North Carolina anglers will get a 2024 flounder season after all, but only in inland and joint waters of the state.

The season will last a total of four days, and will be split into two sections, with the first being Sept. 1 – 2 (the Sunday and Monday of Labor Day), and the second the following weekend, Sept. 7 – 8. Anglers will have a daily creel limit of one fish, with a minimum size limit of 15 inches. The season will be open only to hook and line anglers, so gigging will not be legal.

Earlier this year, the Marine Fisheries Commission, which holds authority over the state’s coastal waters, declared that no recreational flounder season will be held for 2024 in coastal waters.

Aside from opening the 4-day flounder season, NCWRC Chairman Monty Crump asked the Marine Fisheries Commission to shift the flounder allocation from 30% to 50% for the recreational sector. NCWRC determined that a 50% allocation to the recreational sector would allow the 4-day recreational season without going over the flounder quota of Amendment 3, and called on MFC to open a recreational season in 2024, using the 50% allocation as a guideline, for coastal waters. Crump has stated that the Marine Fisheries Commission has not responded to their correspondence.