Nebraska hearing Friday would set Open Fields bass and panfish limits

Nebraska Game and Parks commissioners are set to hear sportfishing order amendments Friday, Oct. 16, 2026, in Kearney. A commission release carried Oct. 7 says the meeting starts at 8 a.m. at the Michael and Gail Yanney Pavilion in Yanney Heritage Park, 2022 W. 11th St. The agency’s orders page lists Order C06-2, Sport Fishing, for a hearing that day. The orders cover daily bags, possession limits, and open areas. Nothing in the notice says the changes are already in effect.

If the commission approves them, Open Fields and Waters lakes and ponds would get a statewide rule that keeps the black bass 21-inch minimum and one-fish daily bag, and changes the panfish daily bag to five fish unless a sign says otherwise. The same package would add catch-and-release-only language at selected Open Fields and Waters lakes and ponds. It would also prohibit taking shovelnose sturgeon by archery in inland waters and in the Missouri River.

The Oct. 7 release also flags other agenda items that are not regulation votes: the Managed Access Program, how Open Fields and Waters pays landowners for public walk-in access, and a briefing on Interstate 80 Lakes fisheries, including how the lakes were built and recent habitat and access work. The full agenda is posted under public notices at OutdoorNebraska.gov, and draft orders are under regulations.

This is a The Gillnet news desk summary, not a reprint.

Source: KUVR — Nebraska Game & Parks Commission to meet in Kearney (Nebraska Game and Parks, Oct. 7, 2026). Hearing listing: Rules, orders and regulations.