New York State Commercial Tautog Tagging Information
All commercially harvested tautog must be tagged in order to be sold or offered for sale. Tautog harvesters must comply with all the tagging requirements as specified in NYCRR subdivision 40.1(o)(4). These requirements are in addition to the commercial seasons, size limits, and trip limits for commercially harvesting tautog in New York State.
The 2021 tagging season will run April 16, 2021 through January 25, 2022.
Tag Program Basics:
Tag applicator
Tag Reporting and Accounting Requirements:
Additional Program Details:
Tag applicators can be purchased from the National Band and Tag Company (leaves DEC website) please use National Band & Tag Company's Applicator Form (PDF) to order applicators.
Live Storage: If a license holder wants to possess commercially harvested tautog in storage in the waters of the marine and coastal district over the commercial possession limit, they must complete and submit trip reports for all live stored tautog to the department within 24 hours of landing. Copies of these reports must be retained for inspection onboard their vessel during the tagging season.
Tag Usage and Possession: It is unlawful to reuse or alter any tautog tag. Tags are non-transferable, and it is unlawful for any person to possess tautog tags issued to another license holder.
All commercially harvested tautog must be tagged in order to be sold or offered for sale. Tautog harvesters must comply with all the tagging requirements as specified in NYCRR subdivision 40.1(o)(4). These requirements are in addition to the commercial seasons, size limits, and trip limits for commercially harvesting tautog in New York State.
The 2021 tagging season will run April 16, 2021 through January 25, 2022.
Tag Program Basics:
- Maximum Order Size: This is the maximum amount of tags a license holder can request in a single tag order. This number is calculated every year and is the highest historical number of tautog reported landed in one calendar year by the license holder during any of the previous 3 calendar years. If a license holder has no history of landing tautog they are limited to 50 tags per week.
- Minimum Order Size: 25 tags
- Additional Orders: Once the license holder has reported using 80% of the tags from their previous order, they can submit another order request. If a license holder is accounting for all their tag usage there is no limit on the number of orders a license holder can make within any given tagging season.
- Tag Order Requests: The Commercial Tautog Tagging Order Form Request (PDF) can be submitted by mail, email, fax or in person. These requests can take up to 5 business days to process.
- Once the Tags are Received: License holders must complete and return an Acknowledgement Form once they receive their tags. License holders will be responsible for lost, stolen, duplicate tags, and serial numbers not assigned to them.
- Applying Tags: Tags must be applied to commercially harvested tautog prior to any commercially harvested species from that trip being offloaded or transferred to shore, to another vessel, to an in-water storage unit, or to any pier, wharf, dock, or similar structure. Tags should be applied to one of the tautog's gill plates with the tag information visible on the outside of the fish.
Tag applicator
Tag Reporting and Accounting Requirements:
- License holders must submit complete and accurate tag and vessel trip reports. Final reports for the tagging season are due by February 15.
- Reporting Tag Usage:In addition to the reporting requirements specified in NYCRR subdivision 40.1(c), license holders must report both pounds, count, and the tag serial numbers used for all commercially harvested tautog landed in New York State. Each fisherman is responsible for reporting their own tag use with their own signature. If a license holder is on a trip with multiple tag holders, each fisherman must submit their own trip report with their own catch and tag usage (trip limit is still 25 total tautog for the vessel). Please note the additional requirements for the reporting methods listed below:
- eTRIPS: Tag serial numbers used for each trip along with the eVTR number from the trip must be emailed to [email protected].
- Federal Vessel Trip Reports (VTR): Reports can be submitted by sending DEC the blue copy of the federal VTR or by sending a non-numbered NYS VTR with the federal VTR number and the trip information filled out.
- Broken, Damaged, or Unused Tags: All tags that are broken, damaged, or unused must be returned to the Department with a Commercial Tautog Tag Return Form (PDF) by February 15, 2022. Any tags that have been issued to a license holder that are not reported used, or returned to the department, will be considered "lost" and the license holder will not receive accounting credit for those tags.
- Lost or Stolen Tags: Any license holder who loses tags must report the loss to the department on their fishing reports, or through a Commercial Tautog Tag Loss Form (PDF) form provided by the department, within 24 hours.
- Excessive tag loss: If a license holder is unable to account for more than 20% of the tags issued to them they may submit and excessive loss application for the opportunity to receive one additional tag order during that tagging season.
Additional Program Details:
Tag applicators can be purchased from the National Band and Tag Company (leaves DEC website) please use National Band & Tag Company's Applicator Form (PDF) to order applicators.
Live Storage: If a license holder wants to possess commercially harvested tautog in storage in the waters of the marine and coastal district over the commercial possession limit, they must complete and submit trip reports for all live stored tautog to the department within 24 hours of landing. Copies of these reports must be retained for inspection onboard their vessel during the tagging season.
Tag Usage and Possession: It is unlawful to reuse or alter any tautog tag. Tags are non-transferable, and it is unlawful for any person to possess tautog tags issued to another license holder.
- For questions about reporting, order requests, or to get more forms contact the Data Management Unit at
(631) 444-0857.
- For questions about the tagging program guidelines contact the Marine Finfish Unit at
(631) 444-0469.
