BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                              1






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          |         SENATE COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES AND WATER         |
          |                   Senator Fran Pavley, Chair                    |
          |                    2009-2010 Regular Session                    |
          |                                                                 |
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          BILL NO: AB 1254                   HEARING DATE: June 29, 2010  
          AUTHOR: T. Berryhill               URGENCY: No  
          VERSION: June 15, 2010             CONSULTANT: Bill Craven  
          DUAL REFERRAL: No                  FISCAL: Yes  
          SUBJECT: Fish and Game Commission: hunting.  
          
          BACKGROUND AND EXISTING LAW
          Various provisions of the Fish and Game Code or the California  
          Constitution state that: 

          1. It is unlawful to enter any lands, including lands  
          temporarily inundated by waters, where signs forbidding  
          trespassing are displayed, for the purpose of discharging any  
          firearm or taking or destroying any mammal or bird without  
          written permission from the landowner.

           2. The right of public access to navigable waters of the State  
          are protected under Article 10, Section 4 of the California  
          Constitution.

          3. It is unlawful to take any mammal or bird or to discharge any  
          firearm on lands posted with "PRIVATE PROPERTY NO HUNTING" signs  
          that meet certain specifications.

          4. The Fish and Game Commission shall hold no fewer than 10  
          regular meetings per calendar year, no more than 2 of which may  
          be held in Sacramento. 

          5. A course in hunter education, including provisions to  
          designate hunter instructors, is established in order to promote  
          hunter safety, principles of conservation, and sportsmanship. 

          6. The department is authorized to audit county expenditures  
          from its fish and wildlife propagation fund to determine  
          compliance with existing law. 

                                                                      







          PROPOSED LAW
          This bill would make several changes in the Fish and Game Code  
          relating to the above provisions of existing law. 

             1.   It would reduce the mandatory meetings of the Commission  
               from 10 to 8, and the requirement of eight meetings would  
               be conditioned on available funding. The number of meetings  
               in Sacramento would increase from two to three. 

             2.   Section 2017 would be repealed. Section 2017 prohibits  
               hunting, even by the landowner, if the landowner has posted  
               the property with "no hunting" signs, according to  
               information provided to the sponsor by the DFG.  Section  
               2016 would remain in effect. Section 2016 prohibits entry  
               on lands marked with "no trespass" signs. Section 2016  
               would be amended to provide that it does not prohibit the  
               public from using navigable waters as provided by the  
               Constitution. 

             3.   The hunter education and instructor program would be  
               amended to create an incentive to recruit and retain hunter  
               education instructors. The incentive would be to offer  
               enhanced access to hunting or a lottery for deer tags from  
               the existing quota of tags. The department would be  
               authorized to provide instructors with greater access  
               through existing programs such as the Private Lands  
               Management Program, the Shared Habitat Alliance for  
               Recreational Enhancement Program, or other cooperative  
               agreements with public agencies that own or administer  
               lands or waters. The department would also be allowed to  
               enter into cooperative agreements with landowners who seek  
               depredation permits that would be limited to feral pigs,  
               wild turkeys, or deer. 

             4.   The auditing provisions of Sec. 13104 would be amended  
               to provide that the department may suspend expenditures or  
               seek reimbursement from county fish and wildlife  
               propagation funds if irregularities are demonstrated in an  
               audit. 

          ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT
          AB 1254 is sponsored by the California Outdoor Heritage  
          Alliance, and approximately 36 member organizations have joined  
          in its support letter. The purpose of the bill is to authorize  
          the Commission to adjust its meeting schedule to address funding  
          shortfalls, and to authorize the Department to offer special  
                                                                      







          hunting opportunities to qualified hunter education instructors.  
          The sponsors state that because of an increase in hunting in  
          some areas of the state, demand for qualified instructors has  
          outpaced supply. 

          Another purpose of the bill is to clarify the appropriate code  
          section regarding navigable waters. The sponsors believe the  
          bill, which codifies a constitutional provision, would provide a  
          centralized reference for hunters, fishermen, local law  
          enforcement authorities, and others who may rely on the Fish and  
          Game Code and who would not otherwise be aware of a  
          constitutional provision. 

          ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION
          None received

          SUPPORT
          California Outdoor Heritage Association (and 36 affiliated  
          organizations) 
          Outdoor Sportsmen's Coalition of California
          The California Sportsman's Lobby 

          OPPOSITION
          None Received