N.Y. ENV Law § 11-1315

§ 11-1315. Taking and sale of bait fish.\n 1. a. Except as provided in subdivision 2, no person, without first\nobtaining the appropriate license from the department, shall take for\nsale as bait, nor sell as bait the following fish: minnows (family\nCyprinidae), except carp or goldfish; top minnows or killifish (family\nCyprinodontidae); mudminnows (family Umbridae); darters (family\nEstheostomidae); sticklebacks (genus Eucalia); tadpole stone cats\n(genera Noturus and Schilbeodes); smelt or ice fish (Osmerus mordax);\nalewives, saw bellies or blueback herring (family Clupeidae); suckers\n(family Catostomidae).\n b. Fish taken pursuant to such license shall be used only for bait in\nhook and line fishing. All carp, goldfish, and lamprey larvae (family\nPetromyzonidae) taken in nets operated pursuant to such license shall be\ndestroyed immediately.\n 2. No license under this section is required to take for sale as bait\nor to sell as bait any marine species of fish taken in the marine\ndistrict. A minor under the age of sixteen years may, without a license,\nsell as bait such of the fish listed in subdivision 1 as he has lawfully\ntaken by angling.\n 3. Bait fish named in subdivision 1, when otherwise permitted by law,\nmay be taken for use or sale as bait by:\n a. angling,\n b. nets when permitted by subdivisions 4 and 5 of this section, or\n c. stunning in the case of tadpole stone cats. "Stunning" means\ntapping a stone with implement or other stone.\n 4. a. Fish named in subdivision 1, taken for use as bait for personal\nuse and not for sale, may be taken:\n (1) in waters not inhabited by trout, by means of a seine or scap net\nnot larger than thirty-six square feet, and\n (2) in any waters of the state by means of a glass, plastic or wire\ntrap not more than twenty inches in length, having no wings or leaders\nand having an entrance not larger than one inch in diameter, and such\ntrap shall bear legibly at all times when in the water the name and\naddress of the operator.\n b. In Keuka Lake, Canandaigua Lake, Cayuga Lake, Seneca Lake, Canadice\nLake and Hemlock Lake, alewives or sawbellies taken for such purpose may\nalso be taken by gill nets measuring not more than twenty-five feet in\nlength, having a mesh not larger than one inch.\n c. Nets for taking bait fish shall not be hauled after sunset or\nbefore sunrise, except as permitted by the department.\n d. Fish named in subdivision 1 may be taken for personal use or sale\nas bait under license from the department in the waters of the Hudson\nriver by means of cast nets not exceeding ten feet in diameter.\n 5. Fish named in subdivision 1, taken for sale as bait under license\nfrom the department, may be taken by the types of nets specified in such\nlicense. In issuing such licenses the department may permit the use of\nnets of metallic or plastic mesh, notwithstanding the definition of\n"net" as contained in section 11-0103 of the Fish and Wildlife Law.\n 6. a. Carp, goldfish, and lamprey larvae (family Petromyzonidae) shall\nnot be used as bait or sold for bait.\n b. No person shall take smelt for bait from Upper and Lower Saranac\nlakes or Lake Champlain, except by angling.\n c. Nets and traps for the taking of bait fish shall not be placed or\noperated within one hundred feet of any dock, pier, or boat landing on\nthe St. Lawrence River without the consent of the owner.\n 7. The license provided for in subdivision 1 shall be issued only to\nresidents of this state and to residents of a state in which residents\nof this state may be licensed, or are permitted without license, to take\nsuch fish for sale as bait.\n 8. This section does not supersede any provision of section 13-0343\nrestricting the use of nets in certain waters of the marine district or\nsubdivision 2 of section 11-1307.\n