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| | HB2777 Engrossed | | LRB101 06836 SLF 51865 b |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning wildlife.
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| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
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| 4 | | Section 5. The Wildlife Code is amended by changing Section |
| 5 | | 2.25 as follows:
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| 6 | | (520 ILCS 5/2.25) (from Ch. 61, par. 2.25)
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| 7 | | Sec. 2.25. It shall be unlawful for any person to take deer |
| 8 | | except (i) with
a shotgun, handgun, or muzzleloading rifle or |
| 9 | | (ii) as provided by
administrative rule,
with a bow and arrow, |
| 10 | | during the open season of not more than 14 days which will
be |
| 11 | | set annually by the Director between the dates of
November 1st |
| 12 | | and December 31st, both inclusive, or a special 3-day, |
| 13 | | youth-only season between the dates of September 1 and October |
| 14 | | 31.
For the purposes of this Section, legal handguns include |
| 15 | | any centerfire
handguns of .30
caliber or larger with a minimum |
| 16 | | barrel length of 4 inches. The only legal
ammunition
for a |
| 17 | | centerfire handgun is a cartridge of .30 caliber or larger with |
| 18 | | a
capability of at least
500 foot pounds of energy at the |
| 19 | | muzzle. Full metal jacket bullets may not be
used to
harvest |
| 20 | | deer.
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| 21 | | The Department shall make administrative rules concerning |
| 22 | | management
restrictions applicable to the firearm and bow and |
| 23 | | arrow season.
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| | HB2777 Engrossed | - 2 - | LRB101 06836 SLF 51865 b |
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| 1 | | It shall be unlawful for any person to take deer except |
| 2 | | with a bow and
arrow during the open season for bow and arrow |
| 3 | | set annually by the Director
between the dates of September 1st |
| 4 | | and January 31st, both inclusive.
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| 5 | | It shall be unlawful for any person to take deer except |
| 6 | | with (i) a
muzzleloading rifle or (ii) bow and arrow during the |
| 7 | | open season for
muzzleloading rifles set annually by the |
| 8 | | Director.
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| 9 | | The Director shall cause an administrative rule setting |
| 10 | | forth the
prescribed rules and regulations, including bag and |
| 11 | | possession limits and
those counties of the State where open |
| 12 | | seasons are established, to be
published in accordance with |
| 13 | | Sections 1.3 and 1.13 of this Act.
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| 14 | | The Department may establish separate harvest periods for |
| 15 | | the purpose of
managing or eradicating disease that has been |
| 16 | | found in the deer herd. This
season shall be restricted to gun |
| 17 | | or bow and arrow hunting only. The Department
shall publicly |
| 18 | | announce, via statewide news release, the season dates and
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| 19 | | shooting hours, the counties and sites open to hunting, permit |
| 20 | | requirements,
application dates, hunting rules, legal weapons, |
| 21 | | and reporting requirements.
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| 22 | | The Department is authorized to establish a separate |
| 23 | | harvest period at
specific sites within the State for the |
| 24 | | purpose of harvesting
surplus deer that cannot be taken during |
| 25 | | the regular season provided for
the taking of deer. This season |
| 26 | | shall be restricted to gun or bow and
arrow hunting only and |
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| 1 | | shall be established during the period of September 1st
to |
| 2 | | February 15th, both inclusive. The Department shall publish |
| 3 | | suitable
prescribed rules and regulations established by |
| 4 | | administrative rule pertaining
to management restrictions |
| 5 | | applicable to this special harvest program. The Department |
| 6 | | shall allow unused gun deer permits that are left over from a |
| 7 | | regular season for the taking of deer to be rolled over and |
| 8 | | used during any separate harvest period held within 6 months of |
| 9 | | the season for which those tags were issued at no additional |
| 10 | | cost to the permit holder subject to the management |
| 11 | | restrictions applicable to the special harvest program.
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| 12 | | Beginning July 1, 2019, and on an annual basis thereafter, |
| 13 | | the Department shall provide a report to the General Assembly |
| 14 | | providing information regarding deer management programs |
| 15 | | established by the Code or by administrative rule that |
| 16 | | includes: (1) the number of surplus deer taken during each |
| 17 | | separate harvest season; (2) the number of deer found to have a |
| 18 | | communicable disease or other abnormality; and (3) what happens |
| 19 | | to the deer taken during each separate harvest season.
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| 20 | | (Source: P.A. 97-907, eff. 8-7-12; 98-368, eff. 8-16-13.)
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| 21 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
| 22 | | becoming law.
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