HB4231 EnrolledLRB100 15863 SLF 30974 b

1    AN ACT concerning wildlife.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Wildlife Code is amended by changing Section
52.26 and 2.33 as follows:
 
6    (520 ILCS 5/2.26)  (from Ch. 61, par. 2.26)
7    Sec. 2.26. Deer hunting permits. Any person attempting to
8take deer shall first obtain a "Deer Hunting Permit" issued by
9the Department in accordance with its administrative rules.
10Those rules must provide for the issuance of the following
11types of resident deer archery permits: (i) a combination
12permit, consisting of one either-sex permit and one
13antlerless-only permit, (ii) a single antlerless-only permit,
14and (iii) a single either-sex permit. The fee for a Deer
15Hunting Permit to take deer with either bow and arrow or gun
16shall not exceed $25.00 for residents of the State. The
17Department may by administrative rule provide for non-resident
18deer hunting permits for which the fee will not exceed $300 in
192005, $350 in 2006, and $400 in 2007 and thereafter except as
20provided below for non-resident landowners and non-resident
21archery hunters. The Department may by administrative rule
22provide for a non-resident archery deer permit consisting of
23not more than 2 harvest tags at a total cost not to exceed $325

 

 

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1in 2005, $375 in 2006, and $425 in 2007 and thereafter.
2    The standards and specifications for use of guns and bow
3and arrow for deer hunting shall be established by
4administrative rule.
5    No person may have in his possession any firearm not
6authorized by administrative rule for a specific hunting season
7when taking deer.
8    Persons having a firearm deer hunting permit shall be
9permitted to take deer only during the period from 1/2 hour
10before sunrise to 1/2 hour after sunset, and only during those
11days for which an open season is established for the taking of
12deer by use of shotgun, handgun, or muzzle loading rifle.
13    Persons having an archery deer hunting permit shall be
14permitted to take deer only during the period from 1/2 hour
15before sunrise to 1/2 hour after sunset, and only during those
16days for which an open season is established for the taking of
17deer by use of bow and arrow.
18    It shall be unlawful for any person to take deer by use of
19dogs, horses, automobiles, aircraft or other vehicles, or by
20the use or aid of bait or baiting of any kind. For the purposes
21of this Section, "bait" means any material, whether liquid or
22solid, including food, salt, minerals, and other products,
23except pure water, that can be ingested, placed, or scattered
24in such a manner as to attract or lure white-tailed deer.
25"Baiting" means the placement or scattering of bait to attract
26deer. An area is considered as baited during the presence of

 

 

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1and for 10 consecutive days following the removal of bait.
2Nothing in this Section shall prohibit the use of a dog to
3track wounded deer. Any person using a dog for tracking wounded
4deer must maintain physical control of the dog at all times by
5means of a maximum 50 foot lead attached to the dog's collar or
6harness. Tracking wounded deer is permissible at night, but at
7no time outside of legal deer hunting hours or seasons shall
8any person handling or accompanying a dog being used for
9tracking wounded deer be in possession of any firearm or
10archery device. Persons tracking wounded deer with a dog during
11the firearm deer seasons shall wear blaze orange or solid blaze
12pink color as required. Dog handlers tracking wounded deer with
13a dog are exempt from hunting license and deer permit
14requirements so long as they are accompanied by the licensed
15deer hunter who wounded the deer.
16    It shall be unlawful to possess or transport any wild deer
17which has been injured or killed in any manner upon a public
18highway or public right-of-way of this State unless exempted by
19administrative rule.
20    Persons hunting deer must have gun unloaded and no bow and
21arrow device shall be carried with the arrow in the nocked
22position during hours when deer hunting is unlawful.
23    It shall be unlawful for any person, having taken the legal
24limit of deer by gun, to further participate with gun in any
25deer hunting party.
26    It shall be unlawful for any person, having taken the legal

 

 

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1limit of deer by bow and arrow, to further participate with bow
2and arrow in any deer hunting party.
3    The Department may prohibit upland game hunting during the
4gun deer season by administrative rule.
5    The Department shall not limit the number of non-resident,
6either-sex archery deer hunting permits to less than 20,000.
7    Any person who violates any of the provisions of this
8Section, including administrative rules, shall be guilty of a
9Class B misdemeanor.
10    For the purposes of calculating acreage under this Section,
11the Department shall, after determining the total acreage of
12the applicable tract or tracts of land, round remaining
13fractional portions of an acre greater than or equal to half of
14an acre up to the next whole acre.
15    For the purposes of taking white-tailed deer, nothing in
16this Section shall be construed to prevent the manipulation,
17including mowing or cutting, of standing crops as a normal
18agricultural or soil stabilization practice, food plots, or
19normal agricultural practices, including planting, harvesting,
20and maintenance such as cultivating or the use of products
21designed for scent only and not capable of ingestion, solid or
22liquid, placed or scattered, in such a manner as to attract or
23lure deer. Such manipulation for the purpose of taking
24white-tailed deer may be further modified by administrative
25rule.
26(Source: P.A. 98-180, eff. 8-5-13; 99-642, eff. 7-28-16;

 

 

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199-869, eff. 1-1-17.)
 
2    (520 ILCS 5/2.33)  (from Ch. 61, par. 2.33)
3    Sec. 2.33. Prohibitions.
4    (a) It is unlawful to carry or possess any gun in any State
5refuge unless otherwise permitted by administrative rule.
6    (b) It is unlawful to use or possess any snare or
7snare-like device, deadfall, net, or pit trap to take any
8species, except that snares not powered by springs or other
9mechanical devices may be used to trap fur-bearing mammals, in
10water sets only, if at least one-half of the snare noose is
11located underwater at all times.
12    (c) It is unlawful for any person at any time to take a
13wild mammal protected by this Act from its den by means of any
14mechanical device, spade, or digging device or to use smoke or
15other gases to dislodge or remove such mammal except as
16provided in Section 2.37.
17    (d) It is unlawful to use a ferret or any other small
18mammal which is used in the same or similar manner for which
19ferrets are used for the purpose of frightening or driving any
20mammals from their dens or hiding places.
21    (e) (Blank).
22    (f) It is unlawful to use spears, gigs, hooks or any like
23device to take any species protected by this Act.
24    (g) It is unlawful to use poisons, chemicals or explosives
25for the purpose of taking any species protected by this Act.

 

 

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1    (h) It is unlawful to hunt adjacent to or near any peat,
2grass, brush or other inflammable substance when it is burning.
3    (i) It is unlawful to take, pursue or intentionally harass
4or disturb in any manner any wild birds or mammals by use or
5aid of any vehicle or conveyance, except as permitted by the
6Code of Federal Regulations for the taking of waterfowl. It is
7also unlawful to use the lights of any vehicle or conveyance or
8any light from or any light connected to the vehicle or
9conveyance in any area where wildlife may be found except in
10accordance with Section 2.37 of this Act; however, nothing in
11this Section shall prohibit the normal use of headlamps for the
12purpose of driving upon a roadway. Striped skunk, opossum, red
13fox, gray fox, raccoon, bobcat, and coyote may be taken during
14the open season by use of a small light which is worn on the
15body or hand-held by a person on foot and not in any vehicle.
16    (j) It is unlawful to use any shotgun larger than 10 gauge
17while taking or attempting to take any of the species protected
18by this Act.
19    (k) It is unlawful to use or possess in the field any
20shotgun shell loaded with a shot size larger than lead BB or
21steel T (.20 diameter) when taking or attempting to take any
22species of wild game mammals (excluding white-tailed deer),
23wild game birds, migratory waterfowl or migratory game birds
24protected by this Act, except white-tailed deer as provided for
25in Section 2.26 and other species as provided for by subsection
26(l) or administrative rule.

 

 

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1    (l) It is unlawful to take any species of wild game, except
2white-tailed deer and fur-bearing mammals, with a shotgun
3loaded with slugs unless otherwise provided for by
4administrative rule.
5    (m) It is unlawful to use any shotgun capable of holding
6more than 3 shells in the magazine or chamber combined, except
7on game breeding and hunting preserve areas licensed under
8Section 3.27 and except as permitted by the Code of Federal
9Regulations for the taking of waterfowl. If the shotgun is
10capable of holding more than 3 shells, it shall, while being
11used on an area other than a game breeding and shooting
12preserve area licensed pursuant to Section 3.27, be fitted with
13a one piece plug that is irremovable without dismantling the
14shotgun or otherwise altered to render it incapable of holding
15more than 3 shells in the magazine and chamber, combined.
16    (n) It is unlawful for any person, except persons who
17possess a permit to hunt from a vehicle as provided in this
18Section and persons otherwise permitted by law, to have or
19carry any gun in or on any vehicle, conveyance or aircraft,
20unless such gun is unloaded and enclosed in a case, except that
21at field trials authorized by Section 2.34 of this Act,
22unloaded guns or guns loaded with blank cartridges only, may be
23carried on horseback while not contained in a case, or to have
24or carry any bow or arrow device in or on any vehicle unless
25such bow or arrow device is unstrung or enclosed in a case, or
26otherwise made inoperable.

 

 

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1    (o) (Blank).
2    (p) It is unlawful to take game birds, migratory game birds
3or migratory waterfowl with a rifle, pistol, revolver or
4airgun.
5    (q) It is unlawful to fire a rifle, pistol, revolver or
6airgun on, over or into any waters of this State, including
7frozen waters.
8    (r) It is unlawful to discharge any gun or bow and arrow
9device along, upon, across, or from any public right-of-way or
10highway in this State.
11    (s) It is unlawful to use a silencer or other device to
12muffle or mute the sound of the explosion or report resulting
13from the firing of any gun.
14    (t) It is unlawful for any person to take or attempt to
15take any species of wildlife or parts thereof, intentionally or
16wantonly allow a dog to hunt, within or upon the land of
17another, or upon waters flowing over or standing on the land of
18another, or to knowingly shoot a gun or bow and arrow device at
19any wildlife physically on or flying over the property of
20another without first obtaining permission from the owner or
21the owner's designee. For the purposes of this Section, the
22owner's designee means anyone who the owner designates in a
23written authorization and the authorization must contain (i)
24the legal or common description of property for such authority
25is given, (ii) the extent that the owner's designee is
26authorized to make decisions regarding who is allowed to take

 

 

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1or attempt to take any species of wildlife or parts thereof,
2and (iii) the owner's notarized signature. Before enforcing
3this Section the law enforcement officer must have received
4notice from the owner or the owner's designee of a violation of
5this Section. Statements made to the law enforcement officer
6regarding this notice shall not be rendered inadmissible by the
7hearsay rule when offered for the purpose of showing the
8required notice.
9    (u) It is unlawful for any person to discharge any firearm
10for the purpose of taking any of the species protected by this
11Act, or hunt with gun or dog, or intentionally or wantonly
12allow a dog to hunt, within 300 yards of an inhabited dwelling
13without first obtaining permission from the owner or tenant,
14except that while trapping, hunting with bow and arrow, hunting
15with dog and shotgun using shot shells only, or hunting with
16shotgun using shot shells only, or providing outfitting
17services under a waterfowl outfitter permit, or on licensed
18game breeding and hunting preserve areas, as defined in Section
193.27, on federally owned and managed lands and on Department
20owned, managed, leased, or controlled lands, a 100 yard
21restriction shall apply.
22    (v) It is unlawful for any person to remove fur-bearing
23mammals from, or to move or disturb in any manner, the traps
24owned by another person without written authorization of the
25owner to do so.
26    (w) It is unlawful for any owner of a dog to knowingly or

 

 

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1wantonly allow his or her dog to pursue, harass or kill deer,
2except that nothing in this Section shall prohibit the tracking
3of wounded deer with a dog in accordance with the provisions of
4Section 2.26 of this Code.
5    (x) It is unlawful for any person to wantonly or carelessly
6injure or destroy, in any manner whatsoever, any real or
7personal property on the land of another while engaged in
8hunting or trapping thereon.
9    (y) It is unlawful to hunt wild game protected by this Act
10between one half hour after sunset and one half hour before
11sunrise, except that hunting hours between one half hour after
12sunset and one half hour before sunrise may be established by
13administrative rule for fur-bearing mammals.
14    (z) It is unlawful to take any game bird (excluding wild
15turkeys and crippled pheasants not capable of normal flight and
16otherwise irretrievable) protected by this Act when not flying.
17Nothing in this Section shall prohibit a person from carrying
18an uncased, unloaded shotgun in a boat, while in pursuit of a
19crippled migratory waterfowl that is incapable of normal
20flight, for the purpose of attempting to reduce the migratory
21waterfowl to possession, provided that the attempt is made
22immediately upon downing the migratory waterfowl and is done
23within 400 yards of the blind from which the migratory
24waterfowl was downed. This exception shall apply only to
25migratory game birds that are not capable of normal flight.
26Migratory waterfowl that are crippled may be taken only with a

 

 

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1shotgun as regulated by subsection (j) of this Section using
2shotgun shells as regulated in subsection (k) of this Section.
3    (aa) It is unlawful to use or possess any device that may
4be used for tree climbing or cutting, while hunting fur-bearing
5mammals, excluding coyotes.
6    (bb) It is unlawful for any person, except licensed game
7breeders, pursuant to Section 2.29 to import, carry into, or
8possess alive in this State any species of wildlife taken
9outside of this State, without obtaining permission to do so
10from the Director.
11    (cc) It is unlawful for any person to have in his or her
12possession any freshly killed species protected by this Act
13during the season closed for taking.
14    (dd) It is unlawful to take any species protected by this
15Act and retain it alive except as provided by administrative
16rule.
17    (ee) It is unlawful to possess any rifle while in the field
18during gun deer season except as provided in Section 2.26 and
19administrative rules.
20    (ff) It is unlawful for any person to take any species
21protected by this Act, except migratory waterfowl, during the
22gun deer hunting season in those counties open to gun deer
23hunting, unless he or she wears, when in the field, a cap and
24upper outer garment of a solid blaze orange color or solid
25blaze pink color, with such articles of clothing displaying a
26minimum of 400 square inches of blaze orange or solid blaze

 

 

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1pink color material.
2    (gg) It is unlawful during the upland game season for any
3person to take upland game with a firearm unless he or she
4wears, while in the field, a cap of solid blaze orange color or
5solid blaze pink color. For purposes of this Act, upland game
6is defined as Bobwhite Quail, Hungarian Partridge, Ring-necked
7Pheasant, Eastern Cottontail and Swamp Rabbit.
8    (hh) It shall be unlawful to kill or cripple any species
9protected by this Act for which there is a bag limit without
10making a reasonable effort to retrieve such species and include
11such in the bag limit. It shall be unlawful for any person
12having control over harvested game mammals, game birds, or
13migratory game birds for which there is a bag limit to wantonly
14waste or destroy the usable meat of the game, except this shall
15not apply to wildlife taken under Sections 2.37 or 3.22 of this
16Code. For purposes of this subsection, "usable meat" means the
17breast meat of a game bird or migratory game bird and the hind
18ham and front shoulders of a game mammal. It shall be unlawful
19for any person to place, leave, dump, or abandon a wildlife
20carcass or parts of it along or upon a public right-of-way or
21highway or on public or private property, including a waterway
22or stream, without the permission of the owner or tenant. It
23shall not be unlawful to discard game meat that is determined
24to be unfit for human consumption.
25    (ii) This Section shall apply only to those species
26protected by this Act taken within the State. Any species or

 

 

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1any parts thereof, legally taken in and transported from other
2states or countries, may be possessed within the State, except
3as provided in this Section and Sections 2.35, 2.36 and 3.21.
4    (jj) (Blank).
5    (kk) Nothing contained in this Section shall prohibit the
6Director from issuing permits to paraplegics or to other
7persons with disabilities who meet the requirements set forth
8in administrative rule to shoot or hunt from a vehicle as
9provided by that rule, provided that such is otherwise in
10accord with this Act.
11    (ll) Nothing contained in this Act shall prohibit the
12taking of aquatic life protected by the Fish and Aquatic Life
13Code or birds and mammals protected by this Act, except deer
14and fur-bearing mammals, from a boat not camouflaged or
15disguised to alter its identity or to further provide a place
16of concealment and not propelled by sail or mechanical power.
17However, only shotguns not larger than 10 gauge nor smaller
18than .410 bore loaded with not more than 3 shells of a shot
19size no larger than lead BB or steel T (.20 diameter) may be
20used to take species protected by this Act.
21    (mm) Nothing contained in this Act shall prohibit the use
22of a shotgun, not larger than 10 gauge nor smaller than a 20
23gauge, with a rifled barrel.
24    (nn) It shall be unlawful to possess any species of
25wildlife or wildlife parts taken unlawfully in Illinois, any
26other state, or any other country, whether or not the wildlife

 

 

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1or wildlife parts is indigenous to Illinois. For the purposes
2of this subsection, the statute of limitations for unlawful
3possession of wildlife or wildlife parts shall not cease until
42 years after the possession has permanently ended.
5(Source: P.A. 99-33, eff. 1-1-16; 99-143, eff. 7-27-15; 99-642,
6eff. 7-28-16; 100-489, eff. 9-8-17.)