H. B. 2343
(By Delegates Michael, Hartman, Crosier,
Argento, Williams and D. Poling)
[Introduced January 13, 2010; referred to the
Committee on Natural Resources then the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new article, designated §19-2H-1, §19-2H-2,
§19-2H-3, §19-2H-4, §19-2H-5, §19-2H-6, §19-2H-7, §19-2H-8,
§19-2H-9, §19-2H-10, §19-2H-11, §19-2H-12, §19-2H-13,
§19-2H-14 and §19-2H-15; to amend and reenact §19-29-2 of said
code; to amend and reenact §20-1-2 of said code; and to amend
and reenact §20-2-11 and §20-2-12 of said code, all relating
to regulating captive cervid farming as an agricultural
enterprise in this state; powers and duties of the Department
of Agriculture; promulgation of rules; duties and obligation
of the commissioner; application process; issuance, renewal,
modification and transfer of a license certificate; inspection
of facilities; transition of current facilities; noncompliance
with article and providing for certain criminal penalties and
remedies.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new article, designated §19-2H-1, §19-2H-2,
§19-2H-3, §19-2H-4, §19-2H-5, §19-2H-6, §19-2H-7, §19-2H-8,
§19-2H-9, §19-2H-10, §19-2H-11, §19-2H-12, §19-2H-13, §19-2H-14 and
§19-2H-15; that §19-29-2 of said code be amended and reenacted;
that §20-1-2 of said code be amended and reenacted; and that
§20-2-11 and §20-2-12 of said code be amended and reenacted, all to
read as follows:
CHAPTER 19. AGRICULTURE.
ARTICLE 2H. CAPTIVE CERVID FARMING ACT.
§19-2H-1. Short title.
This article shall be known and may be cited as the "Captive
Cervid Farming Act."
§19-2H-2. Purpose and Legislative findings.
(a) The purpose of this article is to promote this state's
agricultural economy, to preserve family farming opportunities, to
encourage agricultural uses of the natural topography of the
state's rural lands and to foster job retention and job creation in
the state's rural areas, by providing for comprehensive regulation
in the public interest of captive cervid farming as a viable
agricultural business.
(b) The Legislature finds and declares that captive cervid
farming is primarily an agricultural pursuit which is separate from
and largely unrelated to wildlife management, and that captive cervids should be treated in a manner similar to other farm
livestock animals. The Legislature further finds and declares that
the Commissioner of Agriculture and the professional staff of that
department possess the knowledge, training and experience required
to properly regulate captive cervid farming as an agricultural
business and to adequately protect the health and safety of animals
and the general public in connection with this farming business.
The Legislature also finds and declares that matters related to
animal health, farm fencing, animal identification, agricultural
record-keeping and animal husbandry methods and equipment are best
managed and regulated by the farming professionals within the
Department of Agriculture, in consultation with the Division of
Natural Resources and other state agencies and departments having
related regulatory authority.
§19-2H-3. Definitions.
As used in this article:
(a) "Bio-security" means measures, actions or precautions
taken to prevent the transmission of disease in, among or between
free-ranging and captive cervids.
(b) "Captive cervid's or "captive cervids" means members of
the Cervidae family of animals including, but not limited to,
fallow deer, red deer, white-tail deer, axis deer, elk, moose,
reindeer and caribou which are domesticated animals under the
control of the owner of the animal.
(c) "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of the West Virginia
Department of Agriculture.
(d) "Department" means the West Virginia Department of
Agriculture.
(e) "Identification system" means a process or procedure that
allows an individual cervid to be continuously recognized as a
unique animal throughout its lifetime.
(f) "License" means the authorization issued by the department
for the operation of a captive cervid farming facility.
(g) "Licensed captive cervid farming facility" means the
specific fenced area and all equipment and components therein
approved by the department for use as a captive cervid farming
operation, but not including zoos accredited under the American
Zoological Association, other petting zoos or roadside menageries
licensed under section fifty-two, article two, chapter twenty of
this code, or backyard enclosures containing less than one acre of
fenced area and having captive cervids located there for public or
private viewing.
(h) "Owner" means the person who owns or operates a licensed
captive cervid farming facility.
(i) "Person" means an individual, corporation, limited
liability company, partnership, association, joint venture or other
legal entity.
(j) "Release" means to allow a cervid from a licensed captive cervid farming facility to be outside the perimeter fence of that
licensed captive cervid farming facility without being under the
direct control of the owner or his or her agent.
§19-2H-4. Authority of the Department of Agriculture.
The department is hereby granted authority to regulate and
control captive cervid farming operations in this state in
accordance with this article. Subject to the transition provisions
contained in section twelve of this article, no person may operate
a captive cervid farming facility in this state unless that person
holds a license issued by the commissioner pursuant to this article
authorizing operation of that particular facility.
§19-2H-5. Captive cervid farming rules.
(a) The commissioner shall propose legislative rules in
accordance with article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code
as are necessary to provide for implementation and enforcement of
this article. Any rules proposed by the commissioner before
September 1, 2009, may be by emergency rule.
(b) The rules, insofar as practicable, shall provide for the
protection of animal and human health and promotion of bio-security
which are consistent with the rules on those same subjects
promulgated by the United States Department of Agriculture,
division of animal and plant health inspection service, in order
that the rules promulgated pursuant to this section and similar
rules promulgated by the United States Department of Agriculture may be harmoniously administered and applied to captive cervid
farming operations subject to both the applicable federal rules and
to rules promulgated under this section.
(c) The rules promulgated under this section shall include,
specific requirements which shall:
(1) Prevent the spread of diseases between captive and
free-ranging cervids;
(2) Implement an identification system which will allow
individual captive cervids to be recognized and identified
throughout the animal's life;
(3) Establish the specifications for fencing necessary to
prevent the escape of captive cervids and the infiltration of
free-ranging cervids into a licensed captive cervid farming
facility;
(4) Specify the record-keeping standards required of
licensees, including standards for documentation of purchases,
propagation, sales, harvesting and any other documentation required
to maintain accurate and complete records of captive cervid farming
operations.
(5) Establish animal health testing criteria needed to
discover and prevent the spread of animal diseases;
(6) Regulate the movement of captive cervids, and provide for
maintenance of documentation of the origin and destination of all
shipments and any other documentation required under the animal industry laws of this state.
(7) Establish a schedule of fees and charges for services
provided by the department to licensed captive cervid farming
facilities, which fees and charges shall be set so that the costs
of regulation pursuant to this article are covered by the
combination of the fees and charges, license fees and any federal
and state grants and appropriations available for support of the
regulation of captive cervid farming operations.
§19-2H-6. Duties and obligations of the commissioner.
The commissioner or his or her designees may:
(1) Establish within the department a section responsible for
the enforcement of this article;
(2) Designate members of the department staff responsible for
each of the functions required for the proper regulation of captive
cervid farming operations;
(3) Contract, if deemed desirable, with veterinarians and
other animal health professionals to provide services required to
assure the bio-security of captive cervid farming operations in
this state;
(4) Enter into interstate contracts with other states to
enhance the bio-security of captive cervid farming operations in
this and other states;
(5) Lease, rent, acquire, purchase, own, hold, construct,
equip, maintain, operate, sell, encumber and assign rights of any property, real or personal, consistent with the objectives set
forth in this article;
(6) Hold hearings on any matter of concern relating to captive
cervid farming, subpoena witnesses, administer oaths, take
testimony, require the production of evidence and documentary
evidence and designate hearing examiners and employees to so act;
and
(7) To make and enter into all agreements and do all acts
necessary or incidental to the performance of duties and the
exercise of powers under this article.
§19-2H-7. Application for license.
(a) A person desiring to operate a captive cervid farming
facility in this state must submit an application for a license to
the department. The department shall provide the forms and
instructions for the filing of applications.
(b) The application form shall require submission of the
following information:
(1) The mailing address of the proposed captive cervid farming
facility and the size, location and an adequate legal description
of the facility;
(2) The number of each species of cervid proposed to be
included in the proposed facility;
(3) The bio-security measures to be utilized, including, but
not limited to, a description of the fencing and the animal identification system to be used;
(4) The proposed method of flushing wild cervid species from
the enclosure, if applicable;
(5) The proposed record-keeping system;
(6) The method of verification that all free-ranging deer
species have been removed;
(7) The current zoning, if any, of the property proposed for
the facility; and
(8) Any other information considered necessary by the
department.
(c) The application shall be accompanied by the bi-annual
license fee as follows:
(1) Class one license - For a facility to be used only for
breeding and propagation of cervids for sale to others - $750;
(2) Class two license -- For facilities from which cervids
will be harvested - $1,500.
§19-2H-8. Departmental action on applications.
(a) The department shall act on an application for a license
within sixty days of receipt. The department may issue a
provisional license for a proposed facility which has not yet been
constructed, but operations shall not begin under a provisional
license until after inspection of the fully constructed facility by
the department and the issuance of a nonprovisional license for the
facility.
(b) The department may not issue any nonprovisional license
until the commissioner has determined that the facility and its
operation meet all of the following criteria:
(1) The facility has been inspected by the department and the
commissioner has determined that the facility and its proposed
operation meet each of the standards and requirements under this
article and the rules promulgated under this article;
(2) The applicant has all necessary federal, state and local
governmental permits required for the facility and operations
subject to the license.
(3) The owner has paid all applicable license fees and all
departmental charges for services provided to the owner's captive
cervid farming facility.
(c) If the department finds a deficiency in the license
application, the owner shall be given at least thirty days to
remedy the deficiency before the license application is denied.
(d) If the commissioner determines that the proposed captive
cervid farming facility or its proposed operation does not comply
with the requirements of this article after the opportunity to
remedy deficiencies, the commissioner shall deny the application
and notify the applicant in writing of the reasons for the denial.
(e) The applicant may request a hearing pursuant to article
five, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, to contest the denial of
a license or any limitations placed upon the issuance of a license.
(f) The department shall not return the license fee or any
portion of the license fee to an applicant if a license is denied.
§19-2H-9. License certificate; renewal; sale or transfer of
license.
(a) The department shall issue a license certificate to the
owner of each licensed captive cervid farming facility, which shall
contain the following information:
(1) The class of license, the license number and expiration
date;
(2) The deer species approved for the licensed facility;
(3) The name, business address and telephone number of the
owner of the licensed facility; and
(4) The address of the captive cervid farming facility.
(b) An application for renewal of a license shall be submitted
on forms provided by the department not later than sixty days
before expiration of the current license. Each license issued
shall be for a period of two years from the date of issuance.
(c) The sale or transfer of ownership of a captive cervid
farming facility will not operate to transfer the license. The
department may issue a new license to the transferee, if all
license requirements are met and a new license fee is paid.
§19-2H-10. License modification.
An owner must apply to the department for a license
modification if there is any proposed change in the class of license or the species approved for the licensed facility.
§19-2H-11. Inspection of facility by the department.
The department and its duly authorized agents shall have
access at all reasonable hours to any licensed captive cervid
farming facility for the purpose of conducting inspections,
securing samples or specimens of any cervid species and determining
whether the owner is in compliance with the requirements of this
article. Any inspection and sampling shall be conducted in a
manner which will not jeopardize the health of the captive cervids.
§19-2H-12. Transition to captive cervid farming licenses; statutory
conflicts.
(a) A captive cervid farming facility in existence on the
effective date of this article may continue operation under its
existing authorization until the department acts on its application
for a license under this article, provided the owner of that
facility makes application for a license under this article within
sixty days after application forms are available from the
department.
(b) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, an owner
or an owner's customer harvesting captive cervids from a licensed
captive cervid farming facility is not subject to any possession
limits laws, closed season laws, or hunting license requirements.
A license under this article does not give the licensee any right
to take free-ranging cervids unless it is done pursuant to a permit issued by the Division of Natural Resources.
(c) A licensed captive cervid farming facility is not subject
to sections eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, forty-seven and
fifty-one, article two, chapter twenty of this code or the rules
promulgated thereunder.
§19-2H-13. Noncompliance with article, standards, orders or
rules; suspension, revocation or limitation of
license.
The department may suspend, revoke or limit a license if the
licensee fails to comply with this article, standards adopted
under this article, orders issued by the commissioner as a result
of an administrative action or departmental review conducted under
this article or rules promulgated under this article.
§19-2H-14. Prohibited conduct; violation; penalty.
(a) No person may release or allow the release of any captive
cervids from a captive cervid farming facility. This subsection
does not prohibit the sale, breeding, marketing, exhibition or
other uses of captive cervids approved by the department.
(b) An owner may not abandon a captive cervid farming facility
without first notifying the department in compliance with
standards established under this article.
(c) A person may not intentionally or knowingly cause the
ingress of free-ranging cervids into a captive cervid farming
facility.
(d) Any person who violates subsection (a) or (b) of this
section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof,
shall be fined not more than $300, confined for not more than
ninety days, or both, for a first offense. A second or subsequent
offense is a misdemeanor and is punishable by a fine of not more
than $1,000, confinement for not more than one year, or both.
(e) Notwithstanding subsection (d) of this section, any person
who intentionally or knowingly violates subsection (a), (b) or (c)
of this section is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof,
shall be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned in a state
correctional facility not less than one nor more than three years,
or both fined and imprisoned.
§
19-2H-15. Findings of violations; remedies.
(a) The commissioner, upon finding that a person has violated
any requirements under this article, may:
(1) Issue a warning; or
(2) Impose a civil penalty of not more than $1,000, plus the
costs of investigation, for each violation, after notice and an
opportunity for a hearing. A person aggrieved by an administrative
action under this section may request a hearing pursuant to article
five, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this article, the
commissioner may bring an action to:
(1) Obtain a declaratory judgment that a particular method, activity or practice is a violation of this article; or
(2) Obtain an injunction against a person who is engaging in
a method, activity or practice that violates this article.
(c) The remedies under this article are cumulative and use of
one remedy does not bar the use of any other remedy.
ARTICLE 29. PRODUCTION OF NONTRADITIONAL AGRICULTURE PRODUCTS.
§19-29-2. Definitions.
(a) "Aquaculture" means the commercial production of fish
and/or other aquatic life.
(b) "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Agriculture or
his or her designee.
(c) "Domestic purposes" means for the purposes of food
production, for resale as breeding stock or for the sale of
immature stock for the purposes of further feeding.
(d) "Nontraditional agriculture" means the production of
animals domesticated from wild stock, either native or nonnative,
and are being confined, bred and/or fed for domestic purposes,
except that white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and all its
subspecies shall not be included including privately owned cervid
and all its subspecies that are kept pursuant to article two-h of
this chapter; aquaculture; or other agricultural products as
defined in this article.
CHAPTER 20. NATURAL RESOURCES.
ARTICLE 1. ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION.
§20-1-2. Definitions.
As used in this chapter, unless the context clearly requires
a different meaning:
"Agency" means any branch, department or unit of the state
government, however designated or constituted.
"Alien" means any person not a citizen of the United States.
"Bag limit" or "creel limit" means the maximum number of
wildlife which may be taken, caught, killed or possessed by any
person.
"Big game" means elk, deer, black bears, wild boars and wild
turkeys.
"Bona fide resident, tenant or lessee" means a person who
permanently resides on the land.
"Citizen" means any native-born citizen of the United States
and foreign-born persons who have procured their final
naturalization papers.
"Closed season" means the time or period during which it shall
be unlawful to take any wildlife as specified and limited by
the
provisions of this chapter.
"Commission" means the Natural Resources Commission.
"Commissioner" means a member of the advisory commission of
the Natural Resources Commission.
"Director" means the Director of the Division of Natural
Resources.
"Fishing" or "to fish" means the taking, by any means, of
fish, minnows, frogs or other amphibians, aquatic turtles and other
forms of aquatic life used as fish bait.
"Fur-bearing animals" include: (a) The mink; (b) the weasel;
(c) the muskrat; (d) the beaver; (e) the opossum; (f) the skunk and
civet cat, commonly called polecat; (g) the otter; (h) the red fox;
(i) the gray fox; (j) the wildcat, bobcat or bay lynx; (k) the
raccoon; and (l) the fisher.
"Game" means game animals, game birds and game fish as herein
defined.
"Game animals" include: (a) The elk; (b) the deer; (c) the
cottontail rabbits and hares; (d) the fox squirrels, commonly
called red squirrels, and gray squirrels and all their color phases
- red, gray, black or albino; (e) the raccoon; (f) the black bear;
and (g) the wild boar.
The term "game animals" does not include
privately owned cervid and all its subspecies that are kept
pursuant to article two-h, chapter nineteen of this code.
"Game birds" include: (a) The anatidae, commonly known as
swan, geese, brants and river and sea ducks; (b) the rallidae,
commonly known as rails, sora, coots, mudhens and gallinule; (c)
the limicolae, commonly known as shorebirds, plover, snipe,
woodcock, sandpipers, yellow legs and curlews; (d) the galliformes,
commonly known as wild turkey, grouse, pheasants, quails and
partridges (both native and foreign species); (e) the columbidae, commonly known as doves; (f) the icteridae, commonly known as
blackbirds, redwings and grackle; and (g) the corvidae, commonly
known as crows.
"Game fish" include: (a) Brook trout; (b) brown trout; (c)
rainbow trout; (d) golden rainbow trout; (e) largemouth bass; (f)
smallmouth bass; (g) spotted bass; (h) striped bass; (i) chain
pickerel; (j) muskellunge; (k) walleye; (l) northern pike; (m) rock
bass; (n) white bass; (o) white crappie; (p) black crappie; (q) all
sunfish species; (r) channel catfish; (s) flathead catfish; (t)
blue catfish, (u) sauger; and (v) all game fish hybrids.
"Hunt" means to pursue, chase, catch or take any wild birds or
wild animals.
Provided, That However, the definition of "hunt"
does not include an officially sanctioned and properly licensed
field trial, water race or wild hunt as long as that field trial is
not a shoot-to-retrieve field trial.
"Lands" means land, waters and all other appurtenances
connected therewith.
"Migratory birds" means any migratory game or nongame birds
included in the terms of conventions between the United States and
Great Britain and between the United States and United Mexican
States, known as the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, for the protection
of migratory birds and game mammals concluded, respectively, August
16, 1916, and February 7, 1936.
"Nonresident" means any person who is a citizen of the United States and who has not been a domiciled resident of the State of
West Virginia for a period of thirty consecutive days immediately
prior to the date of his or her application for a license or permit
except any full-time student of any college or university of this
state, even though he or she is paying a nonresident tuition.
"Open season" means the time during which the various species
of wildlife may be legally caught, taken, killed or chased in a
specified manner and shall include both the first and the last day
of the season or period designated by the director.
"Person", except as otherwise defined elsewhere in this
chapter, means the plural "persons" and shall include individuals,
partnerships, corporations or other legal entities.
"Preserve" means all duly licensed private game farmlands, or
private plants, ponds or areas, where hunting or fishing is
permitted under special licenses or seasons other than the regular
public hunting or fishing seasons.
The term "preserve" does not
include privately-owned lands that are kept pursuant to article
two-h, chapter nineteen of this code.
"Protected birds" means all wild birds not included within the
definition of "game birds" and "unprotected birds".
"Resident" means any person who is a citizen of the United
States and who has been a domiciled resident of the State of West
Virginia for a period of thirty consecutive days or more
immediately prior to the date of his or her application for license or permit.
Provided, That However, a member of the Armed Forces of
the United States who is stationed beyond the territorial limits of
this state, but who was a resident of this state at the time of his
or her entry into such service and any full-time student of any
college or university of this state, even though he or she is
paying a nonresident tuition, shall be considered a resident under
the provisions of this chapter.
"Roadside menagerie" means any place of business, other than
a commercial game farm, commercial fish preserve, place or pond,
where any wild bird, game bird, unprotected bird, game animal or
fur-bearing animal is kept in confinement for the attraction and
amusement of the people for commercial purposes.
"Small game" includes all game animals, furbearing animals and
game birds except elk, deer, black bears, wild boars and wild
turkeys.
"Take" means to hunt, shoot, pursue, lure, kill, destroy,
catch, capture, keep in captivity, gig, spear, trap, ensnare, wound
or injure any wildlife, or attempt to do so.
Provided, That
However, the definition of "take" does not include an officially
sanctioned and properly licensed field trial, water race or wild
hunt as long as that field trial is not a shoot-to-retrieve field
trial.
"Unprotected birds" shall include: (a) The English sparrow;
(b) the European starling; and (c) the cowbird.
"Wild animals" means all mammals native to the State of West
Virginia occurring either in a natural state or in captivity,
except house mice or rats.
The term "wild animals" does not
include privately-owned cervid and all its subspecies that are kept
pursuant to article two-h, chapter nineteen of this code.
"Wild birds" shall include all birds other than: (a) Domestic
poultry - chickens, ducks, geese, guinea fowl, peafowls and
turkeys; (b) psittacidae, commonly called parrots and parakeets;
and (c) other foreign cage birds such as the common canary, exotic
finches and ring dove. All wild birds, either: (i) Those
occurring in a natural state in West Virginia; or (ii) those
imported foreign game birds, such as waterfowl, pheasants,
partridges, quail and grouse, regardless of how long raised or held
in captivity, shall remain wild birds under the meaning of this
chapter.
"Wildlife" means wild birds, wild animals, game and
fur-bearing animals, fish (including minnows,) reptiles,
amphibians, mollusks, crustaceans and all forms of aquatic life
used as fish bait, whether dead or alive.
The term "wildlife" does
not include privately owned cervid and all its subspecies that are
kept pursuant to article two-h, chapter nineteen of this code.
"Wildlife refuge" means any land set aside by action of the
director as an inviolate refuge or sanctuary for the protection of
designated forms of wildlife.
ARTICLE 2. WILDLIFE RESOURCES.
§20-2-11. Sale of wildlife; transportation of same.
(a) No person, except those legally licensed to operate
private game preserves for the purpose of propagating game for
commercial purposes and those legally licensed to propagate or sell
fish, amphibians and other forms of aquatic life, shall purchase or
offer to purchase, sell or offer to sell, expose for sale, or have
in his or her possession for the purpose of sale any wildlife, or
part thereof, which has been designated as game animals,
fur-bearing animals, game birds, game fish or amphibians, or any of
the song or insectivorous birds of the state, or any other species
of wildlife which the director may designate,
except for privately
owned cervid and all its subspecies that are kept pursuant to the
provisions of article two-h, chapter nineteen of this code.
Provided, That However, pelts of game or fur-bearing animals taken
during the legal season may be sold and live red and gray foxes and
raccoon taken by legal methods during legal and established
trapping seasons may be sold within the state.
Provided, however,
That In addition, the hide, head, antlers and feet of a legally
killed deer and the hide, head and skull of a legally killed black
bear may be sold.
(b) No person, including a common carrier, shall transport,
carry or convey, or receive for such purposes any wildlife, the
sale of which is prohibited, if such person knows or has reason to believe that such wildlife has been or is to be sold in violation
of this section.
(c) The Each separate act of selling or exposing for sale,
having in possession for sale, transporting or carrying in
violation of this section
shall each constitute constitutes a
separate misdemeanor offense. Notwithstanding
the provisions of
this or any other section of this chapter, any game birds or game
bird meats sold by licensed retailers may be served at any hotel,
restaurant or other licensed eating place in this state.
(d) The director
shall have authority to promulgate may
propose rules
for promulgation in accordance with
article three,
chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, dealing with the sale of
wildlife and the skins thereof.
§20-2-12. Transportation of wildlife out-of-state; penalties.
(a) A person may not transport or have in his or her
possession with the intention of transporting beyond the limits of
the state any species of wildlife or any part thereof killed,
taken, captured or caught within this state, except as provided in
this section.
(1) A person legally entitled to hunt and fish in this state
may take with him or her personally, when leaving the state, any
wildlife that he or she has lawfully taken or killed, not
exceeding, during the open season, the number that any person may
lawfully possess.
(2) Licensed resident hunters and trappers and resident and
nonresident fur dealers may transport beyond the limits of the
state pelts of game and fur-bearing animals taken during the legal
season.
(3) A person may transport the hide, head, antlers and feet of
a legally killed deer and the hide, head, skull, organs and feet of
a legally killed black bear beyond the limits of the state.
(4) A person legally entitled to possess an animal according
to section four, article two of this chapter may transport that
animal beyond the limits of the state.
(b) The director shall have authority to promulgate rules in
accordance with chapter twenty-nine-a of this code dealing with the
transportation and tagging of wildlife and the skins.
(c) A person
violating who violates the provisions of this
section by transporting or possessing with the intention of
transporting beyond the limits of this state deer or wild boar
shall be
deemed considered to have committed a separate offense for
each animal so transported or possessed.
This section does not
apply to privately-owned cervid or any of its subspecies that are
kept pursuant to article two-h, chapter nineteen of this code.
(d) A person violating
the provisions of this section shall be
guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be
fined not less than $20 nor more than $300 and be imprisoned in
jail not less than ten nor more than sixty days.
(e) This section does not apply to persons legally entitled to
propagate and sell wild animals, wild birds, fish, amphibians and
other forms of aquatic life beyond the limits of the state.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to regulate captive cervid
farming as an agricultural enterprise in this state. Toward this
purpose, the bill describes powers and duties of the Department of
Agriculture; provides for rule-making authority; sets forth duties
and obligations of the commissioner; provides for an application
process; provides for the issuance, renewal, modification, and
transfer of a license certificate; provides for inspection of
facilities; provides for the transition of current facilities;
addresses noncompliance with article and provides for certain
criminal penalties and remedies due to noncompliance.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.