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1996 SESSION

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963203316
HOUSE BILL NO. 1205 Offered January 22, 1996 A BILL to amend and reenact §§ 29.1-300.1, 29.1-300.2 and 29.1-306 of the Code of Virginia, relating to disabled crossbow hunters. ---------- Patron-- Katzen ---------- Referred to Committee on Conservation and Natural Resources ----------

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That § of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:

§ 29.1-300.1. Certification of competence in hunter education.

A. Except as provided in subsection B of this section, no hunting license shall be issued to (i) a person who has never obtained a license to hunt in any state or country, or (ii) a person who is under the age of sixteen, unless such a person presents to the Board of Game and Inland Fisheries or one of its authorized license vendors, a certificate of completion in hunter education issued or authorized by the Board under the hunter education program, or proof that he holds the equivalent certificate obtained from an authorized agency or association of another state or country.

A1. No license to hunt with a crossbow during special archery season shall be issued to a person who has a physical disability under § 29.1-306, unless he presents to the Board or one of its authorized license vendors, a certificate of completion of an instructional component in the hunter education program that specifically covers crossbow safety which has been issued or authorized by the Board.

B. Except as provided in subsection A of § 29.1-301, any person under the age of twelve may purchase a Virginia hunting license, except a special lifetime hunting and fishing license issued pursuant to § 29.1-302.1, without completing a hunter education program as required in subsection A of this section, provided that no person under the age of twelve shall hunt unless accompanied and directly supervised by an adult who has, on his person, a valid Virginia hunting license.

The adult shall be responsible for such supervision. For the purposes of this section, "adult" means the parent or legal guardian of the person under age twelve, or such person over the age of eighteen designated by the parent or legal guardian.

"Accompanied and directly supervised" means that the adult is within sight of the person under the age of twelve.

C. This section shall not apply to persons while on horseback hunting foxes with hounds but without firearms.

§ 29.1-300.2. Hunter education program.

The Department shall provide for a course of instruction in hunter safety, principles of conservation, and sportsmanship, and for this purpose may cooperate with any reputable association or organization having as one of its objectives the promotion of hunter safety, principles of conservation, and sportsmanship. Such a course of instruction shall include a specific component for physically disabled hunters as described in § 29.1-306 on the safe use of the crossbow. This instructional component shall be mandatory for physically disabled individuals seeking to hunt with a crossbow.

The Board shall establish six full-time hunter education coordinator positions. Each coordinator will be assigned to a game warden district and have the responsibility for providing hunter education training in that district.

The Department may designate as a hunter safety instructor any person found by it to be competent to give instruction in the courses required by this article. A person so appointed shall give such course of instruction, and, upon completion thereof, shall issue to the person instructed a certificate of competency as provided by the Board in hunter safety, principles of conservation, and sportsmanship.

The Board shall prescribe a minimum level of skill and knowledge to be required of all hunter safety instructors, and may limit the number of students per instructor in all required classes.

The Board may revoke the certificate of any instructor when, in the opinion of the Board, it is in the best interest of the Commonwealth to do so.

The Board shall promulgate rules and regulations in order to administer and enforce the provisions of §§ 29.1-300.1 through 29.1-300.3.

§ 29.1-306. Special archery license; disabled hunters.

A. There shall be a license for hunting with a bow and arrow during the special archery seasons, which will be in addition to the license required to hunt small game. The fee for the special license shall be twelve dollars for a resident and twenty-five dollars for a nonresident.

The special archery license may be obtained from the clerk or agent of any county or city whose duty it is to sell licenses.

B. The Board shall promulgate regulations which allow persons, whose Any person who (i) has met the requirements of subsection A1 of § 29.1-300.1 and (ii) presents a medical doctor's written statement based on a physical examination that such person has physical disabilities prevent them which prevents him from hunting with conventional archery equipment, to hunt with crossbows on their own property shall be issued a license to hunt with a crossbow during special archery seasons as provided in subsection A.