Proposed Miscellaneous Code Revisions
Committee: Regulations Date: September
19, 2012
Explanation:
[BULLET] Code 05.32-The current language used in deals only with
a person violating an AGFC regulation involving the consumptive use (illegally
taking, attempting to take, possessing, buying, or selling of wildlife). There
are several regulations where Officers could apply this and it be the correct
code to charge a person with. The examples below involve a person who drives a
vehicle for another person, but does not ever get out of the vehicle to be
actively involved with committing a violation of the regulation. A person
drives a vehicle never getting out and the passenger (1) dumps trash or litter
on a WMA, (2) unloads ATV's for subjects to ride on a WMA and picks them up
later at another location, (3) is pulling a trailer loaded with feral hogs that
are released by the passenger on a WMA. This proposed change will allow the
driver to be charged with Aiding, Accompanying or Abetting Prohibited in these
violations which has a Class 1 Penalty and carries 6 violation points.
[BULLET] Code 06.11-This code will ban the use of all military
ball and full metal jacket ammunition for hunting any type of wildlife. This
type of ammunition is not designed for hunting and does not expand to create a
clean and humane taking of wildlife with a firearm. It will include all full
metal jacket ammunition and military ammunition such as tracers, and armor
piercing. Currently it is banned for deer and bear hunting but not for
furbearer and elk. By creating this code it will be banned for the taking of
all wildlife and also prohibit a hunter from having this type of ammunition in
their possession. It will be referenced in the deer, bear, furbearer, and elk
codes also attached, (codes also affected 06.02, 06.07, 06.09 and 06.10)
[BULLET] Codes/Addenda 05.05, 17.01, 20.10, G1.01 -Oneida Victor
Ltd Inc. recently contacted the state of Arkansas requesting that the word
"Conibear" be removed from all state laws and regulations in order to protect
their ability to defend this trademarked term. The Conibear was one of the
first models of body-gripping traps to reach the market and many states,
including Arkansas, used that term when describing such traps in their
regulations. In order to comply with this request we are proposing that
"Conibear" be replaced with "body-gripping trap" in applicable codes.
[BULLET] Addenda C1.01-When the 2012-2013 General Hunting
Regulations package was approved during the April 2012 Commission meeting,
there was a typographical error for the modern gun permit hunt on Wedington
WMA. The Code of Regulations says December 10-11, 2012. However, the correct
date is November 10-11, 2012. Attached is a proposed code for consideration to
change the month to November.
[BULLET] Code 20.07-ln order to collect hunter use data from the
Sweet Sixteen WMAs, hunters are required to obtain a free use permit prior to
any hunting or trapping activity on these WMAs. This proposed code modification
will eliminate the need for youth hunters, less than 16 years of age, to obtain
this permit. Many youth hunters do not have an email address or proper
identification to complete the survey, and this change would reduce the amount
of needed paperwork and requirements for youth hunters.
Prepared by: David Goad
05.05
HUNTING FROM A PUBLIC ROAD OR
LEVEE PROHIBITED
It is unlawful to shoot from or across any public road, or to
hunt within 100 feet from the center of any such road. It also is unlawful to
hunt or shoot from or across the main west levee of the Mississippi or Arkansas
rivers from the Louisiana-Arkansas state line to the intersection of Arkansas
Highway 11 north of Grady, Lincoln County, Arkansas. There shall be a
rebuttable presumption that a person is hunting from a public road or levee if
he points, aims, shoots or attempts to shoot a firearm or other killing device
in a direction in which wildlife is present or likely to be present, including
shooting at a wildlife decoy. EXCEPTIONS:
(1) Persons using firearms to dispatch
wildlife caught in legally set foothold or body-gripping e
traps.
(2) In compliance
with (Code 09.15 and Addendum F
1.07. PENALTY: Class 3
05.32
AIDING, ACCOMPANYING OR ABETTING
PROHIBITED
It is unlawful to aid, accompany or abet another in
ee
eeee the violation of Arkansas Game and Fish Regulations.
PENALTY: Class 1
06.02
CERTAIN FIREARMS AND AMMUNITION
PROHIBITED DURING
MODERN GUN DEER SEASONS
(A) It is unlawful to hunt deer during
statewide modern gun deer seasons with:
[BULLET] Prohibited muzzle loading firearms (Code
06.03);
[BULLET] Any .410 shotguns using ammunition other than
slugs;
[BULLET] Any shotguns using shot smaller than No. 4
buckshot;
[BULLET] Handguns having barrels shorter than 4 inches using
conventional straight-wall cased handgun calibers less than .357 caliber or
bottleneck-case handgun calibers less than .22 caliber;
[BULLET] Rifles and handguns using rimfire cartridges, in
compliance with Code 06.11;
[BULLET] Any centerfire rifle or handgun smaller than .22
caliber.
(B) It also is
unlawful for any
person to hunt deer during modern gun deer seasons in Deer
Zones 4, 4B, 5, 5B with any firearms other than the following:
[BULLET] Shotguns (.410 or larger) with slugs only;
[BULLET] Legal muzzleloading long guns (Code
06.03);
[BULLET] Handguns having barrels between 4 and 10 inches in
length and chambered specifically for straight-wall centerfire cartridge cases
and hunting with lead and, lead alloy, soft-nose and/or hollow-point bullets no
less than .30 caliber.
EXCEPTION:
In compliance with Code 05.19.
PENALTY: Class 1
06.07
CERTAIN AMMUNITION PROHIBITED FOR
HUNTING
FURBEARERS
It is unlawful to hunt furbearers with any rifled slug or shot
size larger than No.
T, or with any rifle or handgun ammunition other than rimfire
ammunition of .22 caliber or smaller. EXCEPTIONS:
(1) In compliance with Codes
05.10;
06.11.20.02.
(2) Bobcat, fox or coyote may be taken during
daylight hours in an open season for that species with firearms of any
caliber.
PENALTY: Class 1
06.09
CERTAIN KILLING DEVICES
PROHIBITED FOR HUNTING BEAR
It is unlawful to hunt bear with killing devices other than
those in compliance with Codes 06.02-04 and 06.11.
EXCEPTIONS:
(1) Shotguns 20
gauge or larger with only rifled slugs may be used.
(2) In compliance with Code
05.19. PENALTY: Class 1
06.10
CERTAIN WEAPONS AND AMMUNITION
PROHIBITED FOR HUNTING ELK
It is unlawful to hunt elk with:
(A) Muzzleloading firearms smaller than .50
caliber;
(B) Shotguns smaller than
20 gauge;
(C) Shot for shotguns
other than slugs;
(D) Archery
tackle that is not in compliance with Code
06.04;
(E)
Crossbows;
(F) Conventional
straight-wall case handgun calibers smaller than .41 caliber (.410) or
bottleneck-case handgun calibers smaller than .24 caliber (.244/6mm);
(G) Modern firearms smaller than .24 caliber
(6mm);
(H) Modern firearms that are
not centerfire; or
(I) Modern
firearm ammunition with bullet weight less than 100 grains
in
compliance with Code 06.11. EXCEPTION:
In compliance with Code 05.19.
PENALTY: Class 1
06.11
CERTAIN AMMUNITION PROHIBITED
FOR HUNTING WILDLIFE
It is unlawful to hunt wildlife with, or have in possession
while hunting wildlife the
following types of ammunition.
(A)
Military ball
ammunition.
(B)
Full-metal jacket ammunition. PENALTY: Class 1
17.01
REGULAR FURBEARING SEASON TRAP
RESTRICTIONS
It is unlawful to possess or use any cable-restraining device
(snare) or trap during open furbearing animal seasons (Addendum
A1.05) without complying with the following restrictions:
(A) Bait Restrictions:
Animal matter, including meat, skin, bones, feathers, hair or any
other solid substance that used to be part of an animal, may not be used as
bait within 20 feet of a trap set, unless it is adequately covered to prevent
it being seen from above. The cover also must withstand wave and wind action or
other normal environmental conditions that could cause the bait to become
visible.
(B) Permissible
Land-Set Traps:
(1) Smooth-jawed traps with a
jaw spread of 6 inches or less (traps in excess of 5 inches, measured from the
inside edge of the trap at the dog, must have offset or rubber-padded
jaws);
(2) Size 110, 120 and 160
e or comparable body-gripping traps, with a jaw spread of 6 inches
or less (measured on the inside edge of the trap from hinge-to-hinge and from
top-to-bottom at the dog and may not exceed the specified maximum size either
horizontally or vertically); and
(3) Box traps.
(C) Permissible Water-Set Traps:
(1) Smooth-jawed traps with a jaw spread of
8.5 inches or less (measured from the inside edge of the trap at
the dog);
(2)
ee
Bbody-gripping traps with a jaw spread of 11 inches or less (measured on
the inside edge of the trap from hinge-to-hinge and from top-to-bottom at the
dog and may not exceed the specified maximum size either horizontally or
vertically); and
(3) Box
traps.
(D) Snare (Cable
Restraint Device) Restrictions:
(1) Snares are
allowed in water sets;
(2) Snares
are allowed as land sets provided that snares set more than 20 feet from a
permanent body of water have a functional "deer lock" that will not allow the
snare to close smaller than 2.5 inches;
(3) Land snares must be constructed of
braided cable with a loop no more than 12 inches in diameter (side-to-side) and
a lower loop no more than 10 inches off the ground. Only snares with
single-piece locks may be used on land;
(4) Leg snares are prohibited;
(5) No snare shall be set or maintained in
any public road; and
(6) Fully
extended snares may not touch any fence. PENALTY: Class
1
20.07
PERMIT REQUIREMENTS ON CERTAIN WMAs
It is unlawful to take or attempt to take wildlife during an
open season on certain WMAs without first obtaining the required permit
(Codes 20.16; 20.17 and
Addendum Chapter CI.00) and as specified below:
(A) A permit is required on Bald Knob, Big
Lake, Cache River, Felsenthal, Holla Bend, Overflow, Pond Creek and Wapanocca
NWRs; Crossett Experimental Forest,
and U of A Pine Tree Experimental Station WDA.
(B) A leased land permit is required for
persons 16 years and older to camp, hunt or trap wildlife on Big Timber, Casey
Jones, Cherokee, Gum Flats, Jim Kress, Lafayette County (except no permit is
required to camp on Lafayette County), and Provo Leased Lands WMAs.
(C) A permit is required to camp, hunt, fish,
or for the operation of an ATV on White River NWR.
(D) A permit is required for persons 16
years and older on the Sweet Sixteen WMAs: Bayou Meto, Dave Donaldson Black
River, Dr. Lester Sitzes, III Bois d'Arc, Ed Gordon Point Remove, Freddie Black
Choctaw Island WMA Deer Research Area - East/West Units, Harold E. Alexander
Spring River, Henry Gray Hurricane Lake, Hope Upland, Mcllroy Madison County,
Mike Freeze Wattensaw, Moro Big Pine Natural Area, Rick Evans Grandview
Prairie, Scott Henderson Gulf Mountain, Sheffield Nelson Dagmar, Shirey Bay
Rainey Brake, and Trusten Holder WMA.
PENALTY: Class 1
20.10
HUNTING FROM ROADS PROHIBITED ON
WMAs
It is unlawful to shoot across, or to hunt within 100 feet from
the center line of any city,
county, state or federal maintained road open to public vehicular
traffic on WMAs. It is unlawful to shoot across, or to hunt within 100 feet
from the center line of any privately maintained road which is open to public
vehicular traffic and falls under the control of the Commission through
ownership, lease, cooperative agreement, conservation easement or memorandum of
understanding on WMAs. It is unlawful to place or leave any stand, blind or
other hunting apparatus with the intent of hunting from any of these roads or
railroad rights-of-way on WMAs. In addition to other evidence introduced in a
prima facie case of road hunting, there shall be a rebuttable presumption a
person is "hunting" if the person points, aims, shoots or attempts to shoot a
firearm or other killing device from a said road or railroad right-of-way in a
direction in which game or other wildlife is present or likely to be present
(including shooting at a game or wildlife decoy).
EXCEPTIONS:
(1) Persons
engaged in a lawful action to protect their livestock.
(2) Persons having a valid Mobility Impaired
Access Permit may hunt from designated, signed Mobility Impaired Access Trails
where public vehicular access is not allowed in compliance with
Code 20.19.
(3) Persons having a valid Mobility Impaired
Access Permit may hunt from the two specially designated abandoned railroad
rights-of-way on the Moro Big Pine Natural Area WMA.
(4) Small game (excluding fox, bobcat and
coyote) pursued or treed by a dog or is under point of a dog may be taken
within 100 feet from the centerline of a road on Big Timber, Casey Jones,
Cherokee, Gum Flats, Howard County, Jim Kress, Lafayette County, Lake Greeson,
Moro Big Pine Natural Area and Provo WMAs provided the road is not city,
county, state or federally maintained.
(5) Persons using foothold and e
{body-gripping)-traps and using firearms to dispatch live animals caught
in legally set traps.
(6)
Licensed/permitted falconers hunting with or trapping birds of prey in
compliance with state and federal falconry regulations. PENALTY: Class
2
C1.01
DEER SEASON AND LIMIT RESTRICTIONS ON WMAs
WEDINGTON WMA
Archery:
Sept. 15. 2012-Dec. 31.
2012.
Muzzleloader: Closed.
Modern Gun (special youth hunts):
Nov.
3-4. 2012 and Jan. 5-6. 2013.
Modern Gun (permit hunt): DecrNov.
10-11.2012.
Seasonal limit of two deer; no more than one legal buck. No more
than one legal buck or up to two does may be taken with archery tackle. No more
than one buck or one doe may be taken during the modern gun permit hunt. Limit
during the modern gun special youth hunt is one deer, buck (no antler
restrictions) or doe, this is not a bonus deer and will count towards the
seasonal limit (Codes 20.02;
21.02).
G1.01
DEPREDATION PERMIT GENERAL
PROVISIONS
The following general requirements shall apply with respect to
all Depredation Permits:
(A)
Landowners or their designees with Depredation Permits may be approved to use
any of the
following methods to control nuisance
wildlife:
(1) Any trapping method legal for use in the
fur-trapping season. ee Bbody-gripping traps with jaw spreads of
up to 10 inches may be used inside buildings. Cage-style live traps may be
used. Traps set in the outdoors must be marked in accordance with
Code 17.03.
(2) Firearms may be used day or night if
specifically approved by the Commission employee issuing the permit.
