DOC has a statutory responsibility to manage freshwater trout fishing within the Taupō District, which can be linked back to Crown involvement in the fishery in the 1900s. More recently, iwi ownership of Taupō Waters was reaffirmed, helping to clarify legal ownership rights.

Ngāti Tūwharetoa has mana whenua in the Taupō district, and the Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board (TMTB) plays a central role managing the fishery. In 2007, a Trust Deed reaffirmed and enhanced the full ownership rights to Taupō Waters. Taupō Waters is defined as the bed of Lake Taupō, the space occupied by the water of the lake, tributaries flowing into the lake and the Waikato River down to the Rock of Tia, including Huka Falls.

The 2007 Deed was followed by a High Court Declaratory Judgement in 2021 which went a stage further and confirmed the property rights of Ngāti Tūwharetoa, including the ability of the TMTB to engage with commercial operators.

Looking back to the 1990s, other key decisions took place. In 1992 the Crown returned Taupō Waters to the Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board. The title to the beds of several other rivers was returned in 1999.

Going back even further in time, the Maori Land Amendment and Maori Land Claims Adjustment Act 1926 was the cornerstone piece of legislation that formalised the relationship between Ngāti Tūwharetoa and the Crown in respect to the Taupō fishery. Over the years Crown agencies such as the Department of Internal Affairs and the Wildlife Service held management responsibility for the fishery but the relationship with iwi was always present.

In 1987 the Department of Conservation was formed and given the mandate to manage the Taupō Fishing District on behalf of the Crown. This responsibility remains in place today and defines the current management structure.

Given the unique structure underpinning fishery management in the Taupō District it is unsurprising that a specific fishing licence is required. Taupō Fishing District licences have been available for over a century and link directly back to the 1926 Act. Ngāti Tūwharetoa has a legislated role within the Taupō fishery licencing regime which is detailed in s.14 (11) of the 1926 Act.

In summary, the historic relationship between Ngāti Tūwharetoa and the Crown drives the unique management approach applied to the Taupō District. An appreciation of the legislative framework helps us understand how that relationship developed over time.