Bill Text: CA AB2105 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: Big game mammals: bighorn sheep.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2014-09-19 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 467, Statutes of 2014. [AB2105 Detail]
Download: California-2013-AB2105-Chaptered.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 2105 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 467
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 19, 2014
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR SEPTEMBER 19, 2014
PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 11, 2014
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 18, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 2, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 17, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 2, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Frazier
FEBRUARY 20, 2014
An act to amend Sections 3953 and 4902 of, and to add Section 709
to, the Fish and Game Code, relating to mammals.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2105, Frazier. Big game mammals: bighorn sheep.
Existing law, except as provided, prohibits the taking or
possession of fully protected mammals or parts of those mammals at
any time. Existing law establishes a list of fully protected mammals,
including bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) generally, but excepts
Nelson bighorn sheep (subspecies Ovis canadensis nelsoni) under
specified circumstances.
Existing law requires all money collected under the provisions of
the Fish and Game Code, including money received as a result of the
sale of licenses issued under the provisions of the code, to be
deposited into the Fish and Game Preservation Fund, unless otherwise
provided. Existing law grants authority to the Department of Fish and
Wildlife to issue tags, stamps, and licenses for the hunting of
antelope, elk, deer, wild pigs, bear, and bighorn sheep upon payment
of a fee, to be deposited into the Big Game Management Account in the
Fish and Game Preservation Fund. Existing law authorizes the Fish
and Game Commission to set the cost of a Nelson bighorn ram tag at
not more than $500.
This bill would authorize a nonprofit organization designated by
the department to assist in the sale of deer, elk, antelope, or big
hornsheep fundraising tags to retain 5% of the amount of the sale
price of the tag as a reasonable vendor fee. The bill would require
the selling nonprofit organization, within 30 days of the date of the
sale, to send the department 95% of the total auction sale price of
the tag, with an itemized receipt showing the sale price and the 5%
reduction retained by the nonprofit organization as a vendor's fee.
This bill would set a Nelson bighorn ram tag at $400 for residents
and would require the commission, on or before July 1, 2015, by
regulation, to fix the fee for a nonresident of the state at not less
than $1,500 for the same tag. The bill would subject the price of
each tag to an annual specified adjustment.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) The National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and
Wildlife-Associated Recreation has been conducted since 1955 and is
one of the oldest and most comprehensive continuing recreation
surveys.
(b) A National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated
Recreation conducted by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service
in 2011 found all of the following:
(1) Over 90,000,000 United States residents 16 years of age and
older participated in wildlife-dependent recreation.
(2) Individuals participating in wildlife-dependent recreation
spent $145,000,000,000 in 2011 on their activities, which equated to
1 percent of the gross domestic product.
(3) In 2011 alone, hunters and anglers spent $90,000,000,000 on
equipment, travel, licenses and fees, and other related expenses,
while wildlife viewers spent $55,000,000,000.
(4) Hunters and anglers spend $3,200,000,000 in California
annually.
(c) Hunter-generated dollars helped purchase and maintain
1,000,000 acres of state-owned lands in California.
(d) Hunting license tag and stamp sales generate about $28,000,000
annually for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife's
conservation and scientific efforts.
(e) Hunters have assisted in the restoration, enhancement, and
protection of over 700,000 acres of wetland habitat in California
since 1988.
(f) Hunters generate more than $9,000,000 annually for California
via the Pittman-Robertson Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act,
federal legislation lobbied for by hunters in 1937.
(g) Hunting and angling serve as the cornerstone of the North
American Model of Wildlife Conservation, and serve as a source of
funding for conservation efforts in North America.
(h) Special auction hunting tags sell for up to hundreds of
thousands of dollars with the revenue going back to the Department of
Fish and Wildlife for habitat projects and research.
(i) In 1986, the Legislature fixed the maximum price of both
resident and nonresident bighorn desert sheep tags in statute at
$500, and permits no more than 15 percent of these tags to be
auctioned as discussed above.
(j) According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, from October of
1986 to October of 2013, inclusive, the cost of living has increased
by 112 percent. Considering inflation alone, the $500 tag fee from
1986 should have risen to $1,060 by 2013 based on inflation.
(k) Nonresident desert bighorn sheep tags are available in only
six states, making that desert bighorn tag the most difficult to
acquire. In 2013, California offered hunters only 20 desert bighorn
sheep tags in the public draw. Thirteen thousand four hundred
thirty-five hunters applied for those 20 tags, up from 4,628 who
applied just 15 years earlier in 1999. Despite the huge increase in
demand, the $500 tag fee has remained unchanged.
(l) In 2014, California is charging nonresidents $1,272.50 for an
elk tag. In addition, California has over 400 elk tags available for
hunters, an amount that is larger than the number of desert bighorn
sheep tags.
SEC. 2. Section 709 is added to the Fish and Game Code, to read:
709. A nonprofit organization designated by the department to
assist in the sale of deer, elk, antelope, or bighorn sheep
fundraising tags that are sold on behalf of the department for the
purpose of raising funds for specified programs and projects,
pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 331, subdivision (d) of
Section 332, subdivision (a) of Section 4334, or subdivision (d) of
Section 4902, is authorized to retain 5 percent of the amount of the
sale price of the tag as a reasonable vendor fee.
SEC. 3. Section 3953 of the Fish and Game Code is amended to read:
3953. (a) The Big Game Management Account is hereby established
within the Fish and Game Preservation Fund.
(b) Except as provided in Section 709, all revenues from the sale
of antelope, elk, deer, wild pig, bear, and sheep tags, including any
fundraising tags, shall be deposited in the Big Game Management
Account to permit separate accountability for the receipt and
expenditure of these funds. Within 30 days of the date of the sale,
the selling nonprofit organization shall send the department 95
percent of the total auction sale price of the tag, with an itemized
receipt showing the sale price and the 5-percent reduction retained
by the nonprofit organization as a vendor's fee.
(c) Funds deposited in the Big Game Management Account shall be
available for expenditure upon appropriation by the Legislature to
the department. These funds shall be expended solely for the purposes
set forth in this section and Sections 3951 and 3952, and Chapter 5
(commencing with Section 450) of Division 1, Chapter 7 (commencing
with Section 4650), and Chapter 11 (commencing with Section 4900),
including acquiring land, completing projects, and implementing
programs to benefit antelope, elk, deer, wild pigs, bear, and sheep,
and expanding public hunting opportunities and related public
outreach. Any land acquired with funds from the Big Game Management
Account shall be acquired in fee title or protected with a
conservation easement and, to the extent possible, be open or provide
access to the public for antelope, elk, deer, wild pig, bear, or
sheep hunting. The department may also use funds from the Big Game
Management Account to pay for administrative and enforcement costs of
the programs and activities described in this section. The amount
allocated from the account for administrative costs shall be limited
to the reasonable costs associated with administration of the
programs and activities described in this section.
(d) The department may make grants to, reimburse, or enter into
contracts or other agreements, as defined in subdivision (a) of
Section 1571, with nonprofit organizations for the use of the funds
from the Big Game Management Account to carry out the purposes of
this section, including related habitat conservation projects.
(e) An advisory committee, as determined by the department, that
includes interested nonprofit organizations that have goals and
objectives directly related to the management and conservation of big
game species and primarily represent the interests of persons
licensed pursuant to Section 3031 shall review and provide comments
to the department on all proposed projects funded from the Big Game
Management Account to help ensure that the requirements of this
section have been met. The department shall post budget information
and a brief description on an Internet Web site for all projects
funded from the Big Game Management Account.
(f) Big game projects authorized pursuant to this section are 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.
(g) The department shall maintain the internal accountability
necessary to ensure compliance with the collection, deposit, and
expenditure of funds specified in this section.
SEC. 4. Section 4902 of the Fish and Game Code is amended to read:
4902. (a) The commission may adopt all regulations necessary to
provide for biologically sound management of Nelson bighorn sheep
(subspecies Ovis canadensis nelsoni).
(b) (1) After the plans developed by the department pursuant to
Section 4901 for the management units have been submitted, the
commission may authorize sport hunting of mature Nelson bighorn rams.
Before authorizing the sport hunting, the commission shall take into
account the Nelson bighorn sheep population statewide, including the
population in the management units designated for hunting.
(2) Notwithstanding Section 219, the commission shall not,
however, adopt regulations authorizing the sport hunting in a single
year of more than 15 percent of the mature Nelson bighorn rams in a
single management unit, based on the department's annual estimate of
the population in each management unit.
(c) The fee for a tag to take a Nelson bighorn ram shall be four
hundred dollars ($400) for a resident of the state, which shall be
adjusted annually pursuant to Section 713. On or before July 1, 2015,
the commission shall, by regulation, fix the fee for a nonresident
of the state at not less than one thousand five hundred dollars
($1,500), which shall be adjusted annually pursuant to Section 713.
Fee revenues shall be deposited in the Big Game Management Account
established in Section 3953 and, upon appropriation by the
Legislature, shall be expended as set forth in that section.
(d) The commission shall annually direct the department to
authorize not more than three of the tags available for issuance that
year to take Nelson bighorn rams for the purpose of raising funds
for programs and projects to benefit Nelson bighorn sheep. These tags
may be sold to residents or nonresidents of the State of California
at auction or by another method and shall not be subject to the fee
limitation prescribed in subdivision (c). Commencing with tags sold
for the 1993 hunting season, if more than one tag is authorized, the
department shall designate a nonprofit organization organized
pursuant to the laws of this state, or the California chapter of a
nonprofit organization organized pursuant to the laws of another
state, as the seller of not less than one of these tags. The number
of tags authorized for the purpose of raising funds pursuant to this
subdivision, if more than one, shall not exceed 15 percent of the
total number of tags authorized pursuant to subdivision (b). All
revenue from the sale of tags pursuant to this subdivision shall be
deposited in the Big Game Management Account established in Section
3953 and, upon appropriation by the Legislature, shall be expended as
set forth in that section.
(e) No tag issued pursuant to this section shall be valid unless
and until the licensee has successfully completed a prehunt hunter
familiarization and orientation and has demonstrated to the
department that he or she is familiar with the requisite equipment
for participating in the hunting of Nelson bighorn rams, as
determined by the commission. The orientation shall be conducted by
the department at convenient locations and times preceding each
season, as determined by the commission.
