SB0498 Engrossed

LRB095 09869 CMK 30080 b






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    AN ACT concerning hunting.

 
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    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
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represented in the General Assembly:


 
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    Section 5. The Illinois Hunting
Heritage Protection Act is 
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amended  by changing Section 15 as follows:
 
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    (520 ILCS 30/15)

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    Sec. 15. Recreational hunting.
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    (a) Subject to valid existing rights, Department-managed 
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lands shall be open
to
access and use for recreational hunting 
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except as limited by the Department for
reasons of public 
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safety, fish or wildlife management, or homeland security or
as 
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otherwise limited by law.


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    (b) The Department shall exercise its authority, 
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consistent with subsection
(a), in a manner to support, 
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promote, and enhance recreational hunting
opportunities, to 
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the extent authorized by State law.
The Department is not 
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required to give preference to hunting over other uses
of 
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Department-managed lands or over land or water management 
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priorities
established by Department regulations or State law.


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    (c) Department land management decisions and actions may 
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not, to the
greatest practical extent, result in any net loss 
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of habitat
land acreage available for
hunting opportunities on 
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Department-managed lands that exists on the effective
date of 
 


 






SB0498 Engrossed
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LRB095 09869 CMK 30080 b




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this Act.


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    (d) By October 1 of each year, the Director shall submit to 
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the General
Assembly
a written report describing:


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        (1) the acreage administered by the Department that has 
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    been closed during
the
previous year to recreational 
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    hunting and the reasons for the closures; and


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        (2) the acreage administered by the Department that, in 
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    order to comply
with subsection (c), was opened to

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    recreational
hunting to compensate for those acreage 
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    closed under paragraph (1).


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(Source: P.A. 93-837, eff. 1-1-05.)

 
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    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
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becoming law.