The 2017 recreational Pacific halibut fishery will commence Monday, May 1, for the first of four open periods.

This season's dates are May 1 to June 15, July 1 to 15, Aug. 1 to 15 and Sept. 1 to Oct. 31, or until the quota is reached, whichever is earlier.

The open and closed periods are intended to provide fishing opportunities from spring through fall.
 
The 2017 Pacific halibut quota for the California subarea is 34,580 pounds – about 5,000 pounds more than the 2016 quota.
 
During the annual rulemaking process, California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) received input expressing interest in maintaining the 2016 season dates, but also adding additional open fishing days in 2017 that align with holiday weekends.

In response, and in light of the increased quota, CDFW recommended a longer open season to the National Marine Fisheries Service which included Memorial Day weekend, in addition to Independence Day and Labor Day weekends.
 
The season dates are expected to continue to meet the goal of providing as much opportunity throughout the season while ensuring the quota is attained.

As in 2015 and 2016, the open dates are not guaranteed days, and the season could be closed early if it is determined that projected catches will exceed the California quota.

Again this year, field staff will be stationed at public launch ramps and charter boat landings to monitor catches of Pacific halibut along with other marine sportfish.

CDFW will examine this information in comparison to expected catch rates and if the cumulative catch is expected to reach or exceed the quota prior to Oct. 31, a closure date will be determined and the public will be notified.

The public can follow the progress of catch through the season on the CDFW Pacific halibut Web site, which will be updated weekly with the latest catch projection information (see link below).

Before engaging in any fishing activity for Pacific halibut, please check one of the following resources for the most up-to-date information:

– CDFW website, www.wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/Pacific-Halibut ;
– National Marine Fisheries Service Halibut Hotline, 800-662-9825;
– CDFW Recreational Groundfish Regulations Hotline, 831-649-2801.

There are few writers who have done more to promote the work of other writers than Grace Cavalieri, who lives in the nation's capitol.

She has a radio show, "The Poet and the Poem" from the Library of Congress, she writes book reviews and is a tireless advocate for poetry day in and day out. All this while writing her own poems and plays.

Her most recent book of poems is “With” (Somondoco, 2016).

Wild Life

Behind the silo, the Mother Rabbit
hunches like a giant spider with strange calm:
six tiny babies beneath, each
clamoring for a sweet syringe of milk.
This may sound cute to you, reading
from your pulpit of plenty,
but one small one was left out of reach,
a knife of fur
barging between the others.

I watched behind a turret of sand. If
I could have cautioned the mother rabbit
I would. If I could summon the
Bunnies to fit him in beneath
the belly's swell
I would. But instead, I stood frozen, wishing
for some equity. This must be
why it's called Wild Life because of all the
crazed emotions tangled up in
the underbrush within us.
Did I tell you how
the smallest one, black and trembling,
hopped behind the kudzu
still filigreed with wanting?

Should we talk now of animal heritage, their species,
creature development? And what do we say
about form and focus—
writing this when a stray goes hungry, and away.

American Life in Poetry does not accept unsolicited submissions. It is made possible by The Poetry Foundation ( www.poetryfoundation.org ), publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2016 by Grace Cavalieri, “Wild Life,” from The Broadkill Review, (Vol. 10, issue 2, 2016). Poem reprinted by permission of Grace Cavalieri and the publisher. Introduction copyright © 2017 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006.

SACRAMENTO – State Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones announced that he has authorized health insurers filing rates with the Department of Insurance to file two sets of rates, in light of the market instability created by President Trump's continued undermining of the Affordable Care Act.

Despite the likelihood that health insurers will have to increase rates due to Trump Administration actions, Jones encouraged health insurers to file a second set of rates premised on continued enforcement of the Affordable Care Act, in the hope that President Trump might reverse course and stop undermining the Affordable Care Act.

The actions of the Trump Administration to undermine enforcement of the ACA's individual mandate and the failure of President Trump and Republican House leaders to ensure funding of the Cost-Sharing Reductions in the Affordable Care Act have created immense uncertainly and instability for 2018's health insurance market.

Affordability and availability of health insurance coverage are both threatened by the actions of President Trump and Republicans in Congress.

This week health insurers will submit preliminary proposed rates for 2018 to state regulators and Covered California.

"The Trump Administration and House Republican Leaders continue to undermine the Affordable Care Act, creating instability in health insurance markets and causing health insurers to have to increase rates for the 2018 market," said Commissioner Jones. "Given the actions by President Trump and House Republican leaders, I have taken the unprecedented step of authorizing health insurers to file more than one set of proposed rates for 2018 – one assuming the ACA is enforced and funded and the other assuming that President Trump and House Republican leaders continue to undermine or repeal the law and cause unnecessary premium increases."

The California Department of Insurance receives preliminary health insurance rate filings for individual market products on May 1 of each year for the following calendar year.

These proposed rates are also provided to Covered California for those products that insurers or health plans intend to sell through Covered California. Due to all the uncertainty at the federal level regarding enforcement of the individual mandate, availability of risk adjustment payments to insurers, and the status of Cost-Sharing Reduction funding, Commissioner Jones has notified health insurers in California that they may file more than one set of proposed rates for 2018.

Insurers have been encouraged to file rates assuming that the ACA is enforced and funded as well as rates they are filing that are based on all the uncertainty in the market due to undermining of the ACA by the Trump Administration and House Republican Leaders.

Insurers have been asked to submit rate information about how rates will differ if the individual mandate is not enforced and if the federal funding for Cost-Sharing Reductions is not provided.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lake County Republican Party’s May meeting will host a presentation from a state Republican Party representative.

The group will meet on Tuesday, May 9, at Round Table Pizza, 821 11th St. in Lakeport.

Social time starts at 6 p.m. with no host food and beverages, followed by the business meeting at 6:30 p.m.

Jim McCully, Northwest regional representative for the California Republican Party, will outline his plans to make the party and region great again. He also will discuss the local group’s role as Republican Party leaders.

McCully is the former chairman of the Solano County Republican Central Committee. His career highlights include working as a special agent for the U.S. Secret Service, former investigator for the Suisun Police Department, director of security and public safety at the Department of the Navy. He studied law enforcement at the University of Maryland.

All Republicans are welcome to attend.

If you are interested in joining the Lake County Republican Committee, or if you are just interested in learning more about the group, please attend this meeting.

Follow the local Republican Party on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Lake-County-CA-Republican-Party-401224996588222/?fref=ts or for more information contact Lake County Chair Dee Cuney at 707-235-2902.

Save

Collecting moon jellyfish for home aquarium?

Question: I would love to introduce moon jellies into my home saltwater aquarium. Can I collect them myself or do I need to try to buy them?

I would not sell or trade them afterwards for something else. If this would be legal, can I collect them under a basic fishing license or would I be required to have a marine collector’s permit? (Tucker M.)

Answer: Moon jellyfish occurring outside the tide pool zone (1,000 feet seaward from mean high tide) may be legally taken with a fishing license, and the bag limit is 35 (California Code of Regulations Title 14, section 29.05(a)). Anything taken under a sport fishing license in California may never be offered or possessed for sale, barter, exchange or trade.

Steelhead cards when fishing for salmon in anadromous waters?

Question: Do you have to fill out a steelhead card when fishing for salmon in anadromous waters?

There’s a debate going on so I need a straight answer. If I am fishing in the American River in Sacramento when steelhead are also present, and I am targeting salmon only, but in a manner in which steelhead are also often taken (like throwing spinners from the bank), do I have to possess and fill out a steelhead report card before fishing even if my intent is only to catch salmon? (James D.)

Answer: No, as long as you do not retain any steelhead caught incidental to your salmon fishing. If you do catch a steelhead by mistake while fishing for salmon, just be sure to immediately release it.

GoPro mounted to my shotgun/rifle while hunting?

Question: Is it legal to mount a GoPro to my shotgun when turkey hunting or rifle while deer or pig hunting? How about when I’m just out shooting? (Derek M.)

Answer: Yes, this is legal when hunting as long as no light is cast out from the camera (even though I know that’s unlikely). There are no restrictions when just target shooting.

Transporting Dungeness crabs

Question: What is required before transporting my Dungeness crabs home? Once crab is caught, measured and brought to shore, how must the crab be transported home?

For instance, can it be cooked at a campground, cleaned (i.e. remove bottom shell, gills and viscera) then transported? Or must the crab remain in one piece for transport? (Anonymous)

Answer: “It is unlawful to possess on any boat or to bring ashore any fish (including crabs and lobster) upon which a size or weight limit is prescribed in such a condition that its size or weight cannot be determined” (Fish and Game Code, section 5508).

Nothing prohibits you from cooking or cleaning crabs at your campsite before taking them home.

Carrying a holstered pistol for personal protection?

Question: While hiking in our local wilderness areas, is it legal for me to carry a holstered pistol for protection? This could help to protect my family from any threat of dangerous wildlife – either to scare it away or defend ourselves, if needed. (Louis M.)

Answer: While I can understand your safety concerns, the Fish and Game Code and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) generally don’t regulate firearm possession.

Instead, we recommend that you consult the Department of Justice’s 2016 Firearms Laws Summary available online. In addition, attacks from wild animals are uncommon.

Boat-based net regulation

Question: I have been searching for the regulation that requires all boat-based anglers to have a net. I use a kayak to fish in the Monterey Bay and just found out I am supposed to have a net when fishing. I’ve bought a net to take on my fishing adventures since I learned of my error. (Steve L.)

Answer: The regulation you are looking for is CCR Title 14, section 28.65(d), which can be found in the current Ocean Sport Fishing Regulations booklet, Gear Restrictions section on page 45:

“No gaff hook shall be used to take or assist in landing any finfish shorter than the minimum size limit. For the purpose of this section a gaff hook is any hook with or without a handle used to assist in landing fish or to take fish in such a manner that the fish does not take the hook voluntarily in its mouth. No person shall take finfish from any boat or other floating device in ocean waters without having a landing net in possession or available for immediate use to assist in landing undersize fish of species having minimum size limits; the opening of any such landing net shall be not less than eighteen inches in diameter.”

Carrie Wilson is a marine environmental scientist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. While she cannot personally answer everyone’s questions, she will select a few to answer each week in this column. Please contact her at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – Tuleyome, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit conservation organization based in Woodland, is currently recruiting members of the public to be a part of its board of directors. 

Tuleyome works in Yolo, Lake, Napa, Mendocino, Solano, Glenn and Colusa counties and also does some outreach in Sacramento County.

The organization has been working in the Northern Inner Coast Range of California and the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument region for 15 years, and is now seeking new board members who can lead it into the future.

Tuleyome works to conserve, enhance, restore and enjoy regional public lands and open spaces, and it does this through a variety of programs.

It builds and maintains trails, gets the public outdoors through its Home Place Adventures program, educates the public through its “Nature and You” lecture series and its upcoming Certified California Naturalist program, implements conservation policy, and also purchases land in the region that is ecologically or recreationally important.

Currently, Tuleyome is helping the Bureau of Land Management and the US Forest Service as they develop the new management plan for the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument, is working to establish an Inner Coast Range State Conservancy, and is also playing an integral part in the planning and developing of a new Woodland Earth and Science Center.

The organization is looking for results-driven people who can volunteer as board members, and who have a commitment to science-based conservation and a vision for what can be accomplished in the region over the next five to ten years.

All candidates must be able to work productively with people of diverse backgrounds, and have proven experience in science, business, finance, fundraising, land acquisitions and/or environmental advocacy.

For more information, see Tuleyome’s Web site at http://tuleyome.org/boardinquiry/ or contact Executive Director Sara Husby at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

UNFORGETTABLE (Rated R)

Take the “Un” out of the title of “Unforgettable” and what you have would be a fairly apt shorthand review of the suspense thriller hinging on the pathology of mental derangement engendered by familial discord.

In fact, the tagline for the movie, simply stated as “When Love Ends Madness Begins,” tells you mostly what is required to understand Katherine Heigl’s starring role of Tessa Connover, who is barely coping with the end of her marriage.

Before we get to the unraveling of Heigl’s character, the story opens with Rosario Dawson’s bloodied Julia Banks being questioned by the police about a man from her past having been murdered in a situation where it appears she’s the only suspect.

Flashback to six months earlier, a much happier Julia has just did farewell to her best friend Ali (Whitney Cummings) and her job in San Francisco and relocated to an idyllic suburban home in Southern California.

Her move has been prompted by an engagement to David Connover (Geoff Stults), the ex-husband of Tessa. Sharing the home with David and his young daughter Lily (Isabella Kai Rice), Julia is stepping into a new environment that is unfamiliar and somewhat challenging.

Julia is harboring a troubling secret of a past abusive relationship with an old boyfriend, one that left her so fearful that a soon-to-expire restraining order has caused much anxiety and expected fear.

Controlling and rigid, Tessa is almost immediately resentful of Julia’s facile charm and effortless beauty. It doesn’t help matters that Tessa is going to snap when she sees that David is truly in love with Julia, who is also gradually winning over her daughter.

Not long after Tessa and Julia first meet does it take anyone to realize one of them is going to come unhinged, and the dark period that continues to cloud Julia’s striving for the dream romance is not going to be a red herring.

How long will it take for someone to go over the edge? You can see the telltale signs everywhere, from the furtive glance to a snide remark and to finally the type of physical violence that is the culmination of craziness slowly oozing out of Tessa’s pores.

The rising tension between two women at odds over the love and admiration of one man is a certain recipe for a suspenseful thriller. The problem comes with laugh-induced moments that should have been somber and troubling.

“Unforgettable” not only fails to be memorable but its treatment of suspense is so formulaic as to be rendered suitable mainly for late night viewing on a cable channel.

‘Genius’ on National Geographic Channel

The National Geographic Channel has put so much faith in its scripted limited series “Genius” that the program has been renewed for a second season even before the first episode has aired.

Based on Walter Isaacson’s book “Einstein: His Life and Universe,” the ambitious program of “Genius” is to tell the entire story of the tumultuous private life of Albert Einstein, the great mind who personified the word “genius.”

Produced by Academy Award winners Ron Howard and Brian Grazer, “Genius,” judging by the first episode, explores the private of the revolutionary thinker in a non-lineal fashion, jumping back and forth through periods of time to illustrate his rise to fame as a theoretical physicist.

Everyone knows about the “theory of relativity,” but few know this German-born intellectual endured a difficult relationship with his father and the struggle of being a Jew living in his homeland during the rise of Hitler.

For all his brilliance, Einstein (portrayed by Geoffrey Rush as an adult) had troubled relations with women and his own children, to say nothing of how his rebellious nature caused him problems with teachers and scientific colleagues.

“Genius” begins with a young Einstein (Johnny Flynn) in conflict with his father as he drops out of school in Germany in order to further his studies in Switzerland, where he ultimately breaks the heart of his first love, Marie (Shannon Tarbet).

At the university in Zurich, he pursues the mysterious and elusive fellow physics student Mileva Maric (Samantha Colley), who would eventually become his first wife. Their first volatile encounters hardly seemed conducive to romance.

“Genius” requires the viewer to pay attention to the timelines, as the story jumps back and forth from Munich and Italy in 1894 and 1895, respectively, to Berlin in the Thirties and Forties, when the Brownshirts terrorized the public.

The first episode jumps right to this pre-World War II era when Einstein is now married to his second wife Elsa (Emily Watson), who happened to be his first cousin and endured his infidelities.

Exposing the great man for his flaws and sexual peccadilloes, “Genius” is also generous to demonstrate that his mind operated superior to his colleagues and adversaries.

“Genius” has a lot of ground to cover, including the years spent in the United States teaching at Princeton. This series should exceed at commanding attention of anyone fascinated by this complicated intellectual.
  
Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.