Image: MN DNR

By Laura Durenberger-Grunow - Boreal Community Media - January 13, 2026

For the first time in 70 years, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is officially moving forward with a proposal to reduce the statewide inland walleye limit, and is seeking public feedback. According to a DNR press release issued on January 12, 2026, the organization is looking to update a regulation that has been in place since 1956, with a proposal to change the daily limit from six fish down to four. While a similar July 2025 announcement introduced the proposal to the public to gauge interest, the newest update provides a specific timeline for possible implementation and specifies how the rule would interact with other existing fishing regulations. 

Brad Parsons, the DNR fisheries section manager, shared that the organization is "taking proactive steps to help ensure future generations can continue to enjoy the excellent walleye fishing we have in Minnesota." He added that the environment has shifted significantly since the mid-1950s, pointing to "climactic conditions, invasive species introductions and fish-finding technologies" as factors that have changed since the regulation was first put in place. 

If the proposed rule is approved, the change would take effect on March 1, 2027. Parsons said that the DNR has "discussed this walleye limit proposal informally for a long time" with various groups and is now basing the formal proposal on "what fisheries research and sampling data point to about walleye in the future." 

Despite the reduction in the total number of fish an angler can keep, the DNR stated that the current "one-over" rule, which limits a person to only one walleye over 20 inches in possession, would stay the same. The DNR is also using this rulemaking process to clarify that specific local or border water regulations will take precedence over this general inland rule. 

Comments are being accepted until 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 5. Feedback can be submitted via email to [email protected], and include "walleye limit" in the subject or body. Additionally, the public can provide feedback by calling the DNR at 651-259-5235 or by sending mail to Fisheries Rules and Regulations Coordinator, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, 500 Lafayette Road, St. Paul, MN 55155. 

More information can be found here: https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/fisheries/management/walleye-limit.html