97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012
HB5612

 

Introduced 2/15/2012, by Rep. Jim Sacia

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
520 ILCS 5/2.25  from Ch. 61, par. 2.25
520 ILCS 5/2.26  from Ch. 61, par. 2.26

    Amends the Wildlife Code. Provides that deer may be taken in the State with rifles that fire certain handgun cartridges. Provides that over and under combination rifle-shotguns are prohibited.


LRB097 20221 CEL 65658 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB5612LRB097 20221 CEL 65658 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
5Sections 2.25 and 2.26 as follows:
 
6    (520 ILCS 5/2.25)  (from Ch. 61, par. 2.25)
7    Sec. 2.25. It shall be unlawful for any person to take deer
8except (i) with a shotgun, handgun, or muzzleloading rifle, or
9rifle or (ii) as provided by administrative rule, with a bow
10and arrow, or crossbow device for handicapped persons, as
11defined in Section 2.33, and persons age 62 or older during the
12open season of not more than 14 days which will be set annually
13by the Director between the dates of November 1st and December
1431st, both inclusive, or a special 2-day, youth-only season
15between the dates of September 1 and October 31. For the
16purposes of this Section, legal handguns include any centerfire
17handguns of .30 caliber or larger with a minimum barrel length
18of 4 inches. The only legal ammunition for a centerfire handgun
19is a cartridge of .30 caliber or larger with a capability of at
20least 500 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle. Full metal
21jacket bullets may not be used to harvest deer. For the
22purposes of this Section, legal rifles include only rifles that
23fire a handgun cartridge having (i) a bullet of .357-inch

 

 

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1diameter or larger, (ii) a minimum case length of 1.16 inches,
2and (iii) a maximum case length of 1.625 inches. Over and under
3combination rifle-shotguns are prohibited.
4    The Department shall make administrative rules concerning
5management restrictions applicable to the firearm and bow and
6arrow season.
7    It shall be unlawful for any person to take deer except
8with a bow and arrow, or crossbow device for handicapped
9persons, as defined in Section 2.33, and persons age 62 or
10older during the open season for bow and arrow set annually by
11the Director between the dates of September 1st and January
1231st, both inclusive.
13    It shall be unlawful for any person to take deer except
14with (i) a muzzleloading rifle, or (ii) bow and arrow, or
15crossbow device for handicapped persons, as defined in Section
162.33, and persons age 62 or older during the open season for
17muzzleloading rifles set annually by the Director.
18    The Director shall cause an administrative rule setting
19forth the prescribed rules and regulations, including bag and
20possession limits and those counties of the State where open
21seasons are established, to be published in accordance with
22Sections 1.3 and 1.13 of this Act.
23    The Department may establish separate harvest periods for
24the purpose of managing or eradicating disease that has been
25found in the deer herd. This season shall be restricted to gun
26or bow and arrow hunting only. The Department shall publicly

 

 

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1announce, via statewide news release, the season dates and
2shooting hours, the counties and sites open to hunting, permit
3requirements, application dates, hunting rules, legal weapons,
4and reporting requirements.
5    The Department is authorized to establish a separate
6harvest period at specific sites within the State for the
7purpose of harvesting surplus deer that cannot be taken during
8the regular season provided for the taking of deer. This season
9shall be restricted to gun or bow and arrow hunting only and
10shall be established during the period of September 1st to
11February 15th, both inclusive. The Department shall publish
12suitable prescribed rules and regulations established by
13administrative rule pertaining to management restrictions
14applicable to this special harvest program. The Department
15shall allow unused gun deer permits that are left over from a
16regular season for the taking of deer to be rolled over and
17used during any separate harvest period held within 6 months of
18the season for which those tags were issued at no additional
19cost to the permit holder subject to the management
20restrictions applicable to the special harvest program.
21(Source: P.A. 94-919, eff. 6-26-06; 95-13, eff. 1-1-08; 95-329,
22eff. 8-21-07; 95-876, eff. 8-21-08.)
 
23    (520 ILCS 5/2.26)  (from Ch. 61, par. 2.26)
24    Sec. 2.26. Deer hunting permits. In this Section, "bona
25fide equity shareholder" means an individual who (1) purchased,

 

 

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1for market price, publicly sold stock shares in a corporation,
2purchased shares of a privately-held corporation for a value
3equal to the percentage of the appraised value of the corporate
4assets represented by the ownership in the corporation, or is a
5member of a closely-held family-owned corporation and has
6purchased or been gifted with shares of stock in the
7corporation accurately reflecting his or her percentage of
8ownership and (2) intends to retain the ownership of the shares
9of stock for at least 5 years.
10    In this Section, "bona fide equity member" means an
11individual who (1) (i) became a member upon the formation of
12the limited liability company or (ii) has purchased a
13distributional interest in a limited liability company for a
14value equal to the percentage of the appraised value of the LLC
15assets represented by the distributional interest in the LLC
16and subsequently becomes a member of the company pursuant to
17Article 30 of the Limited Liability Company Act and who (2)
18intends to retain the membership for at least 5 years.
19    In this Section, "bona fide equity partner" means an
20individual who (1) (i) became a partner, either general or
21limited, upon the formation of a partnership or limited
22partnership, or (ii) has purchased, acquired, or been gifted a
23partnership interest accurately representing his or her
24percentage distributional interest in the profits, losses, and
25assets of a partnership or limited partnership, (2) intends to
26retain ownership of the partnership interest for at least 5

 

 

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1years, and (3) is a resident of Illinois.
2    Any person attempting to take deer shall first obtain a
3"Deer Hunting Permit" issued by the Department in accordance
4with its administrative rules. Those rules must provide for the
5issuance of the following types of resident deer archery
6permits: (i) a combination permit, consisting of one either-sex
7permit and one antlerless-only permit, (ii) a single
8antlerless-only permit, and (iii) a single either-sex permit.
9The fee for a Deer Hunting Permit to take deer with either bow
10and arrow or gun shall not exceed $25.00 for residents of the
11State. The Department may by administrative rule provide for
12non-resident deer hunting permits for which the fee will not
13exceed $300 in 2005, $350 in 2006, and $400 in 2007 and
14thereafter except as provided below for non-resident
15landowners and non-resident archery hunters. The Department
16may by administrative rule provide for a non-resident archery
17deer permit consisting of not more than 2 harvest tags at a
18total cost not to exceed $325 in 2005, $375 in 2006, and $425
19in 2007 and thereafter. Permits shall be issued without charge
20to:
21        (a) Illinois landowners residing in Illinois who own at
22    least 40 acres of Illinois land and wish to hunt their land
23    only,
24        (b) resident tenants of at least 40 acres of commercial
25    agricultural land where they will hunt, and
26        (c) Bona fide equity shareholders of a corporation,

 

 

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1    bona fide equity members of a limited liability company, or
2    bona fide equity partners of a general or limited
3    partnership which owns at least 40 acres of land in a
4    county in Illinois who wish to hunt on the corporation's,
5    company's, or partnership's land only. One permit shall be
6    issued without charge to one bona fide equity shareholder,
7    one bona fide equity member, or one bona fide equity
8    partner for each 40 acres of land owned by the corporation,
9    company, or partnership in a county; however, the number of
10    permits issued without charge to bona fide equity
11    shareholders of any corporation or bona fide equity members
12    of a limited liability company in any county shall not
13    exceed 15, and shall not exceed 3 in the case of bona fide
14    equity partners of a partnership.
15    Bona fide landowners or tenants who do not wish to hunt
16only on the land they own, rent, or lease or bona fide equity
17shareholders, bona fide equity members, or bona fide equity
18partners who do not wish to hunt only on the land owned by the
19corporation, limited liability company, or partnership shall
20be charged the same fee as the applicant who is not a
21landowner, tenant, bona fide equity shareholder, bona fide
22equity member, or bona fide equity partner. Nonresidents of
23Illinois who own at least 40 acres of land and wish to hunt on
24their land only shall be charged a fee set by administrative
25rule. The method for obtaining these permits shall be
26prescribed by administrative rule.

 

 

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1    The deer hunting permit issued without fee shall be valid
2on all farm lands which the person to whom it is issued owns,
3leases or rents, except that in the case of a permit issued to
4a bona fide equity shareholder, bona fide equity member, or
5bona fide equity partner, the permit shall be valid on all
6lands owned by the corporation, limited liability company, or
7partnership in the county.
8    The standards and specifications for use of guns and bow
9and arrow for deer hunting shall be established by
10administrative rule.
11    No person may have in his possession any firearm not
12authorized by administrative rule for a specific hunting season
13when taking deer.
14    Persons having a firearm deer hunting permit shall be
15permitted to take deer only during the period from 1/2 hour
16before sunrise to 1/2 hour after sunset, and only during those
17days for which an open season is established for the taking of
18deer by use of shotgun, handgun, rifle, or muzzle loading
19rifle.
20    Persons having an archery deer hunting permit shall be
21permitted to take deer only during the period from 1/2 hour
22before sunrise to 1/2 hour after sunset, and only during those
23days for which an open season is established for the taking of
24deer by use of bow and arrow.
25    It shall be unlawful for any person to take deer by use of
26dogs, horses, automobiles, aircraft or other vehicles, or by

 

 

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1the use or aid of bait or baiting of any kind. For the purposes
2of this Section, "bait" means any material, whether liquid or
3solid, including food, salt, minerals, and other products that
4can be ingested, placed, or scattered in such a manner as to
5attract or lure white-tailed deer. "Baiting" means the
6placement or scattering of bait to attract deer. An area is
7considered as baited during the presence of and for 10
8consecutive days following the removal of bait. Nothing in this
9Section shall prohibit the use of a dog to track wounded deer.
10Any person using a dog for tracking wounded deer must maintain
11physical control of the dog at all times by means of a maximum
1250 foot lead attached to the dog's collar or harness. Tracking
13wounded deer is permissible at night, but at no time outside of
14legal deer hunting hours or seasons shall any person handling
15or accompanying a dog being used for tracking wounded deer be
16in possession of any firearm or archery device. Persons
17tracking wounded deer with a dog during the firearm deer
18seasons shall wear blaze orange as required. Dog handlers
19tracking wounded deer with a dog are exempt from hunting
20license and deer permit requirements so long as they are
21accompanied by the licensed deer hunter who wounded the deer.
22    It shall be unlawful to possess or transport any wild deer
23which has been injured or killed in any manner upon a public
24highway or public right-of-way of this State unless exempted by
25administrative rule.
26    Persons hunting deer must have gun unloaded and no bow and

 

 

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1arrow device shall be carried with the arrow in the nocked
2position during hours when deer hunting is unlawful.
3    It shall be unlawful for any person, having taken the legal
4limit of deer by gun, to further participate with gun in any
5deer hunting party.
6    It shall be unlawful for any person, having taken the legal
7limit of deer by bow and arrow, to further participate with bow
8and arrow in any deer hunting party.
9    The Department may prohibit upland game hunting during the
10gun deer season by administrative rule.
11    The Department shall not limit the number of non-resident
12either sex archery deer hunting permits to less than 20,000.
13    It shall be legal for handicapped persons, as defined in
14Section 2.33, and persons age 62 or older to utilize a crossbow
15device, as defined in Department rules, to take deer.
16    Any person who violates any of the provisions of this
17Section, including administrative rules, shall be guilty of a
18Class B misdemeanor.
19    For the purposes of calculating acreage under this Section,
20the Department shall, after determining the total acreage of
21the applicable tract or tracts of land, round remaining
22fractional portions of an acre greater than or equal to half of
23an acre up to the next whole acre.
24    For the purposes of taking white-tailed deer, nothing in
25this Section shall be construed to prevent the manipulation,
26including mowing or cutting, of standing crops as a normal

 

 

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1agricultural or soil stabilization practice, food plots, or
2normal agricultural practices, including planting, harvesting,
3and maintenance such as cultivating or the use of products
4designed for scent only and not capable of ingestion, solid or
5liquid, placed or scattered, in such a manner as to attract or
6lure deer. Such manipulation for the purpose of taking
7white-tailed deer may be further modified by administrative
8rule.
9(Source: P.A. 96-162, eff. 1-1-10; 96-831, eff. 1-1-10;
1096-1042, eff. 1-1-11; 97-564, eff. 8-25-11.)