| 24 | | - | Section 1. Section 26-72 of the general statutes is repealed and the 1 |
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| 25 | | - | following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2019): 2 |
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| 26 | | - | The commissioner may, after notice and public hearing conducted 3 |
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| 27 | | - | in the manner prescribed by section 26-67, issue regulations governing 4 |
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| 28 | | - | and prescribing the taking of all species of fur-bearing animals by use 5 |
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| 29 | | - | of traps within the state. Such regulations may (1) establish the open 6 |
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| 30 | | - | and closed seasons, (2) establish the legal hours, (3) prescribe the legal 7 |
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| 31 | | - | methods that may be used, including size, type and kind of traps and 8 |
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| 32 | | - | the type and kind of bait and lures, (4) designate the places where 9 |
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| 33 | | - | traps may be placed and set and the conditions under which the 10 |
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| 34 | | - | placing and setting of traps will be legal, (5) establish the daily bag 11 |
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| 35 | | - | limit and the season bag limit, and (6) assess a reasonable fee, or 12 |
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| 36 | | - | develop a comparable equitable plan, for season trapping rights on 13 |
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| 37 | | - | state-owned property. Assignment of such rights for specific areas may 14 |
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| 38 | | - | be determined by drawing or by the order in which requests therefor 15 |
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| 39 | | - | are recorded as received in the office of the commissioner when there 16 |
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| 40 | | - | Committee Bill No. 6014 |
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| 41 | | - | |
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| 42 | | - | |
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| 43 | | - | LCO No. 4463 2 of 4 |
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| 44 | | - | |
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| 45 | | - | is a set fee for such areas, or the method of high bid may be used. No 17 |
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| 46 | | - | person shall set, place or attend any trap upon the land of another 18 |
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| 47 | | - | without having in such person's possession the written permission of 19 |
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| 48 | | - | the owner or lessee of such land, or such owner's or lessee's agent, and 20 |
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| 49 | | - | no person shall set, place or attend any trap not having the name of the 21 |
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| 50 | | - | person using such trap legibly stamped thereon or attached thereto, 22 |
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| 51 | | - | provided the owner or legal occupant of such land or such person as 23 |
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| 52 | | - | such owner or legal occupant designates may set, place or attend any 24 |
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| 53 | | - | legal steel trap in any place within a radius of one hundred feet of any 25 |
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| 54 | | - | permanent building located on such land. No person who sets, places 26 |
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| 55 | | - | or attends any trap shall permit more than twenty-four hours to elapse 27 |
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| 56 | | - | between visits to such trap, except that if such twenty-four-hour 28 |
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| 57 | | - | period expires before sunset, the person who set such trap shall have 29 |
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| 58 | | - | until sunset to visit the trap. No person shall place, set or attend any 30 |
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| 59 | | - | body-crushing trap, leghold trap, snare, net or similar device capable 31 |
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| 60 | | - | of taking, killing or injuring any animal. For purposes of this section, 32 |
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| 61 | | - | "body-crushing trap" means any device designed to kill an animal with 33 |
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| 62 | | - | a blow or crushing force to the body and includes, but is not limited to, 34 |
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| 63 | | - | conibear-style traps and "leghold trap" means any device designed to 35 |
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| 64 | | - | close on the foot or leg of an animal with sufficient force to hold the 36 |
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| 65 | | - | animal until the person tending the trap returns and includes, but is 37 |
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| 66 | | - | not limited to, a steel-jawed leghold style trap that is either padded or 38 |
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| 67 | | - | unpadded. For purposes of this section, cage and box traps, nets, 39 |
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| 68 | | - | suitcase-type beaver traps and common rat and mouse traps shall not 40 |
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| 69 | | - | be considered body-crushing traps, leghold traps or snares. The pelt of 41 |
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| 70 | | - | any fur-bearing animal legally taken may be possessed, sold or 42 |
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| 71 | | - | transported at any time. Upon demand of any officer having authority 43 |
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| 72 | | - | to serve criminal process or any representative of the Department of 44 |
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| 73 | | - | Energy and Environmental Protection, any person in possession of any 45 |
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| 74 | | - | such pelt shall furnish to such officer or such representative 46 |
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| 75 | | - | satisfactory evidence that such pelt was legally taken or acquired. No 47 |
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| 76 | | - | provision of this section shall be construed as prohibiting any 48 |
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| 77 | | - | landowner or lessee of land used for agricultural purposes or any 49 |
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| 78 | | - | citizen of the United States, or any person having on file in the court 50 |
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| 79 | | - | Committee Bill No. 6014 |
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| 80 | | - | |
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| 81 | | - | |
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| 82 | | - | LCO No. 4463 3 of 4 |
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| 83 | | - | |
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| 84 | | - | having jurisdiction thereof a written declaration of such person's 51 |
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| 85 | | - | intention to become a citizen of the United States, who is regularly 52 |
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| 86 | | - | employed by such landowner or lessee, from pursuing, trapping and 53 |
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| 87 | | - | killing at any time any fur-bearing animal, except deer, which is 54 |
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| 88 | | - | injuring any property, or the owner of any farm or enclosure used for 55 |
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| 89 | | - | breeding or raising any legally acquired fur-bearing animal who has a 56 |
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| 90 | | - | game breeder's license issued by the commissioner or a fur breeder's 57 |
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| 91 | | - | license issued by the Department of Agriculture, from taking or killing 58 |
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| 92 | | - | any such animal legally in his or her possession at any time or having 59 |
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| 93 | | - | in possession any pelt thereof. No person shall molest, injure or 60 |
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| 94 | | - | disturb any muskrat house or den at any time. Any fur-bearing animal 61 |
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| 95 | | - | legally taken alive may be possessed by the person taking the animal, 62 |
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| 96 | | - | provided the person shall notify the commissioner in a writing signed 63 |
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| 97 | | - | by the person stating the species and sex of such animal, the date and 64 |
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| 98 | | - | the name of the town where such animal was taken and the specific 65 |
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| 99 | | - | address where such animal will be kept. Any representative of the 66 |
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| 100 | | - | department may at any time inspect such animal and the enclosure or 67 |
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| 101 | | - | other facilities used to hold such animal and make inquiry concerning 68 |
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| 102 | | - | the diet and other care such animal should have and if, in the opinion 69 |
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| 103 | | - | of the commissioner or such representative, such animal is not being 70 |
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| 104 | | - | provided adequate or proper facilities or care, such animal may be 71 |
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| 105 | | - | seized by such representative of the department and be disposed of as 72 |
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| 106 | | - | determined by the commissioner. Fur-bearing animals taken alive, as 73 |
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| 107 | | - | provided in this section, shall not be sold or exchanged, provided the 74 |
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| 108 | | - | person who legally possesses such animal may apply to the 75 |
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| 109 | | - | commissioner for a game breeder's license or to the Department of 76 |
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| 110 | | - | Agriculture for a fur breeder's license and when so licensed such 77 |
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| 111 | | - | person may breed such animal and the progeny thereof, and such issue 78 |
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| 112 | | - | when three generations removed from the wild may be sold or 79 |
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| 113 | | - | exchanged alive or dead. Any trap illegally set and any snare, net or 80 |
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| 114 | | - | similar device found placed or set in violation of the provisions of this 81 |
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| 115 | | - | section shall be seized by any representative of the department and, if 82 |
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| 116 | | - | not claimed within twenty-four hours, the commissioner may order 83 |
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| 117 | | - | such trap, snare, net or other device destroyed, sold or retained for use 84 |
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| 118 | | - | Committee Bill No. 6014 |
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| 119 | | - | |
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| 120 | | - | |
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| 121 | | - | LCO No. 4463 4 of 4 |
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| 122 | | - | |
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| 123 | | - | by the commissioner. Any person who violates any provision of this 85 |
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| 124 | | - | section or any regulation issued by the commissioner shall be guilty of 86 |
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| 125 | | - | a class D misdemeanor. Whenever any person is convicted, or forfeits 87 |
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| 126 | | - | any bond, or has such person's case nolled upon the payment of any 88 |
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| 127 | | - | sum of money, or receives a suspended sentence or judgment for a 89 |
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| 128 | | - | violation of any of the provisions of this section or any regulation 90 |
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| 129 | | - | issued hereunder by the commissioner, all traps used, set or placed in 91 |
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| 130 | | - | violation of any such provisions or any such regulation may, by order 92 |
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| 131 | | - | of the trial court, be forfeited to the state and may be retained for use 93 |
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| 132 | | - | by the department or may be sold or destroyed at the discretion of the 94 |
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| 133 | | - | commissioner. The proceeds from any such sale shall be paid to the 95 |
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| 134 | | - | State Treasurer and the State Treasurer shall credit such proceeds to 96 |
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| 135 | | - | the General Fund. 97 |
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| 136 | | - | This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following |
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| 137 | | - | sections: |
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| 138 | | - | |
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| 139 | | - | Section 1 October 1, 2019 26-72 |
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| 140 | | - | |
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| 27 | + | That the general statutes be amended to prohibit the use of leghold 1 |
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| 28 | + | and body-crushing traps in the state. 2 |
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