2025
STATE OF WYOMING
25LSO-06711HB0286
HOUSE BILL NO. HB0286
Mountain lion hunting season-changes.
Sponsored by: Representative(s) Schmid, Allemand,
Haroldson, Webber, Wharff and Winter and
Senator(s) Driskill
A BILL
for
1 AN ACT relating to game and fish; requiring an annual
2 mountain lion hunting season; prohibiting hunt areas, hunt
3 area mortality limits, statewide mortality limits, bag
4 limits and hours for taking mountain lions for mountain
5 lion hunting seasons; specifying that a mountain lion may
6 be taken during any hour of the day; requiring the game and
7 fish commission to establish possession tags for mountain
8 lions as specified; authorizing mountain lions to be
9 trapped or snared; authorizing persons with other specified
10 licenses to take mountain lions; repealing mountain lion
11 pursuit seasons; providing definitions; making conforming
12 amendments; requiring rulemaking; and providing for
13 effective dates.
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15 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-06712HB0286
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2. W.S. 23-2-110 is created to read:
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4
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6
7 (a) For purposes of this section:
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9 (i) "Bag limit" means the maximum number of
10 mountain lions that may be taken by a person with a valid
11 license;
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13 (ii) "Hunt area" means the area within a defined
14 geographic boundary where a person may take a mountain lion
15 with a valid license;
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17 (iii) "Hunt area mortality limit" means the
18 number of mountain lions that may be taken within a hunt
19 area;
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21 (iv) "Statewide mortality limit" means the
22 number of mountain lions that may be taken within the state
23 per year. 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-06713HB0286
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2 (b) The mountain lion hunting season shall begin
3 September 1 and end August 31 of each year.
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5 (c) For any mountain lion hunting season, the
6 commission shall not:
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8 (i) Establish hunt areas;
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10 (ii) Impose hunt area mortality limits,
11 statewide mortality limits or bag limits;
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13 (iii) Impose hours that a person may take a
14 mountain lion with a valid license. A person may take a
15 mountain lion with a valid license during any hour of the
16 day.
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18 (d) Any person with a valid antelope, deer or elk
19 license may take a mountain lion without a valid mountain
20 lion license.
21 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-06714HB02861W.S. 23-1-302(a)(ii) and by creating a new
2 paragraph (xxxiv), 23-3-102(d), 23-3-109(a) and 23-3-304(a)
3 are amended to read:
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5
6
7 (a) The commission is directed and empowered:
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9 (ii) To establish zones and areas in which
10 trophy game animals
11 may be taken as game animals with a license
12 or, with the exception of gray wolves,
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14 regard to the livestock and game industries in those
15 particular areas;
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23 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-06715HB0286
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2 (d) Any person who knowingly takes any antlered elk,
3 antlered deer, antlered moose, horned antelope, bighorn
4 sheep, mountain goat, mountain lion, grizzly bear or black
5 bear without the proper license or during a closed season
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7
8 by this act, is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a
9 fine of not less than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) nor
10 more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00), imprisonment
11 for not more than one (1) year, or both. A third or
12 subsequent conviction within ten (10) years for a violation
13 of this subsection shall constitute a felony punishable by
14 a fine of not less than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00)
15 nor more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00),
16 imprisonment for not more than two (2) years, or both. For
17 the purposes of determining whether a violation of this
18 subsection is a felony, convictions resulting from the same
19 occurrence shall be considered a single conviction even if
20 the result of the occurrence is more than one (1)
21 misdemeanor conviction. The provisions of W.S. 6-8-101(a)
22 shall not apply to convictions under this section.
23 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-06716HB02861
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6 (a) No person shall use any dog to hunt, run or
7 harass any big or trophy game animal, protected animal or
8 furbearing animal except as otherwise provided by this act.
9 The commission shall regulate the use of dogs to take
10 mountain lions and bobcats by residents and nonresidents
11 during hunting or trapping seasons. The commission shall
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19 (a) No person shall take or wound any game animal,
20 game bird, or game fish by use of any pit, pitfall, net,
21 trap, deadfall, poison, or other similar device except as
22 otherwise provided. From and after the date gray wolves are
23 removed from the list of experimental nonessential 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-06717HB0286
1 population, endangered species or threatened species in
2 Wyoming as provided by W.S. 23-1-108, gray wolves may be
3 taken with a trap or snare only as allowed by and in
4 accordance with rules and regulations of the commission.
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8
9W.S. 23-1-302(a)(xxxiii) and 23-2-307(c)
10 are repealed.
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12. The game and fish commission shall
13 promulgate all rules necessary to implement this act.
14 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-06718HB02861
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3 (a) Except as otherwise provided by subsection (b) of
4 this section, this act is effective July 1, 2025.
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6 (b) Sections 4 and 5 of this act are effective
7 immediately upon completion of all acts necessary for a
8 bill to become law as provided by Article 4, Section 8 of
9 the Wyoming Constitution.
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11 (END)