BILL ANALYSIS
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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: SB 1179 HEARING DATE: April 13, 2010
AUTHOR: Hollingsworth URGENCY: No
VERSION: March 24, 2010 CONSULTANT: Marie Liu
DUAL REFERRAL: No FISCAL: Yes
SUBJECT: Free hunting days.
BACKGROUND AND EXISTING LAW
Under the Fish and Game Code 3031, a person must posses a valid
hunting license to take birds and mammals in California.
Additionally, under 3050, in order to receive a hunting
license, a person must complete a course in hunter education,
principles of conservation, and sportsmanship or have had a
hunting license in the past. Hunter education courses are
offered by the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) and cover
firearms safety and handling, sportsmanship and ethics, wildlife
management and conservation, archery, black powder, wildlife
identification, game care, first aid, and survival. Courses are
a minimum of ten hours. DFG must offer the course for free,
although DFG may charge a teaching-materials fee.
Article 3, Chapter 1, Part 2 of Division 6 requires a person to
obtain a valid sport fishing license to take any fish, reptile,
or amphibia in the state. The director of DFG, notwithstanding
this requirement, may designate up to two days a year as free
sport fishing days during which residents and nonresidents may
fish without holding a sport fishing license, but are still
subject to all the limitations, restrictions, conditions, laws,
rules, and regulations applicable to sports fishing.
PROPOSED LAW
This bill would require the Fish and Game Commission to
designate two "Free Hunting Days" per year where a California
resident may hunt without a valid hunting license if they are
accompanied by a licensed hunter. Specifically, this bill would:
Require that the unlicensed hunter is under the "direct visual
supervision" of the licensed hunter at all times;
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Allow the licensed hunter to supervise multiple unlicensed
hunters;
Allow DFG to require that the unlicensed hunter first
demonstrate the safe operation of the firearm that they intend
on using. Under the bill, the following individuals may
evaluate safe operation of a firearm: federally licensed
firearms dealers and their employees, a DFG certified Hunter
Education Instructor, or a licensed hunter that has had a
valid hunting license for the past three years; and
Prohibit unlicensed hunters from taking species that require a
draw or lottery to obtain a tag or any species that is subject
to a federal stamp or federal reporting requirements.
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT
According to the author, "SB 1179 hopes to introduce more people
to the sport of hunting. Not only is hunting a time-honored
outdoor activity which has deep roots in our nation's culture,
but it is also an activity which generates a great deal of
commerce and sales tax revenue. Hunters purchase gas, food,
clothing, supplies, and lodging accommodations, pumping millions
of critical dollars into local economies. This is especially
true in the depressed rural areas of our state where job
opportunities are often limited, but good hunting areas are in
ample supply." The author also submitted statistics to the
committee from the National Shooting Sports Foundation that
demonstrate that accidental firearms fatalities are at an all
time low, the injury rate of hunting compared to other
recreation, and the impact of the firearms industry on
California's economy.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION
None received
COMMENTS
Hunter education- a key difference between free fishing days and
free hunting days: Free fish days simply allow individuals to
fish without purchasing a license. Free hunting days, as
proposed by this bill, would allow individuals to not only hunt
without a license but also to forgo a hunter education. The
Legislature enacted hunting education requirements in order to
ensure the health and safety of hunters and to reflect the
Legislature's intent that hunters be aware of their
responsibilities "to others, towards wildlife, and toward their
natural environment." According to the Fish and Game website,
hunting accidents of all types have declined substantially with
the education requirement. However, the courses offered by DFG
go further than firearm safety by also teaching topics including
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wildlife management and conservation, wildlife identification,
game care, and first aid. The committee may wish to consider
whether it is desirable to allow an individual to hunt without
receiving a more comprehensive hunting education course.
Are there sufficient safety precautions in this bill? This bill
raises a number of safety questions including:
There are no limits to how many unlicensed hunters each
licensed hunter can supervise. The committee may wish to
consider whether the supervising hunter can actively supervise
multiple, presumably inexperienced, hunters.
There is no minimum age limit for the unlicensed hunter. While
there is no minimum age to obtain a hunting license under
current law (Big game stamps require the hunter to be at least
12 years of age), an individual must have enough maturity and
reading comprehension to pass the hunters education course.
This bill would allow individuals to bypass this de facto
minimum age and maturity limit.
There is no minimum age or experience required to be a
supervising hunter. This bill would allow a new hunter, who
could also be quite young, to supervise an unlicensed hunter.
Also, this bill would allow hunters, even if they have a
record of hunting violations, to be a supervising hunter.
The bill requires the licensed hunter to be in "direct visual
supervision," but the licensed and unlicensed hunters could be
hundreds of feet apart, which would limit the supervisor's
ability to provide guidance and safety, especially if the
supervising hunter is responsible for multiple unlicensed
hunters.
The committee may wish to consider whether the safety issues in
the bill as written override the objective to expose more people
to hunting.
Who should be eligible for a free hunting day?: DFG uses the
proceeds from hunting licenses for conservation purposes for the
sake of the resource itself and to preserve the future of
hunting. Allowing all individuals to hunt for two free days may
decrease the number of hunting licenses sold and thereby
decrease DFGs already reduced ability to conserve wildlife in
the state. The committee should note that under this bill all
California residents are eligible for free hunt days in
California, including those who have held hunting licenses in
the past. Thus, an individual who maybe only interested in
hunting once or twice a year may use the free hunt days instead
of purchasing a license. If the author's intent is to encourage
the development of new hunters, the committee may wish to
consider whether free hunting days should only be available to
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individuals who have never held a license in the past.
Making a free hunting day work logistically and drafting errors :
A number of hunting rules and regulations require the reporting
of a hunting license number, such as reporting take and entering
state wildlife areas. This bill does not address these logistics
nor does it give DFG the latitude to address these issues
through regulations. Also, in order for this bill to make
hunting days legal, this bill needs to exempt unlicensed hunters
from the existing requirements in 3031 and 3050.
SUPPORT
California Association of Firearms Retailers
California Sportsman's Lobby, Inc.
National Rifle Association of America
National Shooting Sports Foundation, Inc.
Outdoor Sportsmen's Coalition of California
Safari Club International
Sierra Club
2 individuals
OPPOSITION
None Received
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