932 



become obsolete, Mainland and Virginia each 

 recosaiizin;: that MaryUxnd is the owner of the 

 Potomac River bed and waters to tlie low water 

 mark of the southern shore Uiereof , as laid out on 

 tlie Mathews-Nelson suivey ot 1927. and that 

 VirfdnJa is the owner of the Potomac River bed 

 and waters southerly from said low water mark 

 as laid out. and that the citizens of Virginia 

 have certain riparian rii;hts along the southern 

 shore of the river, as sliown on said Mathews- 

 Nelson survey, and. in common with the citizens 

 of Man'land. the right of fishing in s;ud river. 

 Marj'land and Virginia have agreed that the 

 necessary conservation and improvement of the 

 tidewater portion of the Potomac fishery 

 resources can be best achieved by a Commission 

 comprised of representatives of both Maryland 

 and Virginia, charged with the establishment and 

 maintenance of a program to conserve and 

 improve these resources, and , 



"Whereas, at a meeting of the conrunissioners 

 appointed by the Governors of the State of Mary- 

 land and the Commonwealth of Virginia, to-wit: 

 Carlyle Barton. M. William Adelson. St€phen B. 

 Collins. Edward S. Delaplaine and William J. 

 McWilliams, Esquires, on the part of the State of 

 Maryland, and Mills E. Godwin, Jr.. Howard H. 

 AdaiT^. Robert Y. Button. John Warren Cooke 

 and Edward E. Lane, Esquires, on the part of the 

 Commonwealth of Virginia, at Mount Vernon, 

 Virginia, on the twentieth of December, in the 

 year one thousand nme hundred and fifty-eight, 

 the following Potomac River Compact of 1958 

 between the Commonwealth of Virginia and the 

 State of Maryland was mutually agreed to by the 

 said Commissioners: Now. therefore, be it 

 "Resolved by the Commissioners appointed by 

 the Governors of the State of Maryland and the 

 Commonwealth of Virginia, meeting in joint 

 session, that they do unanimously recommend to 

 the said respective Governors that there be a new 

 compact, to be designated as the "Potomac River 

 Compact of 1958". and" that the said new compact 

 be referred as promptly as possible to the Legisla- 

 tures of the State of Maryland and the Common- 

 wealth of Virginia for appropriate action, and to 

 the end and after ratification and adoption by said 

 Legislatures the same be submitted to the Congress 

 of the United States for approval. 



"Article HI 



"COMMISSION POWERS AND DUTIES 



"Section 1. Oyster Bars. — The Commission .shall 

 make a survey of the oyster bars within its jurisdic- 

 tion and may rcseed and replant said oyster bars 

 as may from time to time be necessary. 



"Sec 2. Pisii and Seafood. — The Conunlsslon may 

 by regulation prescribe the type, size and descrip- 

 tion of all species of Jinfish. crabs, oysters, clams 

 and other shellfish which may be taken or caught, 

 within its Jurisdiction, the places where they may 

 be taken or caught, and the manner of taking or 

 catching. 



"Sec 3. Research. — The Commission shall main- 

 tain a program of research relating to the conserva- 

 tion and repletion of the fishery resources within 

 Its Jurisdiction, and to that end may cooperate and 

 contract with scientists and public and private 

 ^scientific agencies engaged in similar work, and 



moiy purchase, construct, lease, borrow or other- 

 wise acquire by any lawful method such property, 

 structures, facilities, or equipment as it deems 

 necessary. 



"Sec. 4. Licenses. — (a) The Commission shall 

 Issue such licenses as It may prescribe which shall 

 thereupon be required for the taking of flnfish, 

 crabs, oysters, clams or other shellfish from the 

 waters within the Jurisdiction of the Commission, 

 and for boats, vessels and equipment used for such 

 taking. Recognizing that the right of fishing in the 

 territory over which the Commission shall have 

 Jurisdiction is and shall be common to and equally 

 enjoyed by the citizens of Virginia and Maryland, 

 the Commission shall make no distinctiori between 

 the citizens of Virginia or Maryland in any rule, 

 regulation or the granting of any licenses, priv- 

 ileges, or rights under this compact. 



"(b) Licenses for the taking of oysters and clams 

 and the commercial taking of flnfish and crabp 

 within the jurisdiction of the Commission shall be 

 granted only to citizens of Maryland or Virginia 

 who have resided in either or both states for at 

 least twelve months immediately preceding the 

 application for the license. Within six months after 

 the effective date of this compact, the Commission 

 shall adopt a schedule of hcenses, the privileges 

 granted thereby, and the fees therefor, which may 

 ' be modified from time to time in the discretion of 

 the Commission. 



"(c) The licenses hereby authorized may be is- 

 sued at such places, by such persons, and in ac- 

 cordance with such procedures as the Commission 

 may determine. 



"Sec 5. Expenditures. — The Commission is au- 

 thorized to expend funds for the purposes of gen- 

 eral administration, repletion of the fish and shell- 

 fish In the Potomac River, and the conservation 

 and research programs authorized under this com- 

 pact, subject to the limitations provided in tills 

 compact. 



"Sec. 6. Grant.s. Contributions, etc. — The Com- 

 mission is authorized to receive and accept (or to 

 refuse) from any and all public and private sources 

 such grants, conti'ibutions, appropriations, dona- 

 tions, and gifts as may be given to it. which shall 

 be paid into and become part of the General Fund . 

 of the Commission, except where the donor in- 

 structs that it shall be used for a specific project, 

 study, purpose, or program, in which event it shall 

 be placed in a special account, which shall be ad- 

 ministered u-'ider the .same procedure as that pre- 

 scribed for the General Fund. 



"Sec 7. Cooperation of State Agencies. — The 

 Commission may call upon the resources and assist- 

 ance of the Virginia Fisheries Laboratory, the 

 Maryland Department of Research and Education, 

 and all other agencies, institutions, and depart- 

 ments of Maryland and Virginia which shall co- 

 operate fully with the Commission upon such 

 request. 



"Sec 8. Regulations. — The Commission shall 

 have the power to make, adopt and publish such 

 rules and regulations as may be necessary or desir- 

 able for the conduct of its meetings, such hearings 

 as It may from time to time hold, and for the ad- 

 ministration of Its affairs. 



"Sec 9. Inspection Tax. — The Commission may 

 Impose an inspection tax, in an amount as fixed 

 from time to time by the Commission, not exceed- 



