CSHB 172(RES): "An Act relating to the wildlife conservation tag and to entry onto state game and wildlife sanctuaries, state game refuges, state range areas, and fish and game critical habitat areas; relating to the issuance of citations for violations under the Fish and Game Code; and providing for an effective date."
00CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 172(RES) 01 "An Act relating to the wildlife conservation tag and to entry onto state game 02 and wildlife sanctuaries, state game refuges, state range areas, and fish and game 03 critical habitat areas; relating to the issuance of citations for violations under the 04 Fish and Game Code; and providing for an effective date." 05 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 06 * Section 1. FINDINGS. The legislature finds that 07 (1) the diversity of wildlife species in Alaska and the size of Alaska make 08 wildlife management extremely expensive; 09 (2) the growth in Alaska's human population has placed pressure upon wildlife 10 habitat and wildlife populations and has increased demand for use and appreciation of wildlife; 11 (3) the Board of Game and other resource management agencies need current, 12 accurate wildlife population and human use data for regulatory and planning purposes; 13 (4) the quality and extent of wildlife information provided by the Department 14 of Fish and Game have a direct effect on the types and levels of human use of wildlife that
01 are allowed; 02 (5) the cause of wildlife conservation would benefit from money generated by 03 a wildlife conservation tag to supplement, but not to supplant, money available for wildlife 04 conservation purposes from other sources; 05 (6) programs that benefit wildlife conservation, wildlife education, and wildlife 06 viewing would be enhanced by money generated by a wildlife conservation tag. 07 * Sec. 2. AS 16.05.165 is amended to read: 08 Sec. 16.05.165. FORM AND ISSUANCE OF CITATION. (a) When a peace 09 officer stops or contacts a person concerning a violation of this title except AS 16.51 10 and AS 16.52 or of a regulation adopted under this title except AS 16.51 and AS 16.52 11 that is a misdemeanor or a violation, the peace officer may, in the officer's discretion, 12 issue a citation to the person as provided in AS 12.25.180. 13 (b) The supreme court shall specify by rule or order those misdemeanors and 14 violations that are appropriate for disposition without court appearance, and shall 15 establish a schedule of bail amounts. Before establishing or amending the schedule 16 of bail amounts required by this subsection, the supreme court shall appoint and 17 consult with an advisory committee consisting of two officers of the division of fish 18 and wildlife protection of the Department of Public Safety, two representatives of the 19 Department of Fish and Game, two district court judges, and the chairpersons of the 20 House and Senate Judiciary Committees of the legislature. The maximum bail amount 21 for an offense may not exceed the maximum fine specified by law for that offense. 22 If the misdemeanor or violation for which the citation is issued may be disposed of 23 without court appearance, the issuing peace officer shall write on the citation the 24 amount of bail applicable to the offense [VIOLATION]. 25 (c) A person cited for a misdemeanor or violation for which a bail amount has 26 been established under (b) of this section may, within 15 days after the date of the 27 citation, mail or personally deliver to the clerk of the court in which the citation is 28 filed by the peace officer 29 (1) the amount of bail indicated on the citation for that offense; and 30 (2) a copy of the citation indicating that the right to an appearance is 31 waived, a plea of no contest is entered, and the bail is forfeited.
01 (d) When bail has been forfeited under (c) of this section, a judgment of 02 conviction shall be entered. Forfeiture of bail and all seized items is a complete 03 satisfaction for the misdemeanor or violation. The clerk of the court accepting the 04 bail shall provide the offender with a receipt stating that fact. 05 (e) If the person cited fails to pay the bail amount established under (b) of this 06 section or to appear in court as required, the citation is considered a summons for a 07 misdemeanor or violation, as appropriate. 08 (f) Notwithstanding other provisions of law, if a person cited for a 09 misdemeanor or violation for which a bail amount has been established under (b) of 10 this section appears in court and is found guilty, the penalty that is imposed for the 11 offense may not exceed the bail amount for that offense established under (b) of this 12 section. 13 * Sec. 3. AS 16.05.350 is amended to read: 14 Sec. 16.05.350. EXPIRATION OF LICENSES AND TAGS. Licenses and tags 15 required under AS 16.05.330 - 16.05.430, except biennial licenses, the nonresident 16 special sport fishing license, the resident trapping license, and the waterfowl 17 conservation tag, expire at the close of December 31 following issuance. Biennial 18 licenses expire after December 31 of the year following the year of issuance. The 19 resident trapping license expires at the close of September 30 of the year following the 20 year in which the license is issued. The waterfowl conservation tag expires at the 21 close of January 31 of the year following the year of issue of the tag. The wildlife 22 conservation tag provided under AS 16.05.828 expires at the close of December 31 23 following issuance. 24 * Sec. 4. AS 16.05 is amended by adding a new section to read: 25 Sec. 16.05.828. WILDLIFE CONSERVATION TAG PROGRAM. (a) In 26 order to provide support for the wildlife conservation activities of the department, there 27 is established the wildlife conservation tag program. 28 (b) The department shall provide a patch, emblem, decal, stamp, or other 29 suitable item to serve as a wildlife conservation tag. The wildlife conservation tag and 30 proof of purchase of a wildlife conservation tag shall be available through vendors of 31 fish and game licenses and other outlets at the discretion of the commissioner.
01 (c) Notwithstanding AS 16.05.080, the commissioner shall establish the fee for 02 a wildlife conservation tag by regulation. The commissioner may establish a different 03 fee for residents and nonresidents. The commissioner may establish a different fee, 04 or waive the requirement for a wildlife conservation tag under this section, for a 05 person who is 06 (1) under the age of 16 years or over the age of 59 years; 07 (2) eligible for a 25 cent resident sport fishing license under 08 AS 16.05.340(a)(1); 09 (3) eligible for a $5 resident hunting, trapping, and sport fishing license 10 under AS 16.05.340(a)(6); or 11 (4) a disabled veteran eligible for a free license under AS 16.05.341. 12 (d) The proof of purchase of a wildlife conservation tag entitles the purchaser, 13 after complying with other applicable statutes and regulations, to 14 (1) apply, under terms established by the commissioner by regulation, 15 for a permit to enter a state game or wildlife sanctuary or an area identified by the 16 commissioner by regulation where a permit from the department is required for entry 17 into the area; and 18 (2) enter, if a permit from the department is not required for entry into 19 the area, 20 (A) the McNeil River State Game Sanctuary and the Walrus 21 Islands State Game Sanctuary; and 22 (B) as designated by the commissioner by regulation 23 (i) the Stan Price State Wildlife Sanctuary; or 24 (ii) a state game refuge, state range area, or fish and 25 game critical habitat area. 26 (e) The commissioner may designate by regulation those state game and 27 wildlife sanctuaries, state game refuges, state range areas, and fish and game critical 28 habitat areas where possession of a valid hunting, sport fishing, or trapping license 29 may substitute during open hunting, sport fishing, or trapping seasons for a wildlife 30 conservation tag. 31 (f) A wildlife conservation tag may not be required
01 (1) for access to or from private property within or adjoining a state 02 game or wildlife sanctuary, state game refuge, state range area, or fish and game 03 critical habitat area; 04 (2) to use a public easement or right-of-way across a state game or 05 wildlife sanctuary, state game refuge, state range area, or fish and game critical habitat 06 area; 07 (3) of a person who is lawfully engaged in subsistence hunting, fishing, 08 trapping, or gathering on a state game or wildlife sanctuary, state game refuge, state 09 range area, or fish or game critical habitat area; 10 (4) of a person for whom the commissioner has waived the wildlife 11 conservation tag requirement under (c) of this section. 12 (g) The department may contract with a person to perform the responsibilities 13 of the department under this section to provide a wildlife conservation tag. 14 Contracting under this subsection is governed by AS 36.30 (State Procurement Code), 15 except that a contract may include provisions for advance payment or reimbursement 16 for services performed under the contract. 17 (h) The revenue received from the sale of wildlife conservation tags may be 18 appropriated by the legislature to the department for programs that benefit wildlife 19 conservation, wildlife education, and wildlife viewing. In this subsection, "wildlife" 20 has the meaning given "game" in AS 16.05.940. 21 (i) A person commits a violation if the person intentionally or knowingly 22 enters upon a state game or wildlife sanctuary, state game refuge, state range area, or 23 fish and game critical habitat area where the person is required to possess a wildlife 24 conservation tag under this section or AS 16.20 or a regulation adopted under this 25 section or AS 16.20 and does not have a wildlife conservation tag in the person's 26 possession. Upon conviction of the violation, the person may be sentenced to pay a 27 fine not to exceed twice the fee that the person would have had to pay to obtain a 28 wildlife conservation tag at the time the person committed the violation. In this 29 subsection, "intentionally," "knowingly," and "violation" have the meanings given in 30 AS 11.81.900. 31 * Sec. 5. AS 16.05.925 is amended to read:
01 Sec. 16.05.925. PENALTY FOR VIOLATIONS. Except as provided in 02 AS 16.05.430, 16.05.722, 16.05.723, 16.05.828, 16.05.831, and 16.05.860, a person 03 who violates AS 16.05.920 or 16.05.921, or a regulation adopted under this chapter or 04 AS 16.20, is guilty of a class A misdemeanor. 05 * Sec. 6. AS 16.20.094 is amended to read: 06 Sec. 16.20.094. AUTHORITY TO ADMINISTER. Subject to 07 AS 16.05.828(d) - (f), the [THE] boards may adopt regulations governing entry, 08 development, construction, hunting, fishing, and all other uses or activities not in 09 conflict with AS 16.20.096 and 16.20.098 for the purpose of preserving the natural 10 habitat and the fish and game of the Walrus Islands State Game Sanctuary. 11 * Sec. 7. AS 16.20.096 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 12 (b) Except as provided under AS 16.05.828(e) and (f), a person may not enter 13 the Walrus Islands State Game Sanctuary without having in the person's possession 14 a proof of purchase of a wildlife conservation tag. 15 * Sec. 8. AS 16.20.150(c) is amended to read: 16 (c) Subject to AS 16.05.828(d) - (f), a [A] board may adopt regulations 17 governing access, entry, development, construction, and each other use and activity 18 affecting the natural habitat and the fish and wildlife within the Stan Price State 19 Wildlife Sanctuary. 20 * Sec. 9. AS 16.20.162(e) is amended to read: 21 (e) Subject to AS 16.05.828(d) - (f), the [THE] boards may adopt regulations 22 governing access, entry, development, construction, fishing, and other uses and 23 activities affecting the natural habitat, fish and wildlife, and public use of the McNeil 24 River State Game Sanctuary. 25 * Sec. 10. AS 16.20.162 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 26 (g) Except as provided under AS 16.05.828(e) and (f), a person may not enter 27 the McNeil River State Game Sanctuary without having in the person's possession a 28 proof of purchase of a wildlife conservation tag. 29 * Sec. 11. AS 16.20.350(c) is amended to read: 30 (c) The Department of Natural Resources may, after consultation with the 31 Department of Fish and Game, adopt regulations governing the public use of the area,
01 except that the commissioner of fish and game may require possession of a 02 wildlife conservation tag under AS 16.05.828 as a condition for access to the area. 03 The regulations must include provisions for multiple use, as defined in AS 38.04.910, 04 and for public multiple uses listed in AS 16.20.340. Regulations adopted for the 05 Matanuska Valley Moose Range do not apply to private land within the boundary 06 described in AS 16.20.360. 07 * Sec. 12. AS 16.20.625(e) is amended to read: 08 (e) The department shall permit uses of the Redoubt Bay Critical Habitat Area 09 in a manner that is compatible with the purposes for which the critical habitat area is 10 established. Subject to AS 16.05.828(d) - (f), the [THE] department shall permit the 11 following public uses to continue without further approval by the department unless 12 the department determines that the use is not compatible with the purposes for which 13 the Redoubt Bay Critical Habitat Area is established: 14 (1) hunting, including subsistence hunting, trapping, and subsistence, 15 commercial, and sport fishing, including the continued use of cabins for the purpose 16 of hunting, trapping, and fishing; 17 (2) hiking, backpacking, and camping, including the use of campfires; 18 (3) cross-country skiing, snowmachining, boating, and the landing of 19 aircraft; and 20 (4) other related uses that are temporary in duration and have no 21 foreseeable adverse effects on vegetation, drainage, soil stability, or fish and game and 22 their habitat. 23 * Sec. 13. This Act takes effect January 1, 1994.