| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
1 | AN ACT concerning wildlife.
| |||||||||||||||||||
2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| |||||||||||||||||||
3 | represented in the General Assembly:
| |||||||||||||||||||
4 | Section 5. The Wildlife Code is amended by changing Section | |||||||||||||||||||
5 | 2.37 as follows:
| |||||||||||||||||||
6 | (520 ILCS 5/2.37) (from Ch. 61, par. 2.37)
| |||||||||||||||||||
7 | Sec. 2.37. Authority to kill wildlife responsible for | |||||||||||||||||||
8 | damage. Subject to
federal regulations and Section 3 of the | |||||||||||||||||||
9 | Illinois Endangered Species Act, the Department may authorize | |||||||||||||||||||
10 | owners
and
tenants of lands or their agents to remove or | |||||||||||||||||||
11 | destroy any wild bird
or wild mammal when the wild bird or
wild | |||||||||||||||||||
12 | mammal
is known to be destroying property or causing a risk to | |||||||||||||||||||
13 | human health or
safety upon his or her land.
| |||||||||||||||||||
14 | Upon receipt by the Department of information from the | |||||||||||||||||||
15 | owner, tenant,
or sharecropper that any one or more species of | |||||||||||||||||||
16 | wildlife is damaging dams, levees, ditches, cattle pastures, or | |||||||||||||||||||
17 | other
property on the land on which he resides or controls, | |||||||||||||||||||
18 | together with a
statement regarding location of the property | |||||||||||||||||||
19 | damages, the nature and
extent of the damage, and the | |||||||||||||||||||
20 | particular species of wildlife committing
the damage, the | |||||||||||||||||||
21 | Department shall make an investigation.
| |||||||||||||||||||
22 | If, after investigation, the Department finds
that damage | |||||||||||||||||||
23 | does exist and
can be abated only by removing or destroying
|
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | that wildlife, a permit shall be
issued by the Department to | ||||||
2 | remove or destroy the species responsible for causing
the | ||||||
3 | damage.
| ||||||
4 | A permit to control
the damage shall be for a period of up | ||||||
5 | to 90 days,
shall specify the means and methods by which and | ||||||
6 | the person or persons
by whom the wildlife may be removed or | ||||||
7 | destroyed, and shall set forth the
disposition procedure to be | ||||||
8 | made of all wildlife taken and other
restrictions the Director
| ||||||
9 | considers necessary and appropriate in the
circumstances of the | ||||||
10 | particular case. Whenever possible, the specimens
destroyed | ||||||
11 | shall be given to a bona-fide public or State scientific,
| ||||||
12 | educational, or zoological institution.
| ||||||
13 | The permittee shall advise the
Department in writing, | ||||||
14 | within 10 days after the expiration date of
the permit, of the | ||||||
15 | number of individual species of wildlife
taken, disposition | ||||||
16 | made of them, and any other information which
the Department | ||||||
17 | may consider necessary.
| ||||||
18 | Subject to federal regulations and Section 3 of the | ||||||
19 | Illinois Endangered
Species Act, the Department may grant to an | ||||||
20 | individual,
corporation,
association or a governmental body | ||||||
21 | the authority
to control species protected by this Code. The | ||||||
22 | Department
shall set forth applicable regulations
in an | ||||||
23 | Administrative Order and may require periodic reports listing | ||||||
24 | species
taken, numbers of each species taken, dates when taken, | ||||||
25 | and other pertinent
information.
| ||||||
26 | Drainage Districts shall have the authority to control |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | beaver provided
that they must notify the Department in writing | ||||||
2 | that a problem exists and
of their intention to trap the | ||||||
3 | animals at least 7 days before the trapping
begins. The | ||||||
4 | District must identify traps used in beaver control outside
the | ||||||
5 | dates of the furbearer trapping season with metal tags with the | ||||||
6 | district's
name legibly inscribed upon them. During the | ||||||
7 | furtrapping season, traps
must be identified as prescribed by | ||||||
8 | law. Conibear traps at least size 330
shall be used except | ||||||
9 | during the statewide furbearer trapping season. During
that | ||||||
10 | time trappers may use any device that is legal according to the | ||||||
11 | Wildlife
Code. Except during the statewide furbearer trapping | ||||||
12 | season, beaver traps
must be set in water at least 10 inches | ||||||
13 | deep. Except during the statewide
furbearer trapping season, | ||||||
14 | traps must be set within 10 feet of an inhabited
bank burrow or | ||||||
15 | house and within 10 feet of a dam maintained by a beaver.
No | ||||||
16 | beaver or other furbearer taken outside of the dates for the | ||||||
17 | furbearer
trapping season may be sold. All animals must be | ||||||
18 | given to the nearest
conservation officer or other Department | ||||||
19 | of Natural Resources representative
within 48 hours
after they | ||||||
20 | are caught. Furbearers taken during the fur trapping season
may | ||||||
21 | be sold provided that they are taken by persons who have valid | ||||||
22 | trapping
licenses in their possession and are lawfully taken. | ||||||
23 | The District must
submit an annual report showing the species | ||||||
24 | and numbers of animals caught.
The report must indicate all | ||||||
25 | species which were taken.
| ||||||
26 | The location of traps or snares authorized under this |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | Section, either by the Department or any other governmental | ||||||
2 | body with the authority to control species protected by this | ||||||
3 | Code, shall be exempt from the provisions of the Freedom of | ||||||
4 | Information Act. | ||||||
5 | A drainage district, road district or similar body, | ||||||
6 | landowner, tenant, or the designee of a drainage district, road | ||||||
7 | district, landowner, or tenant shall be exempt from the | ||||||
8 | requirement to obtain a permit to control nuisance raccoons, | ||||||
9 | opossums, muskrats, skunks, coyotes, or beavers if all | ||||||
10 | applicable provisions for licenses are complied with and any | ||||||
11 | trap types and sizes used are in compliance with this Act, | ||||||
12 | including marking or identification. Landowners, tenants, or | ||||||
13 | their designees may remove cottontail rabbits or grey or fox | ||||||
14 | squirrels from their property, but only by means of a live | ||||||
15 | trap, if the cottontail rabbits and grey or fox squirrels are | ||||||
16 | released alive and unharmed in suitable habitat that is not | ||||||
17 | within any city or town and not within any park. The designee | ||||||
18 | of a drainage district, road district, landowner, or tenant | ||||||
19 | must have a signed and dated written authorization from the | ||||||
20 | drainage district, landowner, or tenant in possession at all | ||||||
21 | times when conducting activities under this Section. This | ||||||
22 | exemption from obtaining a permit shall be valid only upon | ||||||
23 | property owned, leased, or controlled by the drainage district, | ||||||
24 | road district, landowner, or tenant. | ||||||
25 | (Source: P.A. 97-813, eff. 7-13-12; 97-959, eff. 8-15-12; | ||||||
26 | 98-1045, eff. 8-25-14.)
|
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
2 | becoming law.
|