Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HB4377
Illinois General Assembly

Previous General Assemblies

Full Text of HB4377  98th General Assembly

HB4377eng 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

  
  
  

 


 
HB4377 EngrossedLRB098 13941 MLW 48489 b

1    AN ACT concerning wildlife.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Wildlife Code is amended by changing Section
52.33 as follows:
 
6    (520 ILCS 5/2.33)  (from Ch. 61, par. 2.33)
7    Sec. 2.33. Prohibitions.
8    (a) It is unlawful to carry or possess any gun in any State
9refuge unless otherwise permitted by administrative rule.
10    (b) It is unlawful to use or possess any snare or
11snare-like device, deadfall, net, or pit trap to take any
12species, except that snares not powered by springs or other
13mechanical devices may be used to trap fur-bearing mammals, in
14water sets only, if at least one-half of the snare noose is
15located underwater at all times.
16    (c) It is unlawful for any person at any time to take a
17wild mammal protected by this Act from its den by means of any
18mechanical device, spade, or digging device or to use smoke or
19other gases to dislodge or remove such mammal except as
20provided in Section 2.37.
21    (d) It is unlawful to use a ferret or any other small
22mammal which is used in the same or similar manner for which
23ferrets are used for the purpose of frightening or driving any

 

 

HB4377 Engrossed- 2 -LRB098 13941 MLW 48489 b

1mammals from their dens or hiding places.
2    (e) (Blank).
3    (f) It is unlawful to use spears, gigs, hooks or any like
4device to take any species protected by this Act.
5    (g) It is unlawful to use poisons, chemicals or explosives
6for the purpose of taking any species protected by this Act.
7    (h) It is unlawful to hunt adjacent to or near any peat,
8grass, brush or other inflammable substance when it is burning.
9    (i) It is unlawful to take, pursue or intentionally harass
10or disturb in any manner any wild birds or mammals by use or
11aid of any vehicle or conveyance, except as permitted by the
12Code of Federal Regulations for the taking of waterfowl. It is
13also unlawful to use the lights of any vehicle or conveyance or
14any light from or any light connected to the vehicle or
15conveyance in any area where wildlife may be found except in
16accordance with Section 2.37 of this Act; however, nothing in
17this Section shall prohibit the normal use of headlamps for the
18purpose of driving upon a roadway. Striped skunk, opossum, red
19fox, gray fox, raccoon and coyote may be taken during the open
20season by use of a small light which is worn on the body or
21hand-held by a person on foot and not in any vehicle.
22    (j) It is unlawful to use any shotgun larger than 10 gauge
23while taking or attempting to take any of the species protected
24by this Act.
25    (k) It is unlawful to use or possess in the field any
26shotgun shell loaded with a shot size larger than lead BB or

 

 

HB4377 Engrossed- 3 -LRB098 13941 MLW 48489 b

1steel T (.20 diameter) when taking or attempting to take any
2species of wild game mammals (excluding white-tailed deer),
3wild game birds, migratory waterfowl or migratory game birds
4protected by this Act, except white-tailed deer as provided for
5in Section 2.26 and other species as provided for by subsection
6(l) or administrative rule.
7    (l) It is unlawful to take any species of wild game, except
8white-tailed deer and fur-bearing mammals, with a shotgun
9loaded with slugs unless otherwise provided for by
10administrative rule.
11    (m) It is unlawful to use any shotgun capable of holding
12more than 3 shells in the magazine or chamber combined, except
13on game breeding and hunting preserve areas licensed under
14Section 3.27 and except as permitted by the Code of Federal
15Regulations for the taking of waterfowl. If the shotgun is
16capable of holding more than 3 shells, it shall, while being
17used on an area other than a game breeding and shooting
18preserve area licensed pursuant to Section 3.27, be fitted with
19a one piece plug that is irremovable without dismantling the
20shotgun or otherwise altered to render it incapable of holding
21more than 3 shells in the magazine and chamber, combined.
22    (n) It is unlawful for any person, except persons who
23possess a permit to hunt from a vehicle as provided in this
24Section and persons otherwise permitted by law, to have or
25carry any gun in or on any vehicle, conveyance or aircraft,
26unless such gun is unloaded and enclosed in a case, except that

 

 

HB4377 Engrossed- 4 -LRB098 13941 MLW 48489 b

1at field trials authorized by Section 2.34 of this Act,
2unloaded guns or guns loaded with blank cartridges only, may be
3carried on horseback while not contained in a case, or to have
4or carry any bow or arrow device in or on any vehicle unless
5such bow or arrow device is unstrung or enclosed in a case, or
6otherwise made inoperable. Any uncased crossbow must be
7uncocked.
8    (o) It is unlawful to use any crossbow for the purpose of
9taking any wild birds or mammals, except as provided for in
10Section 2.5.
11    (p) It is unlawful to take game birds, migratory game birds
12or migratory waterfowl with a rifle, pistol, revolver or
13airgun.
14    (q) It is unlawful to fire a rifle, pistol, revolver or
15airgun on, over or into any waters of this State, including
16frozen waters.
17    (r) It is unlawful to discharge any gun or bow and arrow
18device along, upon, across, or from any public right-of-way or
19highway in this State.
20    (s) It is unlawful to use a silencer or other device to
21muffle or mute the sound of the explosion or report resulting
22from the firing of any gun.
23    (t) It is unlawful for any person to take or attempt to
24take any species of wildlife or parts thereof, intentionally or
25wantonly allow a dog to hunt, within or upon the land of
26another, or upon waters flowing over or standing on the land of

 

 

HB4377 Engrossed- 5 -LRB098 13941 MLW 48489 b

1another, or to knowingly shoot a gun or bow and arrow device at
2any wildlife physically on or flying over the property of
3another without first obtaining permission from the owner or
4the owner's designee. For the purposes of this Section, the
5owner's designee means anyone who the owner designates in a
6written authorization and the authorization must contain (i)
7the legal or common description of property for such authority
8is given, (ii) the extent that the owner's designee is
9authorized to make decisions regarding who is allowed to take
10or attempt to take any species of wildlife or parts thereof,
11and (iii) the owner's notarized signature. Before enforcing
12this Section the law enforcement officer must have received
13notice from the owner or the owner's designee of a violation of
14this Section. Statements made to the law enforcement officer
15regarding this notice shall not be rendered inadmissible by the
16hearsay rule when offered for the purpose of showing the
17required notice.
18    (u) It is unlawful for any person to discharge any firearm
19for the purpose of taking any of the species protected by this
20Act, or hunt with gun or dog, or intentionally or wantonly
21allow a dog to hunt, within 300 yards of an inhabited dwelling
22without first obtaining permission from the owner or tenant,
23except that while trapping, hunting with bow and arrow, hunting
24with dog and shotgun using shot shells only, or hunting with
25shotgun using shot shells only, or on licensed game breeding
26and hunting preserve areas, as defined in Section 3.27, on

 

 

HB4377 Engrossed- 6 -LRB098 13941 MLW 48489 b

1property operated under a Migratory Waterfowl Hunting Area
2Permit, on federally owned and managed lands and on Department
3owned, managed, leased or controlled lands, a 100 yard
4restriction shall apply.
5    (v) It is unlawful for any person to remove fur-bearing
6mammals from, or to move or disturb in any manner, the traps
7owned by another person without written authorization of the
8owner to do so.
9    (w) It is unlawful for any owner of a dog to knowingly or
10wantonly allow his or her dog to pursue, harass or kill deer,
11except that nothing in this Section shall prohibit the tracking
12of wounded deer with a dog in accordance with the provisions of
13Section 2.26 of this Code.
14    (x) It is unlawful for any person to wantonly or carelessly
15injure or destroy, in any manner whatsoever, any real or
16personal property on the land of another while engaged in
17hunting or trapping thereon.
18    (y) It is unlawful to hunt wild game protected by this Act
19between one half hour after sunset and one half hour before
20sunrise, except that hunting hours between one half hour after
21sunset and one half hour before sunrise may be established by
22administrative rule for fur-bearing mammals.
23    (z) It is unlawful to take any game bird (excluding wild
24turkeys and crippled pheasants not capable of normal flight and
25otherwise irretrievable) protected by this Act when not flying.
26Nothing in this Section shall prohibit a person from carrying

 

 

HB4377 Engrossed- 7 -LRB098 13941 MLW 48489 b

1an uncased, unloaded shotgun in a boat, while in pursuit of a
2crippled migratory waterfowl that is incapable of normal
3flight, for the purpose of attempting to reduce the migratory
4waterfowl to possession, provided that the attempt is made
5immediately upon downing the migratory waterfowl and is done
6within 400 yards of the blind from which the migratory
7waterfowl was downed. This exception shall apply only to
8migratory game birds that are not capable of normal flight.
9Migratory waterfowl that are crippled may be taken only with a
10shotgun as regulated by subsection (j) of this Section using
11shotgun shells as regulated in subsection (k) of this Section.
12    (aa) It is unlawful to use or possess any device that may
13be used for tree climbing or cutting, while hunting fur-bearing
14mammals, excluding coyotes.
15    (bb) It is unlawful for any person, except licensed game
16breeders, pursuant to Section 2.29 to import, carry into, or
17possess alive in this State any species of wildlife taken
18outside of this State, without obtaining permission to do so
19from the Director.
20    (cc) It is unlawful for any person to have in his or her
21possession any freshly killed species protected by this Act
22during the season closed for taking.
23    (dd) It is unlawful to take any species protected by this
24Act and retain it alive except as provided by administrative
25rule.
26    (ee) It is unlawful to possess any rifle while in the field

 

 

HB4377 Engrossed- 8 -LRB098 13941 MLW 48489 b

1during gun deer season except as provided in Section 2.26 and
2administrative rules.
3    (ff) It is unlawful for any person to take any species
4protected by this Act, except migratory waterfowl, during the
5gun deer hunting season in those counties open to gun deer
6hunting, unless he or she wears, when in the field, a cap and
7upper outer garment of a solid blaze orange color, with such
8articles of clothing displaying a minimum of 400 square inches
9of blaze orange material.
10    (gg) It is unlawful during the upland game season for any
11person to take upland game with a firearm unless he or she
12wears, while in the field, a cap of solid blaze orange color.
13For purposes of this Act, upland game is defined as Bobwhite
14Quail, Hungarian Partridge, Ring-necked Pheasant, Eastern
15Cottontail and Swamp Rabbit.
16    (hh) It shall be unlawful to kill or cripple any species
17protected by this Act for which there is a bag limit without
18making a reasonable effort to retrieve such species and include
19such in the bag limit. It shall be unlawful for any person
20having control over harvested game mammals, game birds, or
21migratory game birds for which there is a bag limit to wantonly
22waste or destroy the usable meat of the game, except this shall
23not apply to wildlife taken under Sections 2.37 or 3.22 of this
24Code. For purposes of this subsection, "usable meat" means the
25breast meat of a game bird or migratory game bird and the hind
26ham and front shoulders of a game mammal. It shall be unlawful

 

 

HB4377 Engrossed- 9 -LRB098 13941 MLW 48489 b

1for any person to place, leave, dump, or abandon a wildlife
2carcass or parts of it along or upon a public right-of-way or
3highway or on public or private property, including a waterway
4or stream, without the permission of the owner or tenant. It
5shall not be unlawful to discard game meat that is determined
6to be unfit for human consumption.
7    (ii) This Section shall apply only to those species
8protected by this Act taken within the State. Any species or
9any parts thereof, legally taken in and transported from other
10states or countries, may be possessed within the State, except
11as provided in this Section and Sections 2.35, 2.36 and 3.21.
12    (jj) (Blank).
13    (kk) Nothing contained in this Section shall prohibit the
14Director from issuing permits to paraplegics or to other
15disabled persons who meet the requirements set forth in
16administrative rule to shoot or hunt from a vehicle as provided
17by that rule, provided that such is otherwise in accord with
18this Act.
19    (ll) Nothing contained in this Act shall prohibit the
20taking of aquatic life protected by the Fish and Aquatic Life
21Code or birds and mammals protected by this Act, except deer
22and fur-bearing mammals, from a boat not camouflaged or
23disguised to alter its identity or to further provide a place
24of concealment and not propelled by sail or mechanical power.
25However, only shotguns not larger than 10 gauge nor smaller
26than .410 bore loaded with not more than 3 shells of a shot

 

 

HB4377 Engrossed- 10 -LRB098 13941 MLW 48489 b

1size no larger than lead BB or steel T (.20 diameter) may be
2used to take species protected by this Act.
3    (mm) Nothing contained in this Act shall prohibit the use
4of a shotgun, not larger than 10 gauge nor smaller than a 20
5gauge, with a rifled barrel.
6    (nn) It shall be unlawful to possess any species of
7wildlife or wildlife parts taken unlawfully in Illinois, any
8other state, or any other country, whether or not the wildlife
9or wildlife parts is indigenous to Illinois. For the purposes
10of this subsection, the statute of limitations for unlawful
11possession of wildlife or wildlife parts shall not cease until
122 years after the possession has permanently ended.
13(Source: P.A. 97-645, eff. 12-30-11; 97-907, eff. 8-7-12;
1498-119, eff. 1-1-14; 98-181, eff. 8-5-13; 98-183, eff. 1-1-14;
1598-290, eff. 8-9-13; revised 9-24-13.)
 
16    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
17becoming law.