Fine for No Fishing License

October 26, 2017

Question: Question: We are hunters and fisherman. My 24-year-old son has a fishing license but didn’t have it in possession, so when he met up with a game warden in the field, he got cited. Do you know how much the fine is? I thought you could lookup fine amount somehow. (Roy, Oroville)

Answer: The fine for fishing without a license includes a base fine, state and county penalty assessments, and court fees and is generally a minimum of $485 but could be much more, depending on the court. If your son shows up in court and presents a fishing license that was valid at the time of citation and as long as there were no other violations, and it was lawful to take fish where your son was cited, the court is authorized to reduce the fine per Fish and Game Code section 12002.2(b). At that point the base fine, state and county penalty assessments and court fees and is generally a minimum of $192 but could be much more, depending on the court. It is very important for your son to go ahead and show up to court and prove he had a fishing license at the time of citation to qualify for this exception. Again, the above fine amounts are minimum, and most counties vary. All fines are designated by each respective court. You should either receive a bail notice from the court or be able to determine the fine amount through the court and/or their computer system once your son’s case has been submitted.