Bill Text: GA SB424 | 2009-2010 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Game/Fish; provide certain licenses; exotic game; define terms
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-02-17 - Senate Read and Referred [SB424 Detail]
Download: Georgia-2009-SB424-Introduced.html
10 LC
21 0583
Senate
Bill 424
By:
Senators Goggans of the 7th and Williams of the 19th
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Title 27 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to game and
fish, so as to provide for certain licenses relating to exotic game; to define
certain terms; to provide that no person shall possess, buy, import, or
transport farmed exotic game or engage in or carry on the business of operating
an exotic game ranch without first obtaining an exotic game ranch license; to
provide requirements for the operation of an exotic game ranch; to provide for
hunting exotic game on such ranch; to provide for the health of exotic game; to
provide for jurisdiction, regulations, and penalties; to provide for related
matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Title
27 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to game and fish, is
amended by adding a new subparagraph to paragraph (1) of Code Section 27-2-23,
relating to license, permit, tag, and stamp fees, to read as
follows:
"(M)
Exotic game license
|
One-year
|
100.00"
|
SECTION
2.
Said
title is further amended in Code Section 27-2-23, relating to license, permit,
tag, and stamp fees, by adding a new subparagraph to paragraph (8) to read as
follows:
"(W)
Exotic game ranch license
|
One-year
|
500.00"
|
SECTION
3.
Said
title is further amended in Chapter 3, relating to wildlife generally, by adding
a new article to read as follows:
"ARTICLE
8
27-3-180.
As
used in this article, the term:
(1)
'Exotic game' means elk, axis deer, fallow deer, sika deer, red deer, nilgai
antelope, addax antelope, black buck antelope, and aoudad raised for commercial
sport. Such term shall not meant those cervids which are indigenous to this
state, including white-tailed deer.
(2)
'Exotic game ranch' means a facility at which exotic game is kept for commercial
hunting where patrons pay a fee to kill exotic game animals on the
premises.
27-3-181.
(a)
No person shall possess, buy, import, or transport exotic game or engage in or
carry on the business of operating an exotic game ranch without first applying
for and obtaining an exotic game ranch license pursuant to Code Section 27-2-23.
An exotic game ranch license shall be valid from the date of issuance to March
31 of the following calendar year. An exotic game ranch license shall not be
issued to any exotic game ranch operation which has not been inspected and
approved by the department, provided that any facility expansion must be
reapproved prior to renewal of a license.
(b)
The license of any exotic game ranch operator violating this article or any rule
or regulation adopted by the board pursuant to this article shall be subject to
revocation, cancellation, or suspension following notice and hearing. An exotic
game ranch license of any licensee whose facility does not meet the definition
of an agricultural operation shall be revoked, and such license may be revoked
if the licensee violates any provision of this title relating to wild animals.
Any exotic game must be disposed of within 45 days of revocation of any exotic
game farming license.
(c)
Exotic game ranch operators shall maintain inventory records of their exotic
game herds, including natural additions, purchased additions, sales, and deaths.
Records shall be kept in accordance with specifications of the board and shall
be subject to review by the department.
(d)
Exotic game ranch operators shall construct and maintain premises and facilities
used in exotic game ranch operations in accordance with rules established by the
board and in accordance with subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of Code Section
27-5-6, provided that:
(1)
The exotic game ranch must be at least 300 acres in size and at least 250 acres
of which shall be wooded;
(2)
The facility must be constructed of such material and of such strength as
appropriate for the animals involved;
(3)
Housing facilities shall be structurally sound and shall be maintained in good
repair to protect and contain the animals;
(4)
The facilities shall be designed in such manner, including the inclusion of
barriers of sufficient dimensions and conformation, to safeguard both the
animals and the public against injury or the transmission of diseases by direct
contact; and
(5)
Any portion of such facility within which exotic game are maintained shall be
surrounded by a fence with a minimum height of eight feet with the bottom six
feet made of woven mesh and constructed of a design, strength, gauge, and mesh
approved by the department which is sufficient to prevent escape of exotic game
and to prevent white-tailed deer from entering. Supplemental wire to attain a
height of eight feet may be smooth, barbed, or woven wire of a gauge and mesh
approved by the department with strands no more than six inches apart. All
trees and structures which pose a threat to the integrity of the fencing shall
be removed unless fencing is constructed so as to prevent the breach of the
fence from the fall of a tree or structure.
(e)
It shall be the duty of the department to inspect an applicant's
facilities.
(f)
For purposes other than operation of an exotic game ranch, exotic game species
must be held under a wild animal license pursuant to Chapter 5 of this title.
Anyone holding, possessing, importing, or transporting farmed exotic game
without an exotic game ranch license or a wild animal license is in violation of
this title.
27-3-182.
Patrons
of exotic game ranches may hunt year round with an exotic game license as
provided in Code Section 27-2-23. There shall be no limit on the species or
numbers of exotic game which such person may kill on an exotic game
ranch.
27-3-183.
Health
and transportation requirements for any exotic game must meet health
requirements established by rule or regulation of the board and the Department
of Agriculture. Those animals specifically used for exotic game ranching must
meet the requirements of the Uniform Methods and Rules of the Code of Federal
Regulations for Tuberculosis and Brucellosis in Cervidae.
27-3-184.
Any
exotic game which escapes from a licensed exotic game ranch shall be subject to
the jurisdiction of the department and may be treated as an escaped wild animal
which is subject to the provisions of Chapter 5 of this title, except that,
while such animal is roaming freely outside the enclosure of any licensed exotic
game ranch, the owner of such exotic game shall have 48 hours from the time the
escape is detected to recapture such animal and return it to the licensed exotic
game ranch. As a condition for maintaining an exotic game ranch license, it
shall be the duty of the owner or operator of a licensed exotic game ranch to
notify the department immediately upon discovery of the escape of exotic game.
When such notice has been given, no legal hunter shall be held liable for
killing or wounding escaped exotic game.
27-3-185.
Exotic
game ranch operators shall allow the entry onto the exotic game ranch of
representatives of the department, the Department of Agriculture, or other
departments or agencies having authority or duties involving exotic game or wild
animals to ensure compliance with applicable federal and state
laws.
27-3-186.
The
board is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations as may be necessary to
effectuate the purpose of this article. Such rules and regulations shall be
designed to ensure the health and safety of wildlife and prevent the spread of
animal diseases between wildlife, wild animals, domestic animals, farmed exotic
game, and people.
27-3-187.
In
addition to the remedies provided in this article and notwithstanding the
existence of any adequate remedy at law, the commissioner is authorized to apply
to the superior court having jurisdiction for an injunction. Such court may,
upon hearing and for good cause shown, grant a temporary or permanent
injunction, or both, restraining any person from violating or continuing to
violate any of the provisions of this article or for failing or refusing to
comply with the requirements of this article or any rule or regulation adopted
by the board pursuant to this article. An injunction issued under this Code
section shall not require a bond.
27-3-188.
(a)
In order to enforce this article or any orders, rules, or regulations
promulgated pursuant to this article, the commissioner may issue an
administrative order imposing a penalty not to exceed $1,000.00 for each
violation whenever the commissioner, after a hearing, determines that any person
has violated any provision of this article or any quarantines, orders, rules, or
regulations promulgated pursuant to this article.
(b)
The initial hearing and any administrative review thereof shall be conducted in
accordance with the procedure for contested cases in Chapter 13 of Title 50, the
'Georgia Administrative Procedure Act.' Any person who has exhausted all
administrative remedies available and who is aggrieved or adversely affected by
any final order or action of the commissioner shall have the right of judicial
review thereof in accordance with Chapter 13 of Title 50. All penalties
recovered by the commissioner as provided for in this article shall be paid into
the state treasury. The commissioner may file in the superior court of the
county wherein the person under order resides or, if said person is a
corporation, in the county wherein the corporation maintains its principal place
of business or in the county wherein the violation occurred a certified copy of
a final order of the commissioner or of a final order of the department affirmed
upon appeal, whereupon said court shall render judgment in accordance therewith
and notify the parties. Such judgment shall have the same effect, and all
proceedings in relation thereto shall thereafter be the same, as though said
judgment had been rendered in an action duly heard and determined by said court.
The penalty prescribed in this Code section shall be concurrent, alternative, or
cumulative with any and all other civil, criminal, or alternative rights,
remedies, forfeitures, or penalties provided, allowed, or available to the
commissioner with respect to any violation of this article and any quarantines,
orders, rules, or regulations promulgated pursuant to this article.
27-3-189.
It
shall be unlawful for any person intentionally to release exotic game from
captivity or to import, transport, sell, transfer, or possess exotic game in
such a manner as to cause its release or escape from captivity. If a person
imports, transports, sells, transfers, or possesses exotic game in such a manner
as to pose a reasonable possibility that such farmed exotic game may be released
accidentally or escape from captivity, the department may revoke the license of
such person.
27-3-190.
Any
person violating the provisions of this article shall be guilty of a
misdemeanor."
SECTION
4.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.