PORTLAND — Maine lobstermen are being asked for their opinions for a new study analyzing the state’s lobster-licensing system.

The Gulf of Maine Research Institute in Portland is conducting the study, which will look at the existing limited entry system and evaluate its impact on individuals, communities and the lobster resource. It’s the first top-to-bottom analysis of the system since it went into place in 1997.

For the study, the institute has begun holding a series of industry meetings in coastal towns from Scarborough to Machias.

The report and its recommendations are due to the Department of Marine Resources by Oct. 15.

A final report with recommendations will be presented to the Legislature’s Marine Resources Committee next January.