Texas anglers looking through a new package of proposed fishing regulation changes from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) might notice some significant-looking changes involving flounder.
But don’t expect the November flounder closure to disappear.
The annual closure from Nov. 1 through Dec. 14 would remain in place under the proposed regulations.
That’s one of several important details in a sweeping fisheries rules package TPWD is currently taking public comment on. Other proposals involve ShareLunker bass transportation, guided fishing parties, oversized redfish, red snapper and artificial reefs.
Most aren’t new fishing restrictions. The proposals resulted from a review involving TPWD and the Texas Regulatory Efficiency Office aimed largely at eliminating outdated or redundant regulations and making existing rules clearer.
Flounder Closure Isn’t Going Away
The proposed flounder changes deserve some explanation because anglers looking at the marked-up regulations could easily get the wrong impression.
Before the current fall closure took effect, Texas had special November and early December flounder regulations.
The old language stated that during November, flounder could be taken only by pole and line and the bag and possession limit was two fish. During the first 14 days of December, the limit was also two fish, although flounder could be taken by any legal means.
But that language contained its own expiration date: Sept. 1, 2021.
Beginning in 2021, Texas instead closed the flounder season completely from Nov. 1 through Dec. 14.
That is still the rule.
What TPWD is proposing now is deleting the old November and December language that hasn’t been operative since 2021 and removing the now-unnecessary wording saying the current closure began Sept. 1, 2021.
The regulation would simply state that the season for flounder is closed from Nov. 1 through Dec. 14 every year.
So, despite substantial portions of the flounder regulation being struck from the proposed rule text, this is essentially regulatory housekeeping.
The Nov. 1-Dec. 14 flounder closure is not being eliminated or shortened under this proposal.
The same cleanup is being made to corresponding commercial flounder regulations.
ShareLunker Bass Transportation
One of the most significant practical changes involves the Toyota ShareLunker program.
Texas regulations generally require boaters to drain water from vessels and onboard receptacles when leaving or approaching public freshwater. The requirement is intended to help prevent the spread of invasive aquatic species.
That presents a unique problem when an angler participating in the ShareLunker program needs to transport a live bass to an approved weighing station.
TPWD proposes creating an exception specifically for that situation.
If an approved weighing station isn’t located on the body of water where the fish was caught, a ShareLunker participant could transport the fish in a live well containing water from that lake.
There would be several requirements.
All water other than the water in the live well would have to be drained from the vessel. The live well would have to be transported by the most direct route to a TPWD-approved weighing station.
The live-well water would then have to be drained or properly disposed of before the vessel leaves the weigh station unless TPWD instructs the participant to return the fish to the body of water where it was caught.
The person transporting the live-well water would also have to possess a TPWD transport authorization containing information including the participant’s name, date of catch, water body, approved weigh station and weighing date. Authorization could also be provided through the ShareLunker App.
The proposal is designed to allow the transport of live ShareLunker fish while reducing the possibility of transporting invasive species between Texas waters.
Guided Fishing Parties
TPWD also wants to make the rules involving guided fishing parties clearer.
Under the proposed language, the bag limit for a guided fishing party would be calculated using the number of people aboard who are licensed to fish or otherwise exempt from licensing requirements, minus the fishing guide and any guide deckhand, multiplied by the bag limit for the species being harvested.
But there is an important addition to the language:
“Personal bag limits continue to apply.”
In other words, the combined allowable harvest aboard a guided boat doesn’t erase the individual limit applying to each angler.
The proposal isn’t creating a new bag limit. It clarifies how existing personal limits apply to guided fishing parties.
Oversized Redfish Tags
Redfish regulations are also being reorganized, but this isn’t a new reduction in redfish harvest.
TPWD specifically describes the changes as reorganizing red drum tagging provisions for purposes of clarification.
Under the proposed language, one red drum exceeding the maximum length limit may be retained per person per license year.
For anglers using a physical license product, the fish must be tagged with the appropriate properly executed red drum tag.
One additional oversized red drum may also be retained per person per license year. Under a physical license product, that fish must be tagged with a properly executed Bonus Red Drum Tag.
Anglers using qualifying digital licenses are exempt from physically tagging the oversized fish but must immediately create and submit the required harvest report through a TPWD mobile or web application.
If lack of connectivity prevents the angler from receiving confirmation, the angler is responsible for ensuring the report is uploaded immediately when network connectivity becomes available.
Again, the important point is that TPWD is reorganizing and clarifying how the existing oversized-redfish tagging system is written rather than creating a new oversized-redfish opportunity.
Red Snapper and Circle Hooks
The proposed red snapper language is another clarification rather than a new restriction.
The rewritten regulation states that red snapper may be taken by pole and line, but when natural bait is used, it is unlawful to use anything other than a circle hook.
The key words are “natural bait.”
The existing regulation already ties the circle-hook requirement to natural bait. TPWD is rewriting the sentence to make that connection clearer.
That means anglers using natural baits such as squid or baitfish for red snapper still need to remember the circle-hook requirement.
Offshore Reefs
Another proposal could interest Texas offshore anglers even though it isn’t a recreational fishing regulation.
TPWD proposes clarifying its rules involving Public Reefing Agreements and Material Donation Agreements.
Under the proposed changes, Public Reefing Agreement applications would be specifically for public reefing activities, while Material Donation Agreement applications would be specifically for oil and gas decommissioning activities.
TPWD says the distinction is intended to reduce confusion between the two processes.
That’s noteworthy on the Texas coast, where artificial reefs and converted offshore structures can provide important fish habitat and fishing opportunities.
Oysters, Shrimp and Commercial Fisheries
Chapter 58, which covers oysters, shrimp and finfish, also receives extensive revisions.
Much of this is regulatory housekeeping rather than a major change in what recreational anglers can catch.
The proposals include removing expired oyster provisions, clarifying references to federal shrimping regulations, addressing shrimping gear storage aboard vessels and removing commercial bay shrimp size provisions that TPWD says were nullified in 2015.
There are also changes involving commercial license transfers and license buyback programs intended primarily to eliminate obsolete language or make existing regulations clearer.
Anglers Can Comment
The proposals are part of TPWD’s review with the Texas Regulatory Efficiency Office, which was established during the 2025 Texas legislative session.
TPWD says the review is intended to identify outdated and redundant regulations, reduce unnecessary regulatory burdens and make agency rules more efficient.
The current fisheries package is the second stage of that process.
TPWD staff received authorization from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission in August to publish the proposals for public comment. They appeared in the Oct. 2, 2026, issue of the Texas Register.
Public comments will be accepted through 5 p.m. Nov. 4. TPWD staff is recommending that the commission adopt the changes at its Nov. 5 meeting.
For coastal anglers, the biggest immediate point may be what isn’t changing.
Texas’ Nov. 1-Dec. 14 flounder closure remains in place.
Much of this proposal is regulatory cleanup, but the ShareLunker transportation provision represents a practical change for trophy-bass anglers, while the changes involving guides, redfish and red snapper are intended to make existing fishing regulations clearer.