COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE

FOR

Senate Bill No. 554

(By Senators White, Bailey, Bowman and Love)

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[Originating in the Committee on Natural Resources;

reported February 26, 2003.]

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A BILL to amend and reenact section forty-four-b, article two, chapter twenty of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to increasing the cost of a bear damage stamp from four to ten dollars; expanding the purposes for which the proceeds from a bear damage stamp may be used; and requiring that bear damage stamp be purchased prior to bear archery and firearms hunting seasons until the first day of July, two thousand five.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section forty-four-b, article two, chapter twenty of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. WILDLIFE RESOURCES.

§20-2-44b. Bear damage stamp; proceeds to be paid into bear damage fund; purposes, etc.

Any hunter licensed to hunt bear in this state shall in addition to a hunting license of either Class A, or AB, in the case of a resident, or C, E, EE, L, LL or M, in the case of a nonresident, have a bear damage stamp which shall be issued by the department of natural resources and which shall be sold at places where hunting and fishing licenses are sold. The fee for a bear damage stamp shall be four ten dollars. and All proceeds from the sale of such bear damage stamps shall be paid into the bear damage fund which shall be maintained by the department of natural resources for the purposes of paying claims of property owners for damages to real and personal property caused by acts of bear, and to cover the expense of hunting, capturing and removing an off ending bear to remote areas, and for black bear research programs within this state.
A bear damage stamp shall be purchased prior to the opening day of the bear archery season for those hunting during the bear archery season. A bear damage stamp shall be purchased prior to the opening day of the bear firearms season for those hunting during the bear firearms season. The requirements to purchase a bear damage stamp prior to the opening day of bear archery season and the opening day of the bear firearms season shall be effective until July 1, 2005.



NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to increase the cost of the bear damage stamp from four to ten dollars, expand the purposes for which the proceeds from the bear damage stamp may be used and require that a bear damage stamp be purchased prior to bear hunting seasons until July 1, 2005.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.