The state Board of Land and Natural Resources has agreed to a hold a public hearing to regulate the use and possession of certain fishing gear, primarily to establish an annual permit and fee for the use of lay nets.

The BLNR unanimously approved a request by the state Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Division of Aquatic Resources to hold the public hearing, the department said in a news release. The date and location of the hearing were not available.

“Lay nets continue to be one our most problematic fishing gear types in terms of illegal use and unintended by-catch,” DAR administrator Brian Neilson said in a statement. “A lay net permit will allow the department to better regulate this gear type and also offer more opportunities to educate fishers on the responsible use of lay nets.”

Monk seals, turtles and other marine life can get tangled in lay nets, the DLNR said.

The department proposed a $25 annual permit fee.

The BLNR also required two additional amendments: A clarification that only one net may be used by a permit holder at a time, and another clarification that a gill net used as a surround net must always be attended.

Currently, fishers can leave lay nets unattended for up to 30 minutes.

Other proposed amendments include updated definitions and rules to prohibit the take of sharks with firearms, clarify the take of akule fish using throw nets, amend activities prohibited in certain areas such as special lay net rules in Molokai and west Hawaii.

The state Legislature had authorized the DLNR to adopt rules requiring permits for the use and possession of lay nets. An additional proposed amendment would clarify penalties and could encourage compliance.

“Unlike a registration, a permit is revocable. So, under the existing rules if someone is convicted of a lay net violation, there is no way to prohibit them from registering and using a new lay net,” Neilson said in a statement.

Lay net users could lose their permit for violations.