Title of Regulation: 4VAC15-40. Game: In General (amending 4VAC15-40-20, 4VAC15-40-195, 4VAC15-40-220, 4VAC15-40-280; adding 4VAC15-40-22; repealing 4VAC15-40-21).

Statutory Authority: § 29.1-501 of the Code of Virginia.

Public Hearing Information:

June 2, 2015 - 9 a.m. - Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, 7870 Villa Park Drive, Suite 400, Henrico, VA 23228

Public Comment Deadline: May 22, 2015.

Agency Contact: Phil Smith, Regulatory Coordinator, Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, 7870 Villa Park Drive, Suite 400, Henrico, VA 23228, telephone (804) 367-8341 or email phil.smith@dgif.virginia.gov.

Summary:

The proposed amendments (i) define "bow and arrow," "crossbow," and "archery equipment," establish the minimum head width allowable to hunt bear, deer, elk, and turkeys, and incorporate the licensing of hunting with crossbows into overall archery hunting licensing; (ii) establish a special license to hunt bears for resident and nonresident hunters; (iii) require the daily checking of traps with certain exceptions; (iv) allow the use of remote trap checking systems in lieu of a physical trap check under specified conditions; (v) increase the maximum allowable snare height and require a relaxing lock, cable stop, and break-away device when the top of the snare loop is set above a certain height; (vi) establish that a hunting permit is needed on lands, public as well as private, that are managed by the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries through a lease agreement or memorandum of agreement where the department issues an annual hunting permit; and (vii) replace the term "stamp" with the more descriptive term "permit."

4VAC15-40-20. Hunting with arrows to which any drug, chemical or toxic substance has been added or explosive-head arrows prohibited Archery hunting requirements.

A. "Bow and arrow" means a weapon made of a strip of flexible material, which, when bent by drawing a string or cable connecting the two ends, uses the energy stored in the flexible material to propel an arrow.

B. "Crossbow" means a bow and arrow mounted horizontally on a stock having a trigger mechanism to release the string.

C. "Archery equipment" means a bow and arrow or a crossbow.

D. Arrows used for hunting bear, deer, elk, and turkey must have a minimum head width of 7/8 inch in a fixed or expanded position.

E. Except as otherwise provided by law or regulation, it shall be unlawful to use arrows to which any drug, chemical or toxic substance has been added or arrows with explosive heads at any that time for the purpose of hunting wild birds or wild animals.

4VAC15-40-21. Special crossbow license; hunting with crossbows. (Repealed.)

There shall be a license to hunt with a crossbow during the special archery seasons that shall be in addition to the license required to hunt small game. The fee for the special crossbow license shall be as specified in 4VAC15-20-65.

4VAC15-40-22. Special license for hunting bear.

There shall be a special license to hunt bears that shall be in addition to the state resident license to hunt or state nonresident license to hunt. The fee for the special bear license shall be as specified in 4VAC15-20-65.

4VAC15-40-195. Visiting traps, generally; visiting completely submerged, body-gripping traps; use of remote trap check systems.

A. Except as provided in subsections B and C of this section, it shall be unlawful to fail to visit all traps once each day and remove all animals caught.

B. Body-gripping traps that are completely submerged by water must be visited at least once every 72 hours.

C. Remote trap checking systems may be used in lieu of a physical trap visit when such systems (i) have a control unit that reports trap status to a centralized application database at least once every 24 hours; (ii) have notification alarms that report trap closures and system health issues within one hour of detection via email and text-based messaging systems; and (iii) have on-demand control unit testing capabilities for determining trap status, signal strength, and battery condition via remote system check-in. If the control unit reports a trap closure, the user is required to physically visit the trap within 24 hours of the time the trap was reported closed. If the control unit fails to report its current status within a 24-hour check-in period or reports a system health issue, the user is required to physically check the trap within 24 hours of the last time an open trap signal was received.

4VAC15-40-220. Use of deadfalls prohibited; restricted use of snares.

It shall be unlawful to trap, or attempt to trap, on land any wild bird or wild animal with any deadfall or snare; provided, that snares with loops no more than 12 inches in diameter and with the top bottom of the snare loop set not to exceed 12 inches above ground level may be used with the written permission of the landowner. Snares with the top of the snare loop set higher than 12 inches above ground level must include a relaxing lock, a cable stop that prevents the snare loop from closing smaller than 2-1/2 inches in diameter, and a break-away device that has been tested to break or disassemble at no more than 285 pounds pull.

4VAC15-40-280. Department-owned, controlled, or managed lands; annual stamp permit for hunting on private lands managed by the department.

A. The open seasons for hunting and trapping, as well as hours, methods of taking, and bag limits for department-owned or controlled department-controlled lands, or lands managed by the department under cooperative agreement, shall conform to the regulations of the board unless excepted by posted rules established by the director or his designee. Such posted rules shall be displayed at each recognized entrance to the land where the posted rules are in effect.

B. Department-owned lands shall be open to the public for wildlife observation and for hunting, fishing, trapping, and boating (as prescribed by 4VAC15-320-100) under the regulations of the board. Other activities deemed appropriate by the director or his designee may be allowed by posted rules, by written authorization from the director or his designee, or by special permit.

C. No person shall hunt on private lands managed by the department through a lease agreement or other similar memorandum of agreement where the department issues an annual hunting stamp permit without having purchased a valid annual hunting stamp permit. The annual hunting stamp permit shall be in addition to the required licenses to hunt, and the cost of such stamp permit shall be the same as the cost of the annual state resident hunting license in § 29.1-303 of the Code of Virginia.

D. Activities that are not generally or specifically authorized in accordance with subsections A through C of this section are prohibited and shall constitute a violation of this regulation.