Senate Bill No. 631
(By Senator Chafin)
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[Introduced February 21, 2000; referred to the
Committee on Natural Resources; and then to the Committee on
Finance.]
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A BILL to amend article two, chapter twenty of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
by adding thereto a new section, designated section five-e,
relating to directing the director of the division of
natural resources to open the traditional firearms deer
season on the Saturday before Thanksgiving Day for West
Virginia residents only to hunt antlered deer.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article two, chapter twenty of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section five-e, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. WILDLIFE RESOURCES.
§20-2-5e. Special opening day for firearms deer season.
The Legislature finds and declares that a large percentage
of its residents work Monday through Friday, and that the state's
public school system is normally open and operating on those same
days. Therefore, to afford students and workers across the state
an opportunity to deer hunt without missing a day of school or
work, the director shall extend the traditional firearms deer
season by opening the season on the Saturday preceding
Thanksgiving Day for antlered deer hunting only. This additional
deer hunting day is open to West Virginia residents only.
The director shall propose rules for legislative approval in
accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter
twenty-nine-a of this code to implement the provisions of this
section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to direct the Director of
the Division of Natural Resources to open the traditional
firearms deer season on the Saturday before Thanksgiving Day for
West Virginia residents only to hunt antlered deer.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.