PLEASE NOTE: Legislative Information cannot perform research, provide legal advice, or interpret Maine law. For legal assistance, please contact a qualified attorney.
Amend the bill by striking out the title and substituting the following:
‘An Act To Eliminate the Minimum Age Requirement for a Junior Hunting License and Increase the Number of Times a Person May Hold an Apprentice Hunter License’
Amend the bill in section 1 in subsection 8 in the 4th line (page 1, line 7 in L.D.) by striking out the following: ", 108 years of age or older," and inserting the following: ', 10 years of age or older,'
Amend the bill by striking out all of section 2 and inserting the following:
‘Sec. 2. 12 MRSA §11102, as affected by PL 2003, c. 614, §9 and repealed and replaced by c. 655, Pt. B, §111 and affected by §422, is repealed.
Amend the bill in section 3 in paragraph B in the first line (page 1, line 24 in L.D.) by striking out the following: "8 years of age or older and" and inserting the following: 'years of age or older and'
Amend the bill in section 4 in subsection 2 in the first line (page 1, line 28 in L.D.) by striking out the following: "8 years of age or older and" and inserting the following: 'years of age or older and'
Amend the bill in section 5 in subsection 2 in the first line (page 1, line 32 in L.D.) by striking out the following: "8 years of age or older and" and inserting the following: 'years of age or older and'
Amend the bill in section 6 in subsection 1 in the 2nd line (page 2, line 2 in L.D.) by striking out the following: "over 108 years of age" and inserting the following: 'over 10 years of age'
Amend the bill in section 6 in subsection 1 in the 3rd line (page 2, line 3 in L.D.) by striking out the following: "over 108 years of age" and inserting the following: 'over 10 years of age'
Amend the bill by striking out all of section 7 and inserting the following:
‘Sec. 7. 12 MRSA §11108-B, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2013, c. 538, §19, is further amended to read:
 
3. Eligibility.   A resident or nonresident 16 years of age or older who has never held a valid adult hunting license in this State, or any other state, province or country, is eligible to obtain an apprentice hunter license. Notwithstanding section 11105, a person is eligible to obtain an apprentice hunter license without having successfully completed a hunter safety course. A person may not obtain an apprentice hunter license more than twice5 times. A person selected to receive a moose permit may not then purchase an apprentice hunter license to meet the licensing requirements for that permit.
Sec. 8. 12 MRSA §11108-C, as enacted by PL 2013, c. 538, §20, is amended to read:
§ 11108-C.Eligibility and restrictions for a junior hunting license
 
1. Definitions.   As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings.
 
A. "Adult supervisor" means:
 
(1) The parent or guardian of the junior hunter who holds or has held a valid Maine hunting license or successfully completed a hunter safety course that meets the requirements of section 11105; or
 
(2) A person 18 years of age or older who:
 
(a) Is approved by the parent or guardian of the junior hunter; and
 
(b) Holds or has held a valid Maine hunting license or successfully completed a hunter safety course that meets the requirements of section 11105.
 
B. "In the presence of" means in visual and voice contact without the use of visual or audio enhancement devices, including but not limited to binoculars and citizen band radios.
 
2. Eligibility.   A resident or nonresident who is at least 10 years of age and under 16 years of age may obtain a junior hunting license, which allows that person to hunt subject to the conditions set out in this section.
 
3. Supervision of junior hunters.   A hunter who is at least 10 years of age and under 16 years of age may not hunt unless that person holds a junior hunting license and is in the presence of and under the effective control of an adult supervisor.
 
4. Supervision of junior hunters 16 years of age.   A hunter 16 years of age who obtained a junior hunterhunting license before that person reached 16 years of age may not hunt with that license unless the person is in the presence of orand under the effective control of an adult supervisor or the person has successfully completed a hunter safety course acceptable under section 11105. The following penalties apply to a violation of this subsection:
 
A. A person who violates this subsection commits a civil violation for which a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $500 may be adjudged; and
 
B. A person who violates paragraph A after having been adjudicated as having committed 3 or more civil violations under this Part within the previous 5-year period commits a Class E crime.
 
5. Expiration of junior hunting license issued to person 15 years of age.   A junior hunting license issued to a person who is 15 years of age is valid through the calendar year for which the license is issued. In addition to the requirements of subsection 4, all other permit requirements applicable to a person who is 16 years of age or older apply to a person who continues to hunt with a junior hunting license under this subsection after reaching that person's 16th birthday.
 
6. Penalties for supervisors of junior hunters.   A person who is the adult supervisor of a holder of a valid junior hunting license when that junior hunter violates any provision of this Part pertaining to hunting:
 
A. Commits a civil violation for which a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $500 may be adjudged; and
 
B. After having been adjudicated as having committed 3 or more civil violations under this Part within the previous 5-year period, commits a Class E crime.’
Amend the bill in section 8 in paragraph A in the first line (page 2, line 21 in L.D.) by striking out the following: "8 years of age or older and" and inserting the following: 'years of age or older and'
Amend the bill in section 9 in paragraph F in the first line (page 2, line 29 in L.D.) by striking out the following: "8 years of age or older and" and inserting the following: 'years of age or older and'
Amend the bill by inserting after section 9 the following:
‘Sec. 10. 12 MRSA §11154, sub-§13, as enacted by PL 2005, c. 143, §1, is amended to read:
 
13. Hunting adventure permits for children.   Notwithstanding subsection 6 and section 11102, the commissioner may issue 2 moose permits to a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing hunting and fishing adventures to children under 21 years of age with life-threatening, critical or terminal illnesses. The commissioner may issue these permits upon written request by an eligible nonprofit organization but may not issue more than 2 permits in total for a calendar year. These permits are in addition to the moose hunting permits issued under subsection 2 for each wildlife management district and are at no cost to the organization.
Sec. 11. Effective date. This Act takes effect January 1, 2016.’
Amend the bill by relettering or renumbering any nonconsecutive Part letter or section number to read consecutively.
 
SUMMARY
The bill lowers the eligibility age for a junior hunting license from 10 to 8 years of age; this amendment instead removes the minimum age requirement for a junior hunting license. This amendment also provides that the adult supervisor of the junior hunter must hold or have held a Maine hunting license or have successfully completed a hunter safety course. It also increases the number of times a person may hold an apprentice hunter license from twice to 5 times before becoming ineligible to purchase the license. This amendment provides an effective date of January 1, 2016.
FISCAL NOTE REQUIRED
(See attached)