BILL NUMBER: AB 1423 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 15, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Tom Berryhill
FEBRUARY 27, 2009
An act to amend Section Sections 1571,
1572, 1573, 1574, 2009, and 3240.5 of, and to repeal and add
Sections 3241 and 3242 of, the Fish and Game Code, relating to fish
and wildlife.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1423, as amended, Tom Berryhill. Commercial hunting
clubs. clubs: Shared Habitat Alliance for Recreational
Enhancement program: interference with hunting.
Existing
(1) Existing law establishes the
Department of Fish and Game in the Natural Resources Agency. Existing
law authorizes the department to regulate commercial hunting clubs.
Existing law requires a person in possession or control of property
who imposes or collects a fee for the privilege of taking birds or
mammals on that property, or who imposes or collects a fee for any
type of entry or use permit that includes the privilege of taking
birds or mammals on that property, to obtain a commercial hunting
club license from the department, as prescribed. Existing law
requires that license to be issued to any person upon submission of a
completed application on a form approved by the Fish and Game
Commission and the payment of a fee, as specified. Existing law
exempts from the application of these those
provisions any hunting club or program licensed under other
provisions of the Fish and Game Code and any person who receives less
than $50 per entrant to the club and an annual total of fees that is
less than $500.
This bill would recast those provisions to establish a number of
exemptions from having the requirement
to obtain a commercial hunting club license. The bill would require
an application for a commercial hunting club license to be on a form
furnished by the department. The bill would require the application
to contain prescribed information. The bill would require
authorize the department to issue a license to
any person upon submission of a completed application and payment of
a fee, in accordance with a fee schedule based on the number of
properties used by the club.
(2) Existing law requires the Department of Fish and Game to
establish the Shared Habitat Alliance for Recreational Enhancement
program to encourage private landowners to voluntarily make their
land available to the public for wildlife-dependent recreational
activities, as defined. Existing law establishes the SHARE Account in
the Fish and Game Preservation Fund to be used for specified
purposes relating to wildlife conservation.
This bill, among other changes, would require the department to
adopt regulations for the management and control of
wildlife-dependent recreational activities on land that is subject to
the program, to report to the Fish and Game Commission annually on
the status of the program, and to maintain data on the types of
wildlife-dependent recreational activities preferred by users of the
program. The department would be authorized to establish and impose
user fees, use existing hunting and fishing license stamp or tag fees
from the Fish and Game Preservation Fund, or apply for grants,
federal funds, or other contributions from other sources. Money
generated pursuant to this authorization would be deposited into the
SHARE Account and would, upon appropriation by the Legislature, be
available for expenditure by the department to fund the program.
(3) Existing law prohibits a person from willfully interfering
with the participation of any individual in the lawful activity of
shooting, hunting, fishing, falconry, or trapping at the location
where that activity is taking place.
This bill would include in that list of actions field trials and
related hunting dog training. The bill would make a violation of the
prohibition above a misdemeanor. By creating a new crime, this bill
would impose a state-mandated local program.
(4) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse
local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no yes .
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 1571 of the Fish and
Game Code is amended to read:
1571. For purposes of this article, the following definitions
apply:
(a) "Agreement" includes, but is not limited to, a contract,
license, easement, memorandum of understanding, or lease.
(b) "Partnership" means a collaborative effort involving financial
or in-kind contributions by nongovernmental organizations, the
department, and other interested parties working in concert to
effect achieve the goals of the
program.
(c) "Private landowner" means an owner of any possessory interest
in real property that is suitable for use for wildlife-dependent
recreational activities.
(d) "Program" means the SHARE program established under this
article.
(e) "Wildlife-dependent recreational activities" means hunting,
fishing, wildlife observation, conservation education, and related
outdoor activities.
SEC. 2. Section 1572 of the Fish and
Game Code is amended to read:
1572. (a) The department, in partnership with nonprofit
conservation groups and other interested nongovernmental
organizations that seek to increase and enhance wildlife-dependent
recreational opportunities, shall work cooperatively to plan
and , develop , and implement a
program to facilitate public access to private lands for
wildlife-dependent recreational activities.
(b) (1) Once the terms of the program have been established and
approved by the partnership, the commission shall verify that
sufficient demonstration of private landowner and program participant
interest has been shown to support the program.
(2) The department may impose user fees or apply for grants,
federal funds, or other contributions from nonstate sources to fund
the program.
(3) The Department of Finance shall verify that sufficient funds
exist in the SHARE Account to start the program. Upon that
verification, in order to facilitate the implementation of the
program, the commission shall adopt regulations and fees, in addition
to those established in Section 3031, for the management and control
of wildlife-dependent recreational activities on land that is
subject to this article.
(b) The department shall adopt regulations for the management and
control of wildlife-dependent recreational activities on land that is
subject to the program. The department shall report to the
commission annually on the status of the program and maintain data on
the types of wildlife-dependent recreational activities preferred by
users of the program.
(c) (1) The SHARE Account is hereby
established in the Fish and Game Preservation Fund. Money deposited
in the account from the sources cited in this subdivision
(d) shall only be used for the purposes set forth
in this article and to repay the General Fund or the Fish
and Game Preservation Fund, as appropriate, for any expenses incurred
by the department, commission, or the Department of Finance in
establishing the program .
(d) No General Fund moneys shall be used for the program. Funds
may also be used for wildlife conservation purposes on lands subject
to an agreement under the program. No moneys shall be available for
the program unless the Legislature appropriates moneys to the
department therefor.
(e) The department shall maintain data on the types of
wildlife-dependent recreational activities preferred by users.
(2) Consistent with existing law, the department may establish and
impose user fees, use existing hunting and fishing license stamp or
tag fees from the Fish and Game Preservation Fund, or apply for
grants, federal funds, or other contributions from other sources to
fund the program.
(3) All funding generated pursuant to paragraph (2) shall be
deposited in the SHARE Account in the Fish and Game Preservation
Fund. The moneys in the account, upon appropriation by the
Legislature, shall be available for expenditure by the department
solely for programs and projects to benefit the program and for the
direct costs and administrative overhead incurred solely in carrying
out the department's program activities. Funds may also be used for
wildlife conservation purposes on lands subject to an agreement under
the program. Administrative overhead shall be limited to the
reasonable costs associated with the direct administration of the
program. The department shall maintain internal accountability
necessary to ensure that all restrictions on the expenditure of these
funds are met.
(d) The department may make grants or enter into contracts with
nonprofit organizations for the use of these funds when it finds that
the contracts are necessary for carrying out the purposes of this
article.
(e) The program is not subject to Part 2 (commencing with Section
10100) of Division 2 of the Public Contract Code, or Article 6
(commencing with Section 999) of Chapter 6 of Division 4 of the
Military and Veterans Code. With the approval of the entity in
control of property affected by the program, the department may make
grants to, or enter into contracts with, nonprofit organizations to
accomplish the goals of the program, or the department may reimburse
the controlling entity for its costs related to the implementation of
the program.
SEC. 3. Section 1573 of the Fish and
Game Code is amended to read:
1573. (a) (1) The department may enter into a voluntary agreement
with a private landowner, including an agreement under which the
private landowner is compensated by the department for public use of
the land, to provide public access for wildlife-dependent
recreational activities. Any financial compensation offered to a
private landowner pursuant to this paragraph shall not exceed thirty
dollars ($30) per acre, and shall be commensurate with the quality of
the wildlife-dependent recreational opportunities that are to be
provided on the property.
(2) The department also may enter into a voluntary agreement with
a private landowner to facilitate access to adjacent public
land lands or waters , upon approval of the
governmental entity that holds title to the land. This article does
not authorize a private landowner to exclude persons not
participating in the SHARE program from using public land for
wildlife-dependent recreational activities.
(3) The department may enter into a voluntary agreement with a
governmental entity to provide wildlife-dependent recreational
opportunities to the public on public lands or waters.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the department
shall keep confidential and not release to the public any personal
identifying information received from a private landowner
participating in the program, unless the director determines that
release of that information is necessary for the administration of
the program.
(c) Either the department or a private landowner may, in writing,
modify or cancel an agreement executed under the program, at any
time. Upon cancellation or modification of the agreement by either
party, the other party shall be reimbursed for any lost revenues or
expenses incurred pursuant to the terms of the original agreement.
(d) In addition to any other protection or remedy under law, the
protections and remedies afforded to an owner of an estate or any
other interest in real property under Section 846 of the Civil Code
shall apply to a private landowner participating in the program.
(e) The department shall require every person who wants to use
land that is subject to an agreement pursuant to subdivision (a),
prior to using that land, to sign a waiver that releases the
department or any private group, governmental entity, or other
organization involved in administering the program, and the private
landowner, from liability for any injury or damage that arises from,
or is connected with that person's use of the land. Upon request, the
department shall provide a copy of the waiver to any of the parties
to the waiver.
(f) Every An agreement executed
pursuant to the program shall prohibit not
authorize the take of nongame species by public participants in
the program. An agreement may not authorize a private landowner to
transfer a hunting or fishing license, stamp, or tag to another
person, unless otherwise authorized by law.
(g) In determining which lands may be included in the program, the
department shall give priority to those lands with the greatest
wildlife habitat value. The To the extent
possible, the department shall also include in the program
private lands on which hunting is not allowed
that permit multiple wildlife-dependent recreational activities
, in order to take into consideration the participation of the
nonhunting general public in the
program.
SEC. 4. Section 1574 of the Fish and
Game Code is amended to read:
1574. (a) The department may revoke, for up to three years, the
public access privilege granted pursuant to this article, of any
person who violates any law provision of this
code or regulation adopted pursuant to this code
while on any property that is subject to an agreement under the
program.
(b) The department shall enforce all applicable regulations
established by the commission on property that is subject to an
agreement executed under the program.
SEC. 5. Section 2009 of the Fish and
Game Code is amended to read:
2009. (a) A person shall not willfully interfere with the
participation of any individual in the lawful activity of shooting,
hunting, fishing, falconry, field trials and related hunting dog
training, or trapping at the location where that activity is
taking place.
(b) A violation of this section is an infraction
punishable by a fine of not less than one hundred
dollars ($100) nor more than five hundred dollars ($500)
pursuant to Section 12000 .
(c) If any person is convicted of a violation of this section and
the offense occurred within two years of another separate violation
of this section which resulted in a conviction, the violation is a
misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than one hundred dollars
($100) nor more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), by imprisonment
in the county jail for not more than one year, or by both that fine
and imprisonment.
(d)
(c) This section does not apply to the actions of any
peace officer or personnel of the department in the performance of
their official duties. This section does not obstruct the rights and
normal activities of landowners or tenants, including, but not
limited to, farming, ranching, and limiting unlawful trespass.
(e)
(d) In order to be liable for a violation of this
section, the person is required to have had the specific intent to
interfere with the participation of an individual who was engaged in
lawful shooting, hunting, fishing, falconry, field
trials and related hunting dog training, or trapping.
(f)
(e) For purposes of this section, "interfere with"
means any action which physically impedes, hinders, or obstructs the
lawful pursuit of any of the above-mentioned activities, including,
but not limited to, actions all of the
following:
(1) Actions taken for the purpose
of frightening away animals from the location where the lawful
activity is taking place.
(2) Placing or maintaining signs, gates, locks, or barricades that
prohibit or deny access to lands without authorization from the
landowner or lessee or an authorized designee of the landowner or
lessee.
(3) Placing food on lands not belonging to the person placing the
food for purposes of eliminating the lawful ability to hunt due to
the presence of bait, as defined in this code or regulations adopted
pursuant to this code.
SECTION 1. SEC. 6. Section 3240.5 of
the Fish and Game Code is amended to read:
3240.5. (a) A As used in this article,
"property" means a number of contiguous legal parcels held by an
owner or a combination of owners and held out for a common purpose.
(b) A person, including, but not
limited to, a renter or lessee, in possession or control of property
on or with respect to which a fee for the privilege of taking birds
or mammals is imposed or collected, or on or with respect to which a
fee for any type of entry or use permit that includes the privilege
of taking birds or mammals on the property is imposed or collected,
is maintaining a commercial hunting club if birds or mammals are
taken on the property, and shall procure a "commercial hunting club
license" before birds or mammals are taken.
(b) This article does not apply to any of the following:
(1) Any landowner who rents or leases his or her property to a
hunting club that is licensed in accordance with this article and is
not involved in the operation of the club.
(2) Any property otherwise enrolled in a hunting or
conservation-related program licensed or authorized under this code
or regulations adopted pursuant to this code.
(3) Any officially sanctioned field dog trial event held pursuant
to regulations adopted by the department.
(4) Any property under a state or federal conservation or
agricultural easement.
(5) Any hunting club that, or person who, receives less than two
hundred dollars ($200) per entrant, and less than a total of two
thousand dollars ($2,000) between July 1 and the following June 30
for permission, entry access, or use fees that include the privilege
of hunting on property in the possession or control of that hunting
club or person.
(c) As used in this article, "property" means one or more
contiguous or adjacent legal parcels held by a common owner or
combination of owners and held out for a common purpose.
(c) This article does not apply if the property meets any of the
following conditions:
(1) The landowner, or the renter or lessee, of the property
receives less than one hundred dollars ($100) per entrant and
receives less than a total of one thousand dollars ($1,000) between
July 1 and the following June 30 for permission, entry access, or use
fees that include the privilege of hunting on the property in his or
her possession or control. The department may adjust the threshold
amounts established in this paragraph pursuant to Section 713.
(2) The property is used by a hunting club or program licensed
under regulations adopted pursuant to this code.
(3) The property is used for an officially sanctioned field dog
trial event pursuant to regulations adopted pursuant to this code.
(4) The property is used in conjunction with the Shared Habitat
Alliance for Recreational Enhancement (SHARE) program under Article 3
(commencing with Section 1570) of Chapter 5 of Division 2.
(5) A domesticated game bird hunting club licensed under Article 3
(commencing with Section 3270) operates on the property.
(6) A domesticated migratory game bird shooting area licensed
under Article 4 (commencing with Section 3300) operates on the
property.
(7) The property is used in conjunction with the private wildlife
habitat enhancement and management program under Article 5
(commencing with Section 3400).
(8) The property subject to a recorded state, federal, or
nonprofit wildlife conservation or agricultural easement or any
property enrolled in a habitat protection or enhancement program
under this code, including, but not limited to, Article 7 (commencing
with Section 3460).
(d) This article does not apply to a landowner who rents or leases
his or her property to the commercial hunting club and is not
involved in the operation of the club, if the club is licensed in
accordance with this article.
SEC. 2. SEC. 7. Section 3241 of the
Fish and Game Code is repealed.
SEC. 3. SEC. 8. Section 3241 is
added to the Fish and Game Code, to read:
3241. (a) An application for a commercial hunting club license
shall be submitted on a form furnished by the department. The
application, which shall set forth all of the exemptions and
conditions established in Section 3240.5, shall require the applicant
to include all of the following information:
(1) The name of the club and the ownership.
(2) The business telephone number and mailing address of the club.
(3) The number of properties used by the club and the
general physical location of each property.
(4) The total acreage of the club property.
(5) A list of all species of game hunted on the club property.
(6) Information as to whether the club owner owns any of the
properties used by the club.
(7) The name and address of each property owner, if the property
owner is substantially involved in the operation of the club, but
does not own the club.
(8) The signature and title of the applicant.
(9) Any other information the department may require.
(b) The department shall allow a commercial hunting club that
leases or rents more than one property for hunting purposes to submit
a single application listing each of the properties for which the
club is seeking a license, if all of the information required for
each property is submitted in a format approved by the department.
SEC. 4. SEC. 9. Section 3242 of the
Fish and Game Code is repealed.
SEC. 5. SEC. 10. Section 3242 is
added to the Fish and Game Code, to read:
3242. (a) The department shall may
issue a commercial hunting club license to any person upon submission
of a completed application and payment of the required fee,
according to the number of properties used by the club, as follows:
(1) The fee for one property shall be two hundred dollars ($200).
(2) The fee for two to five properties shall be five hundred
dollars ($500).
(3) The fee for six to 10 properties shall be one thousand dollars
($1,000).
(4) The fee for 11 or more properties shall be two thousand
dollars ($2,000).
(b) The fees specified in this section are applicable to the 2010
license year, and shall be adjusted annually thereafter pursuant to
Section 713.
SEC. 11. No reimbursement is required by this act
pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local
agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a
new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or
changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of
Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a
crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the
California Constitution.