Photo Courtesy of Iowa DNR

With summer approaching, people are eager to get out to the lakes to fish, and a representative from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources stresses the importance of having a valid fishing license.

Iowa DNR Conservation Officer Dustin Eighmy notes that fishing licenses in the state renew each year on January 10th. He suggests people double check their fishing license to confirm the validity. Eighmy emphasizes the repercussions of not having a valid license are similar to being stopped on the road.

“It’s kind of like driving a car, if you’re speeding you might receive a citation, which is just a simple misdemeanor citation that can be paid or you can obviously go to court and contest it and fight it.”

Eighmy adds that there are size and bag limits that contribute to possible citations as well without a valid fishing license. He illustrates that the DNR offers several licenses ranging from seven days up to a year.