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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 5388
January Session, 2025
AN ACT CONCERNING FISHING AND HUNTING RIGHTS OF CERTAIN
NATIVE AMERICAN TRIBES.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 47-65a of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2025): 2
Notwithstanding the provisions of section 26-27, any Indian may 3
take, hunt or trap any wild bird or quadruped on, or take or assist in 4
taking any fish or bait species in the waters of, the reservation of such 5
Indian's tribe without a license therefor, subject to the regulations 6
promulgated by the council and to such seasonal and bag limitations as 7
may be provided by law. The Commissioner of Energy and 8
Environmental Protection shall issue, without fee, a private land deer 9
permit to any Indian for use only on the reservation of such Indian's 10
tribe, provided such reservation is not less than [two hundred fifty] ten 11
acres in size and provided further no such Indian shall be issued more 12
than one such permit per season. Such permit shall allow the use of a 13
rifle, shotgun, muzzleloader or bow and arrow on such reservation land 14
from November first until December thirty-first, inclusive, of each year. 15
Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2025) The Commissioner of Energy 16
and Environmental Protection shall develop a ceremonial taking permit 17
for the taking of an animal specimen on state lands by any Indian for 18 Substitute Bill No. 5388
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ceremonial purposes provided: (1) There shall be no fee for such permit, 19
(2) such permit shall allow for only one such taking, and (3) such 20
specimen shall be a species that otherwise may be taken on state lands. 21
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2025 47-65a
Sec. 2 October 1, 2025 New section
ENV Joint Favorable Subst.