Texas Parks And Wildlife Code Title 5, Chapter 76 - Oysters

SUBCHAPTER A PUBLIC AND PRIVATE OYSTER BEDS

• Texas Section 76.001 - Definitions
  In this chapter: (1) "Barrel of oysters" means three boxes of oysters in the shell or two gallons of shucked oysters without shells. The dimensions...
• Texas Section 76.002 - Designation Of Public And Private Beds
  (a) All natural oyster beds are public. (b) All oyster beds not designated as private are public. Acts 1975, 64th Leg., p. 1405, ch. 545,...
• Texas Section 76.003 - Beds Subject To Location
  Except as provided in Section 76.004 of this code, an oyster bed or reef, other than a natural oyster bed, is subject to location by...
• Texas Section 76.004 - Riparian Rights
  (a) The lawful occupant of a grant of land in this state has the exclusive right to use any creek, bayou, lake, or cove included...
• Texas Section 76.005 - Affidavit Of Riparian Rights
  (a) The department may require the owner of riparian rights described in Section 76.004 of this code when offering oysters for sale to make an...
• Texas Section 76.006 - Application For Location; Fee
  (a) Any citizen of the United States or any domestic corporation may file a written application with the department for a certificate authorizing the applicant...
• Texas Section 76.007 - Maximum Acreage Under Location
  (a) The department may not issue a certificate of location for a location that includes more than 100 acres of land covered by water. (b)...
• Texas Section 76.008 - Lease Or Control By Foreign Corporation Prohibited
  No corporation other than those incorporated under the laws of this state may lease or control land under a certificate of location. Acts 1975, 64th...
• Texas Section 76.009 - Examination And Survey Of Location
  (a) On receipt of an application for a location, the department shall examine the proposed location as soon as practicable by any efficient means. (b)...
• Texas Section 76.012 - Locator's Certificate
  (a) The department shall issue to each locator a certificate signed and sealed by the director. (b) The certificate must contain: (1) the date of...
• Texas Section 76.015 - Rights Of Locator
  (a) The holder of a certificate of location as provided for in Section 76.012 of this code is protected in his possession of the location...
• Texas Section 76.017 - Location Rental Fees
  (a) The holder of a certificate of location shall pay to the department $6 per acre of location per year to rent the location under...
• Texas Section 76.018 - Location Rental Term; Renewal; Auction
  (a) The term of a rental lease for a location under this subchapter is 15 years. (b) The commission shall determine renewal procedures to follow...
• Texas Section 76.019 - Procedures For Sale Or Transfer Of Location Rental
  The commission shall determine procedures for reissuance of a lease when the lease is sold or otherwise transferred. The procedures must include: (1) payment of...
• Texas Section 76.020 - Oyster Shell Recovery And Replacement Program
  (a) The commission by proclamation may establish and conduct a program to require the recovery of oyster shell or other suitable cultch material from, and...

SUBCHAPTER B OYSTER PERMITS

• Texas Section 76.021 - Oyster Shell Recovery And Replacement Program Account; Fee
  (a) The oyster shell recovery and replacement program account is a separate account in the game, fish, and water safety account. The account consists of...
• Texas Section 76.031 - Application For Permit
  (a) A person desiring to plant oysters on his own location or to take oysters from oyster reefs and public water shall apply to the...
• Texas Section 76.032 - Discretion To Issue Permit
  The department may issue or refuse to issue a permit to any applicant. Acts 1975, 64th Leg., p. 1405, ch. 545, Sec. 1, eff. Sept....
• Texas Section 76.033 - Conditions Of Permit
  (a) The department shall require the permittee to take only the oysters authorized in the permit from beds or reefs designated in the permit. (b)...
• Texas Section 76.035 - Oysters Property Of Permittee
  All oysters taken or deposited in public water by the holder of an oyster permit under the terms of a permit are the personal property...
• Texas Section 76.036 - Marking Beds
  (a) The holder of a permit shall clearly and distinctly mark by buoys or other permanent markers easily visible above the surface of the water...
• Texas Section 76.037 - Theft Of Oysters From Private Bed
  No person may fraudulently take oysters placed on private beds without the consent of the owner of the private bed or from beds or deposits...
• Texas Section 76.038 - Interference With Buoys Or Markers
  (a) No person may deface, injure, destroy, or remove a buoy, marker, or fence used to designate or enclose a private oyster bed or location...
• Texas Section 76.039 - Prohibited Sales
  (a) No person gathering oysters for planting or for depositing for market preparation on locations or on private oyster beds may sell, market, or dispose...

SUBCHAPTER C OYSTER LICENSES

• Texas Section 76.040 - Penalties
  (a) Except as otherwise provided by this section, a person who violates a provision of this subchapter or a regulation adopted by the commission under...
• Texas Section 76.101 - Oyster Licenses Required
  (a) No person may take or attempt to take oysters from the public water of this state for noncommercial use by the use of a...
• Texas Section 76.102 - License Application
  (a) An applicant for an oyster boat license, which is not a renewal of the previous year's license, issued under this subchapter must submit to...
• Texas Section 76.103 - Types Of Licenses; Period Of Validity
  A commercial oyster boat license, commercial oyster boat captain's license, sport oyster boat license, or commercial oyster fisherman's license expires on August 31 of the...
• Texas Section 76.1031 - License Expirations And Transfers
  (a) All licenses issued under the authority of Chapter 76 of this code are valid only during the yearly period for which they are issued...
• Texas Section 76.104 - License Fees
  (a) Except as provided by Subsection (e) of this section, the fee for a commercial oyster boat license is $350 or an amount set by...
• Texas Section 76.1041 - License Display And Design
  (a) A commercial oyster boat license issued under this subchapter must be prominently displayed on the bow, outside the wheelhouse, or at another point outside...
• Texas Section 76.107 - Sale Of Sport Oysters Prohibited
  No person may sell oysters taken under the authority of a sport oyster boat license. Acts 1975, 64th Leg., p. 1405, ch. 545, Sec. 1,...
• Texas Section 76.109 - Night Dredging Prohibited
  During the open season, no person may take oysters from public water during the period between sunset and sunrise. Acts 1975, 64th Leg., p. 1405,...
• Texas Section 76.112 - Oyster Size Limits
  (a) Repealed by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1256, Sec. 130, eff. Sept. 1, 1997. (b) A cargo of undersized oysters shall be determined by...
• Texas Section 76.114 - Exception To Size And Retention Limits
  (a) The commission by permit may allow the use of one or more dredges of any size and cargoes in excess of 50 barrels in...
• Texas Section 76.115 - Closing Areas
  (a) The commission may close an area to the taking of oysters when the commission finds that the area is being overworked or damaged or...
• Texas Section 76.116 - Oysters From Restricted Areas
  (a) There is no open season for taking oysters from areas closed by the Department of State Health Services. (b) The department may authorize by...
• Texas Section 76.117 - Obedience To Orders
  No person may fail or refuse to obey a lawful order of a commissioned game warden of the department issued under the authority of this...
• Texas Section 76.118 - Penalties
  (a) Except as provided in Subsections (b) and (c) of this section, a person who violates a provision of this subchapter or a regulation of...

SUBCHAPTER E OYSTER REGULATIONS

• Texas Section 76.119 - Responsibility For Violation
  (a) If a vessel licensed as a commercial oyster boat is involved in a violation of this chapter, the captain of the vessel licensed as...
• Texas Section 76.301 - Regulation Of Taking, Possession, Purchase, And Sale Of Oysters
  (a) The commission by proclamation may regulate the taking, possession, purchase, and sale of oysters. A proclamation issued under this section must contain findings by...
• Texas Section 76.302 - Research Program
  (a) The department shall conduct continuous research and study of: (1) the supply, economic value, environment, and reproductive characteristics of the various economically important species...
• Texas Section 76.303 - Sale Of Raw Oysters For Consumption Within This State
  Any federal regulations that prohibit the interstate transport and sale of oysters that have not been postharvest treated do not apply to oysters harvested from...
• Texas Section 76.401 - Oyster License Moratorium Program
  The department shall implement an oyster license moratorium program to promote efficiency and economic stability in the oyster industry. Added by Acts 2005, 79th Leg.,...
• Texas Section 76.402 - Issuance And Renewal Of Commercial Oyster Boat Licenses
  (a) After August 31, 2005, the department may not issue or renew a commercial oyster boat license unless the person seeking to obtain or renew...
• Texas Section 76.403 - Oyster License Moratorium Review Board
  (a) The holders of commercial oyster boat licenses shall elect an oyster license moratorium review board of seven members. (b) A member of the review...
• Texas Section 76.404 - Program Administration; Rules
  (a) The director shall establish administrative procedures to carry out the requirements of this subchapter. (b) The commission shall adopt any rules necessary for the...

Last modified: September 28, 2016