Legislation: Enacting new laws of benefit to hound hunting continues to be of primary importance to CHC’s legislative efforts, and serves a very strategic role for our future endeavors. Similarly, CHC must remain vigilant of legislation that would curb our ability to enjoy our passion for hunting with hounds. The 2012 legislative year promises to be a very active one for CHC, with several new bills that will influence our activities as hunters.

1. SB 1221 (Lieu - D) would ban the use of dogs for the pursuit or take of black bear and bobcat, allow California Department of Fish and Game employees to kill any dog threatening to injure a bear or bobcat, and prevent the owner of that dog from having any legal recourse. CHC Position: OPPOSE (Please click here for more information.)

2. AB 1162 (Chesbro - D) would provide an increased financial penalty for the more egregious forms of poaching of trophy deer, elk, bighorn, or pronghorn, and adds a substantial financial penalty for the misuse of technology for the purposes of trafficking in bear parts equal to $10,000 per each bear part retained for sale. This bill moved through several committees with little to no opposition but was placed in the Suspense file when the California Department and Fish and Game (“CADFG”) opposed it. This bill will be re-heard this year, and with compromises made with CADFG, the prospects for passage are encouraging. CHC Position: SUPPORT (CHC sponsored the language pertaining to black bear commercialization.)

3. AB 606 (Gatto – D) would require CADFG to allow compatible hunting, fishing, and other recreational activities, on land subject to a wildlife conservation easement or a fish and wildlife habitat contract, except as specifically prohibited in the applicable easement, contract, or memorandum of understanding, or by other applicable law. This bill moved through several committees and the Assembly floor with no opposition, but was held at the Senate due to opposition to the bill from CADFG who believed that the bill is unnecessary and potentially confusing; the bill has been modified so as to better address their concerns. CHC Position: SUPPORT

4. SB 1249 (Wolk – D) would authorize CADFG to enter into contracts or other agreements with nonprofit conservation groups for the management and operation of department-managed lands and would reinforce hunting, fishing, wildlife viewing, wildlife photography, conservation education, and fish and wildlife research as the priority uses compatible with wildlife management areas, and would prohibit other uses in wildlife management areas unless specifically authorized by regulations adopted by the commission. The bill would authorize the commission to require the purchase of a special use permit for those other uses in wildlife management areas. The bill would require the purchase of an entry permit as provided in regulations adopted by the commission for access to department-managed lands for uses other than hunting and fishing, as defined, except as provided. CHC Position: SUPPORT

5. AB 1784 (Monning – D) would authorize the Department of Fish and Game to allow qualified individuals, educational institutions, governmental agencies, or non-governmental organizations to conduct mountain lion research projects designed to meet specific goals and governed by a memorandum of understanding. This bill would allow the use of hounds and live traps, but prohibit leghold traps, body-gripping traps, and snares. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute. CHC Position: SUPPORT

6. AB 1046 (B Berryhill – R) would prohibit CADFG or the California Fish and Game Commission from establishing an absolute, statewide, and permanent prohibition on hunting or taking game. The bill would not prohibit the commission, in accordance with the California Constitution, from imposing conditions necessary for the protection and propagation of game. CHC Position: SUPPORT

7. SB 1166 (Berryhill – R) would require CADFG to exercise its authority to manage lands in a manner to support, promote, and enhance wildlife-dependent recreational activities, including hunting and sport fishing opportunities, to the extent authorized by law. The bill would prohibit, to the greatest practicable extent, department decisions and actions relating to land management from resulting in any net loss of available wildlife-dependent recreational opportunities that exist on January 1, 2013. CHC Position: SUPPORT

8. SB 1367 (D - Fuller) would exempt peace officers, whether active or honorably retired, or a person with a valid license to carry a concealed firearm, from the prohibition against the carrying of firearms while engaged in the taking of deer with bow and arrow, but would retain the prohibition on the taking or attempting to take deer with that firearm. CHC Position: SUPPORT

9. SB 1148 (D – Pavley) would eliminate the fixed fee for a Lifetime Hunting or Fishing License, and would instead require the Fish and Game Commission to establish base fees for lifetime sportsman’s licenses, and require those fees to be adjusted annually thereafter according to the index. The bill would require the commission to issue lifetime sportsman’s licenses. CHC Position: OPPOSE

10. SB 1107 (Berryhill – R) would require that a person to whom a license, permit, reservation, tag, or other entitlement is issued pursuant to the Automated License Data System have the opportunity at the time of issuance to voluntarily authorize the release of contact information to nonprofit conservation organizations and would authorize CADFG to impose a charge on a nonprofit conservation organization to recover the direct reasonable costs of administering these provisions. This is a bill that was vetoed by Governor Brown due to the concerns of CADFG. CHC Position: SUPPORT

11. AB 1527 (Portantino – D) is a follow-up to a bill (AB144, also by Portantino – D) signed into law in 2011 by Governor Brown that now bans the open carry of unloaded handguns, and would apply the same prohibitions on the carrying of unloaded firearms of all types (rifles, shotguns, etc). This would make it a misdemeanor to carrying an unloaded firearm that is not a handgun on his or her person outside a motor vehicle in an incorporated city or city and county and the person at the same time possesses ammunition capable of being discharged from the unloaded firearm. This bill exempts those while in the act of, or on the way from or to hunting or shooting. CHC Position: OPPOSE

12. AB 2402 (D – Huffman) would establish the following:

• re-name the Department of Fish and Game to the Department of Fish and Wildlife, but would prohibit existing supplies, forms, insignias, signs, logos, uniforms, or emblems from being destroyed or changed as a result of changing the name and would require their continued use until exhausted or unserviceable

• require the Director of Fish and Game, in consultation with the Natural Resources Agency, to establish an independent science advisory panel to provide advice and recommendations to the department and the commission

• require electronic field equipment utilized by fish and game wardens to be modified to give fish and game wardens access to Automated License Data System information in the field

• require CADFG to modify its Automated License Data System to include information on all violations of the code and regulations adopted pursuant to the code

• require the commission to establish base fees for lifetime hunting licenses, as specified, and for abalone report cards and marine aquaria collector’s permits for the 2013 license year, and would require those fees to be adjusted annually thereafter according to an inflation index

• require CADFG to develop and adopt a method to impose and collect entry pass fees onsite for visitors that are engaging in non-consumptive uses at state wildlife refuges and other lands managed by the department that are open to the public, and require the department to modify its online processes for purchase of entry passes and warden stamps to make these systems user-friendly for non-consumptive users

• require the director, at least 30 days before submitting the department’s proposed annual budget requests to the Governor, to give the commission an opportunity to review and provide comment on the proposed annual budget requests

• require the Augmented Deer Tags Account, Bighorn Sheep Permit Account, and Wild Pig Account within the fund to be consolidated and any remaining funds in these accounts transferred to the Big Game Management Account. CHC Position: OPPOSE

Regulations: CADFG will not be introducing any proposals of substance to hound hunters for the 2012-2013 regulatory year, but instead, is focusing its efforts on the collection of data used in the formation of new management plans.

Strategic Vision: As a result of legislation signed into law, a review of the mission and strategic vision of the Department of Fish and Game and Fish and Game Commission is currently underway. This is being facilitated by an executive committee, but the development of the options for the roadmap is being managed by a Stakeholder Advisory Group (“SAG”). While the majority of participants (such as the Humane Society of the United States) on the SAG do not represent hunting or fishing interests, we are fortunate to have California Outdoor Heritage Alliance President Bill Gaines seated at the table on our behalf. Please visit http://vision.ca.gov/ for more information and be sure to share your thoughts with the SAG, as this effort may fundamentally change the fate of the Department, Commission, and our ability to hunt forever more.