What's happening
This bill extends the Department of Environmental Conservation's authority to manage deer and bear populations in New York through 2021.
Why it matters
Maintaining Effective Wildlife Management. By extending the Department of Environmental Conservation’s authority, the bill ensures that New York can continue to adaptively manage deer and bear populations, helping prevent overpopulation, property damage, and ecological imbalance.
Flexibility in Response to Local Conditions. The extension allows the Department to set special hunting seasons, bag limits, and permit quotas in areas experiencing problems like overbrowsing or property damage, giving wildlife officials flexibility to address region-specific challenges.
Continued Permit System. The bill keeps in place the option for issuing deer management permits, which helps control herd sizes more precisely and can prevent negative impacts on forests, crops, and biodiversity.
Avoiding Regulatory Gaps. Without this extension, existing authority would expire, potentially creating uncertainty or a gap in management measures, which could undermine long-term conservation efforts and stakeholder confidence.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Extend Wildlife Management Authority
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
2 Co-sponsors
History
- Substituted by S7952
- Advanced to third reading cal.1090
- Reported
- Referred to environmental conservation
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Extend Wildlife Management Authority
Signed by Governor · Sponsor Thomas F. O'Mara
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
10863
IN ASSEMBLY
May 24, 2018
Introduced by M. of A. HUNTER, ENGLEBRIGHT -- (at request of the Department of Environmental Conservation) -- read once and referred to the Committee on Environmental Conservation
AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to extending the authority of the department of environmental conservation to manage deer and bear; and to amend chapter 600 of the laws of
1993, amending the environmental conservation law relating to the management of deer, in relation to the effectiveness of such chapter
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 13 of chapter 600 of the laws of 1993, amending the environmental conservation law relating to the management of deer, as amended by chapter 209 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
§ 13. This act shall take effect immediately, provided however, that the amendments made to paragraph c of subdivision 1 of section 11-0907 of the environmental conservation law made by section five of this act, paragraph a of subdivision 2 of section 11-0907 of the environmental conservation law made by section six of this act, paragraphs a and b of subdivision 3 of section 11-0907 of the environmental conservation law made by section seven of this act, paragraph b of subdivision 2 of section 11-0907 of the environmental conservation law made by section six of this act, paragraph c of subdivision 3 of section 11-0907 of the environmental conservation law made by section seven of this act, and subdivision 3 of section 11-0911 of the environmental conservation law made by section eight of this act shall expire on December 31, [2018] 2021.
§ 2. Subdivision 8, paragraph a of subdivision 9 and subdivision 10 of section 11-0903 of the environmental conservation law, as amended by chapter 209 of the laws of 2015, are amended to read as follows:
8. Notwithstanding any provision of law, rule or regulation to the contrary, the department may, until December thirty-first, two thousand [eighteen] twenty-one, fix by regulation the open seasons, open areas, bag limit, manner of taking, possession and disposition of bear and
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14345-01-8
A. 10863 2
parts of bears, and the intentional and incidental feeding of bears. Such regulations shall implement the provisions of this article. Such regulations, as the department deems appropriate, may provide for special permits and permit quotas. When a special permit is required, the department may fix by regulation a fee for each such permit issued.
a. Until December thirty-first, two thousand [eighteen] twenty-one, whenever in its opinion deer shall become numerous enough in any area to cause substantial damage to property or overbrowsing of deer range, the department may fix by regulation special open seasons for taking wild deer of either sex. Subject to this subdivision, the department may fix the conditions of such seasons.
10. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of subdivision 10 of section 11-0901 or subdivision 2, subdivision 3 or subdivision 8 of section 11-0907 of this title, until December thirty-first, two thousand [eighteen] twenty-one, the department is authorized to adopt regulations with respect to the manner of taking, possession, open seasons and bag limits for deer. The authority to adopt such regulations is in addition to any authority contained in this section or section 11-0913 of this title respecting regulations fixing open seasons for deer and the issuance of deer management permits.
§ 3. Paragraph a of subdivision 1 of section 11-0913 of the environmental conservation law, as amended by chapter 209 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
a. Until December thirty-first, two thousand [eighteen] twenty-one, whenever in its opinion the population of deer in any area of the state except in the northern zone is such that additional harvest of deer is reasonably necessary to properly manage the deer herd in the state in balance with the available deer range and natural food supply, the department may provide by regulation for issuance of deer management permits, permitting the taking of one deer for the permit, in addition to the limit of one deer that may otherwise be taken by one person in a license year.
§ 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
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