Bill Text: NY S05849 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Relates to authorizing cull permits to certified nuisance wildlife specialists; authorizes the department of environmental conservation, after a review of the site-specific wildlife management plan, and upon a finding that wildlife has become a nuisance, destructive to public or private property or a threat to public health or welfare, to issue a certified nuisance wildlife specialist a cull permit; defines terms.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Vetoed) 2019-11-25 - tabled [S05849 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-S05849-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5849 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN SENATE May 15, 2019 ___________ Introduced by Sen. MAY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Environmental Conservation AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to wild- life damage management The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The environmental conservation law is amended by adding a 2 new section 11-0522 to read as follows: 3 § 11-0522. Cull permits to certified nuisance wildlife specialists. 4 1. For the purposes of this section, "certified nuisance wildlife 5 specialist" shall mean an employee of a land grant university, or an 6 employee of or a contractor for the federal or state government or any 7 city, town, village or county, responsible for wildlife management and 8 acting pursuant to a wildlife management plan, who complies with the 9 criteria established by the department, in rules and regulations, that 10 at a minimum require: 11 a. a minimum level of marksmanship certification, including ongoing 12 certification; 13 b. liability insurance coverage levels or other financial arrangements 14 approved by the department; and 15 c. reporting requirements. 16 2. The department may, after reviewing the site-specific wildlife 17 management plan, and upon a finding that wildlife has become a nuisance, 18 destructive to public or private property or a threat to public health 19 or welfare, issue a certified nuisance wildlife specialist a cull permit 20 for the following wildlife: 21 a. for areas at an airport, wildlife shall mean wild game and all 22 other animal life existing in a wild state at an airport, as defined in 23 subdivision five of section two hundred forty of the general business 24 law, that may pose a risk to aircraft. 25 b. for all other areas, wildlife shall mean only deer and coyote. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD04962-01-9S. 5849 2 1 3. Each cull permit application shall comply with the criteria estab- 2 lished by the department in rules and regulations that at a minimum 3 include requirements for: the timeframe during which the permit must be 4 used, a site-specific wildlife management plan, a geographic description 5 of the area for which the permit is being requested, a written contract 6 with the airport or entity requesting the cull, requests for any author- 7 ization pursuant to subdivisions three and nine of section 11-0505 of 8 this title, subdivision two of section 11-0901 of this article, and 9 subdivisions two and four of section 11-0931 of this article, provided 10 that any such authorization subsequently granted shall be explicitly 11 included on any cull permit, and details regarding expected local law 12 enforcement participation. 13 4. Nothing in this section shall be construed as requiring or obligat- 14 ing the department to issue a permit to take wildlife or direct the 15 taking of any wildlife when in its opinion the nuisance, destruction of 16 property or threat to public health and welfare will not be effectively 17 abated thereby. 18 § 2. Subdivision 3 of section 11-0505 of the environmental conserva- 19 tion law, as amended by chapter 135 of the laws of 1982, is amended and 20 a new subdivision 9 is added to read as follows: 21 3. No deer or bear traps shall be made, set or used upon land inhabit- 22 ed by deer or bear. No salt lick shall be made, set or used upon land 23 inhabited by deer or bear, except that: 24 a. the department may do so on state wildlife refuges and wildlife 25 management areas; and 26 b. a certified nuisance wildlife specialist with a permit issued 27 pursuant to paragraph a or b of subdivision two of section 11-0522 of 28 this title may do so provided that such activities are in furtherance of 29 the site-specific wildlife management plan. 30 9. A certified nuisance wildlife specialist with a permit issued 31 pursuant to paragraph a or b of subdivision two of section 11-0522 of 32 this title may, in accordance with the parameters of such permit and the 33 participation of local law enforcement, entice deer in the manner 34 prohibited in subdivision eight of this section provided that such 35 activities are in furtherance of the site-specific wildlife management 36 plan. 37 § 3. Subdivision 2 of section 11-0901 of the environmental conserva- 38 tion law is amended to read as follows: 39 2. Wildlife shall not be taken on or from any public highway, except: 40 a. that in the forest preserve counties it may be taken from highways 41 other than state, county or town highways; and 42 b. by a certified nuisance wildlife specialist with a permit issued 43 pursuant to paragraph a or b of subdivision two of section 11-0522 of 44 this article provided that such activities are in furtherance of the 45 site-specific wildlife management plan. 46 § 4. Subdivision 2 and subparagraph 1 of paragraph b of subdivision 4 47 of section 11-0931 of the environmental conservation law, as amended by 48 section 8 of part EE of chapter 55 of the laws of 2014, are amended to 49 read as follows: 50 2. a. No crossbow or firearm except a pistol or revolver shall be 51 carried or possessed in or on a motor vehicle unless it is uncocked, for 52 a crossbow or unloaded, for a firearm in both the chamber and the maga- 53 zine, except that a loaded firearm which may be legally used for taking 54 migratory game birds may be carried or possessed in a motorboat while 55 being legally used in hunting migratory game birds, and b. no person 56 except a law enforcement officer in the performance of his officialS. 5849 3 1 duties or a certified nuisance wildlife specialist with a permit issued 2 pursuant to paragraph a or b of subdivision two of section 11-0522 of 3 this article, provided that such activities are in furtherance of the 4 site-specific wildlife management plan, shall, while in or on a motor 5 vehicle, use a jacklight, spotlight or other artificial light upon lands 6 inhabited by deer if he or she is in possession or is accompanied by a 7 person who is in possession, at the time of such use, of a longbow, 8 crossbow or a firearm of any kind except a pistol or revolver, unless 9 such longbow or crossbow is unstrung or such firearm or crossbow is 10 taken down or securely fastened in a case or locked in the trunk of the 11 vehicle. For purposes of this subdivision, motor vehicle shall mean 12 every vehicle or other device operated by any power other than muscle 13 power, and which shall include but not be limited to automobiles, 14 trucks, motorcycles, tractors, trailers and motorboats, snowmobiles and 15 snowtravelers, whether operated on or off public highways. Notwithstand- 16 ing the provisions of this subdivision, the department may issue a 17 permit to any person who is non-ambulatory, except with the use of a 18 mechanized aid, to possess a loaded firearm in or on a motor vehicle as 19 defined in this section, subject to such restrictions as the department 20 may deem necessary in the interest of public safety. Nothing in this 21 section permits the possession of a pistol or a revolver contrary to the 22 penal law. 23 (1) The owner or lessee of the dwelling house, or members of his imme- 24 diate family actually residing therein, or a person in his employ, or 25 the guest of the owner or lessee of the dwelling house acting with the 26 written consent of said owner or lessee, including a certified nuisance 27 wildlife specialist with a permit issued pursuant to paragraph b of 28 subdivision two of section 11-0522 of this article, provided that such 29 activities are in furtherance of the site-specific wildlife management 30 plan, provided however, that nothing herein shall be deemed to authorize 31 such persons to discharge a firearm within five hundred feet, a long bow 32 within one hundred fifty feet, or a crossbow within two hundred fifty 33 feet of any other dwelling house, or a farm building or farm structure 34 actually occupied or used, or a school building or playground, public 35 structure, or occupied factory or church; 36 § 5. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall 37 have become a law. Effective immediately the addition, amendment and/or 38 repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of 39 this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed 40 on or before such effective date.
