AB 1213, as amended, Bloom. Bobcat Protection Act of 2013.
Existing law enumerates the fur-bearing mammals that may be taken only with a trap, a firearm, a bow and arrow, or poison under a proper permit, or with the use of dogs, and requires every person, other than a fur dealer, who traps fur-bearing mammals or nongame mammals designated by the Fish and Game Commission, or who sells raw furs of those mammals, to procure a trapping license. A violation of any of the provision of the Fish and Game Code, or any rule, regulation, or order made or adopted under those provisions, is a misdemeanor, unless otherwise specified.
This bill would enact the Bobcat Protection Act of 2013, which would, beginning January 1, 2014, make it unlawful to trap any bobcat, or attempt to do so, or to sell or export any bobcat or part of any bobcat taken in the area surrounding Joshua Tree National Park, as specified. The
bill would require the commission to amend its regulations to prohibit the trapping of bobcatsbegin delete within, andend delete adjacentbegin delete to,end deletebegin insert toend insert the boundaries ofbegin delete aend deletebegin insert eachend insert national or statebegin delete park,end deletebegin insert park and nationalend insert monument orbegin delete preserve, nationalend delete wildlife refugebegin insert
in which bobcat trapping is currently prohibitedend insert, andbegin insert within, and adjacent to,end insert other public or private conservation area identified by the commission for protection, as specified. The bill would prohibit the trapping of any bobcat, or attempt to do so, on any private land not belonging to the trapper without the express written consent of the owner of that property, as specified. The bill would require the commission to set trapping license fees for the 2014-2015 season, and any subsequent seasons in which bobcat trapping is allowed, at the level necessary to fully recover all reasonable administrative and implementation costs of the Department of Fish and Wildlife and the commission associated with the trapping of bobcats in the state. The bill would provide that these provisions do not limit the ability of the department or the commission to impose additional requirements,
restrictions, or prohibitions related to the taking of bobcats. By changing the definition of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the
2Bobcat Protection Act of 2013.
The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
4(a) It is the intent of the Legislature in adopting this act to ensure
5that the bobcat (Lynx rufus) remains a fully functional component
6of the ecosystems it inhabits throughout its range in California.
7(b) The Legislature recognizes that bobcats are an irreplaceable
8part of California’s natural habitat, and that, as predators of small
9mammals, bobcats play an important role in regulating the
P3 1population of rodents in California’s deserts, forests, and
2
grasslands.
3(c) The Legislature further recognizes that millions of people
4visit California’s national and state parks and other public and
5private conservation areas for the purposes of, among other things,
6viewing wildlife, including bobcats, and that this visitation
7contributes millions of dollars to California’s economy.
8(d) The Legislature further recognizes that bobcats and other
9native wildlife often cross the boundaries of national parks and
10other protected areas into adjacent areas where the taking of
11bobcats is currently allowed pursuant to the Fish and Game Code
12and the regulations adopted pursuant to that code.
13(e) Current California laws and regulations provide no limits
14on the sex, age,
location, or number of bobcats that may be taken
15by licensed trappers on private and public lands in California where
16the taking of wildlife is not otherwise prohibited.
17(f) Current regulations provide for the commercial sale and
18export of bobcat pelts taken by hunters or trappers in California.
19(g) The Legislature further finds that a rise in the demand for
20bobcat pelts in China and other foreign markets has resulted in a
21substantial increase in the number of trappers taking bobcats as
22well as in the number of bobcats taken for commercial purposes
23in California.
24(h) Reliable population estimates do not exist for bobcats
25statewide in California and neither the Department of Fish and
26Wildlife nor the Fish and Game
Commission possesses adequate
27data to determine a sustainable harvest limit for bobcats.
Section 4155 is added to the Fish and Game Code, to
29read:
(a) Beginning January 1, 2014, it shall be unlawful to
31trap any bobcat, or attempt to do so, or to sell or export any bobcat
32or part of any bobcat taken in the area surrounding Joshua Tree
33National Park, defined as follows: East and South of State Highway
3462 from the intersection of Interstate 10 to the intersection of State
35Highway 177; West of State Highway 177 from the intersection
36of State Highway 62 to the intersection with Interstate 10; North
37of Interstate 10 from State Highway 177 to State Highway 62.
38(b) At its next regularly scheduled mammal hunting and trapping
39rulemaking process to occur after January 1, 2014, the commission
40shall amend its regulations to
prohibit the trapping of bobcatsbegin deleteP4 1 within, and adjacent to, the boundaries of a
national or state park,
2monument or preserve, national wildlife refuge, and other publicend delete
3begin insert adjacent to the boundaries of each national or state park and
4national monument or wildlife refuge in which bobcat trapping is
5currently prohibited, and within, and adjacent to, any other public end insert
6 or private conservationbegin delete areaend deletebegin insert areasend insert identified by the commission
7for protection. The commission shall delineate the boundaries of
8any prohibited area using readily identifiable features, such as
9highways or other major roads, such as those delineated for Joshua
10Tree National Park in subdivision (a).
11(c) The prohibition on the trapping of bobcats in the areas
12designated pursuant to subdivisions (a) and (b) shall not apply to
13the taking of any bobcat by employees of the department acting
14in an official capacity, to a taking in accordance with the conditions
15of a scientific, educational, or propagation permit pursuant to
16Section 1002 by the holder of that permit, or to the lawful taking
17of bobcats found to be injuring crops or other property pursuant
18to Section 4152 or other provisions of this code or regulations
19adopted pursuant to this code.
20(d) Notwithstanding Section 2016 or any other provisions of
21this code, on and after January 1, 2014, it shall be unlawful to trap
22any bobcat, or attempt to do so, on any private land not belonging
23to the trapper without the express written consent of the owner of
24that property. The
placing or possession of any trap or the
25possession of a bobcat or part thereof on any land is prima facie
26evidence of a violation of this subdivision.
27(e) Pursuant to the requirements of subdivision (c) of Section
284006, the commission shall set trapping license fees for the
292014-15 season, and any subsequent seasons in which bobcat
30trapping is allowed, at the level necessary to fully recover all
31reasonable administrative and implementation costs of the
32department and the commission associated with the trapping of
33bobcats in the state.
34(f) This section does not limit the ability of the department or
35the commission to impose additional requirements, restrictions,
36or prohibitions related to the taking of bobcats, including a
37complete prohibition on the trapping of bobcats pursuant to
this
38code.
No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
40Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
P5 1the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
2district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
3infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
4for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
5the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
6the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
7Constitution.
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