NASHVILLE – Low income families are catching a break with new fishing laws.

Effective Jan. 1, low income families who are recipients of certain county assistance programs can sign a waiver to avoid paying for a fishing license. That could be useful for families who might trade shopping at the grocery store for catching fish, Nash County Social Services Director Laura O'Neal said.

"Some families supplement their diets by fishing, and I'm sure this waiver will assist them," she said.

The law, which was approved by the N.C. General Assembly in August 2005, also includes a provision requiring all anglers 16 years or older to apply for a license to fish in the state's public freshwater, saltwater or brackish waters.

Fishing licenses vary in cost, depending on the duration and what type of fish the applicant wants to catch, according to the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission's Web site. Also, a person's residency can influence the cost.

But only North Carolina residents who receive food stamps, Medicaid or participate in Work First Family Assistance are eligible for the waiver. Any family member who benefits from the resident receiving those services also can receive a waiver.

"They have to be receiving one of the three," said Dureatta Gibson, Nash County income maintenance program administrator. "If they are not receiving one of the three, we can't help them."

The waiver lasts one year, she said. If the person issued the waiver stops participating in one of the county assistance programs, his or her waiver will last through the end of that year, she said.

The waiver also does not cover trout fishing.

Jane Smith, chief of program compliance for the N.C. Division of Social Services, said she does not know if the state will consider offering waivers for other sport licenses, such as hunting.

"I think because they were making changes to (the fishing law), somebody decided that it would not be a great thing to penalize folks who may be lower income scale," she said. "I would kind of suspect that unless they do make some changes to the hunting licenses, but again I don't know."

Some officials said during the Nash County Board of Social Services meeting that they would rather the Wildlife Commission, not social services departments, handle the job. But O'Neal said it reflects a state trend of their departments handling such jobs since they are considered a point of entry to residents.

"Another state mandate. No new staff, no new dollars, but more responsibility," she said.