WASHINGTON – The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has placed on hold a planned federal registry for recreational saltwater fishermen.

Instead of starting on Jan. 1, the requirement will take effect at the beginning of 2010, the federal agency said. NOAA cited the flood of public comments it has received on the agency Web site.

The national registry “is intended to serve as a more efficient and effective route for collecting recreational fishing data,” according to the R.I. Department of Environmental Management (DEM) Bureau of Natural Resources.

Federal registration would be good for one year, and would allow anglers to fish anywhere in U.S. waters. The first year will be free, but thereafter, a fee of about $15 to $25 per year is planned, NOAA said.

As currently drafted, the requirement will affect “anyone who fishes in federal waters (3 to 200 miles from shore), as well as anyone who fishes anywhere for ‘anadromous’ species such as striped bass,” the DEM said in a report about progress by the R.I. Marine Recreational Fishing License / Registry Study Group. And stripers are one of the most common sports fish in the Ocean State, “found all along our shores, particularly in rocky areas and in estuaries, salt ponds and rivers,” according to the R.I. Tourism Division.

Anglers 15 or younger would not be required to register, nor would people who fish only from licensed party or charter boats.

The enabling legislation – the Magnuson-Stevens Reauthorization Act of 2006 – also exempts saltwater anglers who already are registered in their own state. Rhode Island has no such registry, but has been considering one “as a potential alternative, after evaluating the implications of the new federal requirements,” the agency added.

The study group, launched in October, includes 15 representatives for local recreational fishing interests and organizations and is co-chaired by representatives of the DEM and the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association (RISAA).

Its first public meeting, on Nov. 10, featured a presentation about the federal requirements by Gordon Colvin, team leader for the National Saltwater Angler Registry Team at the National Marine Fisheries Service. (Colvin’s PowerPoint presentation, and additional information, have been posted by the study group on the DEM site.) The group also met Dec. 19, at the Coastal Institute facility in Narragansett, on the University of Rhode Island’s Bay Campus.

To learn more about the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and its programs, including the planned National Saltwater Angler Registry, visit www.noaa.gov.

Information about fishing, and other recreational activities, is available from the R.I. Tourism Division at www.VisitRhodeIsland.com.