(a) For the purposes of this section, an environmental tourism cruise vessel is one which is operated for a fee for the purpose of education and observation and retention of marine and estuarine resources collected under the conditions of the permit issued under this section, except that holders of a permit issued under section 26-60 shall not be required to obtain a permit under this section. No person shall operate, use or attempt to operate or use a vessel for commercial fishing or landing activities authorized by this section unless the commissioner has issued a vessel permit for such vessel to the owner of the vessel. No person shall operate, use or attempt to operate or use a vessel or commercial fishing gear for environmental tourism cruises authorized by this section unless the commissioner has issued an environmental tourism cruise permit for such vessel, including conditions for the use of such fishing gear, to the owner of the vessel. No person shall use or assist in using commercial fishing gear in any water of the state or land in this state any species taken by commercial fishing gear or for commercial purposes, regardless of where such species was taken, unless such person has been licensed by the Commissioner of Environmental Protection to use such commercial fishing gear or land such species; except that any person who holds a license to use gill nets, lobster pots, trawl nets, sea scallop dredges, seines, traps, fish pots, fykes, hook and line, long lines or eel pots may, when using such gear, be accompanied and assisted by persons not so licensed. A resident of a state which does not issue commercial licenses to take eels to residents of Connecticut shall not be eligible to obtain a commercial license to take eels in the waters of this state or to land eels in this state. No vessel shall be used to land any finfish, lobsters, crabs, including blue crabs and horseshoe crabs, sea scallops, squid or bait species for sale, barter, exchange, consignment or transportation to any point of sale unless an operator of the vessel is licensed for such purpose, except that any person who holds a commercial fishing license issued by the commissioner to fish by the method used to take such species, regardless of where such species were taken, shall not be required to obtain a landing license. No person shall take or attempt to take lobsters or horseshoe crabs for personal use by hand or by scuba diving or skin diving unless such person has been licensed by the commissioner to take lobsters or horseshoe crabs by such methods. No person shall take or attempt to take finfish for commercial purposes by the use of hook and line, including, but not limited to, rod and reel, hand line, set line, long line, or similar device unless such person has been licensed by the commissioner to use such gear for commercial purposes, except that notwithstanding the issuance of such a license, no person shall take finfish for commercial purposes in the inland district by the use of hook and line. The use of a purse seine or similar device is prohibited. No pound net shall be used to take finfish unless such pound net is registered with the commissioner. Lobsters and blue crabs taken in pound nets shall be released unharmed. No person shall buy for resale finfish, lobsters, crabs, including blue crabs and horseshoe crabs, sea scallops or squid landed in Connecticut from any commercial fisherman unless such buyer and commercial fisherman have been licensed by the commissioner. A licensed commercial fisherman who acts as a seafood dealer may, without holding a seafood dealer license, sell, ship, consign, transfer or barter his or her own catch of finfish, lobsters, crabs, including blue crabs and horseshoe crabs, sea scallops or squid landed in this state. No person shall take blue crabs for commercial purposes except by scoop net, hand line or manually operated and personally attended devices approved by the commissioner and unless such person has been licensed by the commissioner. No person shall operate a charter boat, party boat or head boat for the purpose of fishing unless such boat has been registered for such purpose with the commissioner and such person holds a current passenger-for-hire license issued by the United States Coast Guard. The owner, operator or captain of any such boat may sell the boat’s or crew’s share of any tuna species if such sale is not prohibited on the basis of species, size or closed season. For the purposes of this chapter, a charter boat, party boat or head boat is a vessel operated for a fee for the purpose of transporting and providing a fishing platform for sport fishermen taking marine species in Connecticut waters or landing marine species at Connecticut ports regardless of where such species are taken. The commissioner may by regulations adopted in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54 exempt certain minnow seines, cast nets, scoop nets, traps, eel pots, seines less than thirty feet in length or any similar device used to take bait species and other species for personal use under a sport fishing license in the inland district and without a license in the marine district. No vessel used to take bait species may employ a fish pump. Persons licensed, registered or issued a permit to engage in activities authorized by this subsection shall carry on their persons or in the vessel being used to engage in such activity the permit, license or registration covering such activity.

      (b) The commissioner shall issue fishing licenses, vessel permits and registrations to qualified applicants upon the submission of an application, on forms provided by the commissioner, containing such information as prescribed by the commissioner, and upon the payment of such license, registration or permit fees as are required by subsection (c) of this section, except that a nonresident whose permit, license or registration in the state of residence has been voided or suspended shall have the Connecticut permit, license or registration voided or suspended during the suspension of such out-of-state permit, license or registration or until another permit, license or registration is obtained in the state of residence. The commissioner shall not issue any fishing license or registration or vessel permit to any applicant who has not met the reporting requirements of section 26-157b. No vessel permit shall be issued to any person for any vessel during the time period that such vessel permit has been revoked pursuant to subsection (f) of this section. Any fishing license or registration or vessel permit issued by the commissioner shall be nontransferable and shall expire on the thirty-first day of December next following its issuance.

      (c) The fee for the following fishing licenses and registrations and for a commercial fishing vessel permit shall be: (1) For a license to take blue crabs for commercial purposes, seventy-five dollars; (2) for a license to take lobsters for personal use, but not for sale, (A) by the use of not more than ten lobster pots, traps or similar devices provided finfish may be taken incidentally during such use if taken in accordance with recreational fishery creel limits adopted under section 26-159a and if taken for personal use and not for sale, or (B) by skin diving, scuba diving or by hand, sixty dollars; (3) for a license to take lobsters, fish or crabs, other than blue crabs for personal use or for sale, by the use of more than ten lobster pots or similar devices, one hundred fifty dollars for residents of this state and two hundred twenty-five dollars for nonresidents, provided any such license issued to a resident of a state that does not issue commercial licenses conferring the same authority to take lobsters to residents of Connecticut shall be limited to the taking of crabs, other than blue crabs, and a nonresident shall not be issued such license if the laws of the nonresident’s state concerning the taking of lobster are less restrictive than regulations adopted pursuant to section 26-157c; (4) for a license to take lob