurants that rely on the shrimping industry in North Carolina to keep them afloat," said Mary Ellon Ballance, Dare County commissioner.
"This bill comes from progress, cooperation, and long-overdue relief from closures derived from flawed science and outdated rules that hurt both industries. Throwing in this trawling ban at the 23rd hour undermines the intent and spirit of the bill. It reaches the same old sleazy backroom politics and special interests that caused North Carolina endless fish wars. These taxes do nothing but cause division, disgust, and disdain, helping no one and hurting far too many. We have the best seafood industry in the world, and instead of propping it up, we're destroying it," said Bobby Hanig, North Carolina state senator, during the Senate Agriculture, Energy, and Environment meeting in Raleigh on Tuesday morning.
Those in support of the amendment feel it aligns North Carolina with Virginia and South Carolina’s current standards and will protect North Carolina habitats.
“It’s not the shrimping; it’s the damage that we do to the sounds and to the bottom. It hurts me to know that some people are going to be negatively affected by this, but the crabbers and the oyster men and the other fishermen are going to benefit positively because for every action, there's a reaction. The shrimpers can go outside; they get more money for their shrimp. On a profound basis, the shrimp are of a better quality because they're larger, and it is absolutely common sense. This is just an archaic thing that we have allowed to happen. It is going to take a lot of fortitude for people to stand up and say, ‘I really don't like it, but it is the best policy.’ At the end of the day, our challenge here is good policy, not friendships and friends at home," said Bill Rabon, North Carolina state senator, during the Senate Agriculture, Energy, and Environment meeting in Raleigh on Tuesday morning.
House told News 3 that the bill passed two committees on Tuesday and is heading for a full vote on the State Senate floor on Wednesday. It would then be sent back to the House before potentially being sent to the governor.
But for fishermen like Robby, they feel they can’t catch a break with continued regulations on their way of life.
“That's what I do from July until January. Every year is shrimp. It supports my son; my wife, my son is 10th generation," said Midgett.
The amendment in the bill can be found in full below:
Any person in charge of a commercial fishing operation conducted in violation of the following provisions of this Subchapter or the following rules of the Marine Fisheries Commission; and any person in charge of any vessel used in violation of the following provisions of the Subchapter or the following rules shall be guilty of a Class A1 misdemeanor. The violations of the statute or the rules for which the penalty is mandatory are:
(1) Taking or attempting to take, possess, sell, or offer for sale any oysters, mussels, or clams taken from areas closed by statute, rule, or proclamation because of suspected pollution.
(2) Taking or attempting to take or have in possession aboard a vessel shrimp taken by the use of a trawl net in areas not opened to shrimping, pulled by a vessel not showing lights required by G.S. 75A-6 after sunset and before sunrise.
(3) Using a trawl net in any coastal fishing waters closed by proclamation or rule to trawl nets.
(3a) Taking or attempting to take shrimp using a trawl net in any coastal fishing waters other than areas of the Atlantic Ocean located more than one-half mile from the shoreline.
(4) Violating the provisions of a special permit or gear license issued by the Department.
(5) Using or attempting to use any trawl net, long haul seine, swipe net, mechanical methods for oyster or clam harvest, or dredge in designated primary nursery areas.
The Marine Fisheries Commission shall adopt temporary and permanent rules to implement this section.
This section becomes effective December 1, 2025, and applies to seven offenses committed on or after that date.
