RULES AND REGULATIONS
[58 PA. CODE CH. 147]
Deer Control
[30 Pa.B. 2479] To effectively manage the wildlife resources of this Commonwealth, the Game Commission (Commission), at its April 4, 2000, meeting, adopted the following change:
Amend Chapter 147 by adding §§ 147.661--147.668 (relating to forestry), to provide relief to persons whose land is open to public deer hunting.
This amendment is hereby adopted under the authority of 34 Pa.C.S. §§ 101--2965 (relating to Game and Wildlife Code) (code).
1. Introduction
To more effectively manage the wildlife resources of this Commonwealth, the Commission at its January 11, 2000, meeting proposed, and at its April 4, 2000, meeting finally adopted amendments adding a new category of permit, Forestry, to Chapter 147, Subchapter R. This change involves adding §§ 147.661--147.668 to the subchapter which would allow the issuance of permits to shoot deer inside deer exclosures on lands enrolled in the Commission's Forest Game or other public access programs. This change was adopted under authority contained in section 2901(b) of the code (relating to regulations for permits).
2. Purpose and Authority
A common practice in forestry operations is to erect deer ''exclosure'' fences to keep deer from eating tender seedlings. Deer are normally driven out when an exclosure fence is erected. Deer do manage to get inside these fences, however, and once growth regenerates it is very difficult to drive deer out. As a result, the Commission at its January 11, 2000, meeting proposed regulations which would allow the issuance of permits to qualified landowners and their ''legitimate employes'' to shoot deer within these exclosures. On final adoption, the Commission modified some of the language in § 147.663(2) relating to construction of the fence and also added a requirement to § 147.665 requiring forwarding of copies of activity reports to all Commissioners.
Section 2901(b) of the code (relating to regulations for permits), authorizes the Commission to promulgate regulations for the issuance of any permit. Section 2902(c) of the code (relating to general categories of permits), authorizes the director to ''. . . issue other permits, with or without charges, as required to control the taking of game or wildlife . . .'' These sections provide authority for the amendment.
3. Regulatory Requirements
To obtain a permit, a landowner must be enrolled in a Commission Forest Game or other public access program, have a Commission approved exclosure fence, and make a reasonable effort to drive deer from the exclosure. Application requirements include submitting a deed or lease establishing control of the property, a map of the property and exclosure and a statement that the land within the exclosure is being managed on a sustained yield basis. Finally, harvested deer must be tagged, reported and properly handled.
4. Persons Affected
The new regulations will affect owners, managers and employes of commercial forest lands who have problems with deer.
5. Comment and Response Summary
No written comments were received with regard to the amendments.
6. Cost and Paperwork Requirements
The permits in question will be issued at no cost. As was outlined under ''Regulatory Requirements'' an application with copies showing control of the property and a map must be submitted.
7. Effective Date
The changes will be effective on final publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin and will remain in effect until changed by the Commission.
8. Contact Person
For further information on the change, contact William L. Hutson, Director, Bureau of Law Enforcement, (717) 783-6526, 2001 Elmerton Avenue, Harrisburg, PA 17110-9797.
Findings
The Commission finds that:
(1) The public notice of intention to adopt the administrative amendments adopted by this order has been given under sections 201 and 202 of the act of July 31, 1968 (P. L. 769, No. 240) (45 P. S. §§ 1201 and 1202) and the regulations thereunder, 1 Pa. Code §§ 7.1 and 7.2.
(2) The adoption of the amendments of the Commission in the manner provided in this order is necessary and appropriate for the administration and enforcement of the authorizing statute.
Orders
The Commission, acting under authorizing statute, orders that:
(a) The regulations of the Commission, 58 Pa. Code, Chapter 147, Subchapter R, is amended by adding §§ 147.661, 147.662, 147.664 and 147.666--147.668 to read as set forth at 30 Pa.B. 1269 (March 4, 2000) and adding §§ 147.663 and 147.665 to read as set forth in Annex A.
(b) The Executive Director of the Commission shall submit this order and Annex A, and deposit them with the Legislative Reference Bureau as required by law.
(c) This order amending Chapter 147, Subchapter R, §§ 147.661--147.668, shall become effective upon final publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
VERNON R. ROSS,
Executive DirectorFiscal Note: Fiscal Note 48-118 remains valid for the final adoption of the subject regulations.
Annex A
TITLE 58. RECREATION
PART III. GAME COMMISSION
CHAPTER 147. SPECIAL PERMITS
Subchapter R. DEER CONTROL
FORESTRY § 147.663. Fencing.
Fences shall be inspected and approved by a Commission officer as part of the application.
(1) The fence shall form a complete exclosure. Buildings may form a part of the exclosure provided there are no gaps.
(2) The fence shall be constructed of woven wire at least 8 feet high with the bottom edge maintained tight to the ground, and with openings no larger than 6 inches square, or high tensile electrified wire at least 5 feet high. Woven wire fencing may not have openings larger than 6 inches square. Individual wires on electrified fencing may not be spaced greater than 10 inches apart. Other designs of barrier-type fencing exclosures may be acceptable if the Commission is satisfied the design will exclude deer. Fences constructed after April 4, 2000, shall be woven wire as described in this paragraph to be eligible for a deer control forestry permit.
(3) The Commission officer will examine the entire perimeter of the exclosure. If the basic design of the fence, or its state of maintenance, is such that deer can enter the exclosure, the Commission officer will not approve the permit.
(4) Gates shall be closed except during actual times of ingress and egress.
(5) The applicant shall have made a reasonable effort to drive deer from the exclosure.
(6) There shall be a reasonable number of hunter access points along the exclosure. ''Reasonable'' means a minimum of one point for every 4,000 feet of fenceline or part thereof. Gates used as hunter access points shall have a self-closing mechanism.
§ 147.665. Reporting of deer taken.
In addition to the requirements of § 147.664(c) (relating to permit), the permittee shall report on a form provided by the Commission, the number of deer killed and other information the Commission deems necessary. The completed report shall be submitted to the district wildlife conservation officer within 5 days after the end of each month while the permit is valid. If no deer are killed, a negative report shall be submitted. Copies of all completed reports shall be forwarded to all Commissioners.
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 00-841. Filed for public inspection May 19, 2000, 9:00 a.m.]
No part of the information on this site may be reproduced for profit or sold for profit.This material has been drawn directly from the official Pennsylvania Bulletin full text database. Due to the limitations of HTML or differences in display capabilities of different browsers, this version may differ slightly from the official printed version.
