Sec. 26-82. Killing of deer regulated. Damage permit. Jacklight permit. Penalties. Plan by homeowner association, municipality or nonprofit land-holding organization to take deer.
Sec. 26-82. Killing of deer regulated. Damage permit. Jacklight permit. Penalties. Plan by homeowner association, municipality or nonprofit land-holding organization to take deer. (a) No person shall hunt, pursue, wound or kill any deer or sell
or offer for sale or have in possession the flesh of any deer captured or killed in this
state, or have in possession the flesh of any deer from any other state or country unless
it is properly tagged as required by such state or country except as provided by the terms
of this chapter or regulations adopted pursuant thereto, and except that any landowner
or primary lessee of land owned by such landowner or the husband or wife or any lineal
descendant of such landowner or lessee or any designated agent of such landowner or
lessee may kill deer with a shotgun, rifle or bow and arrow provided a damage permit
has first been obtained from the commissioner and such person has not been convicted
for any violation of this section, section 26-85, 26-86a, 26-86b or 26-90 or subsection
(b) of section 26-86a-2 of the regulations of Connecticut state agencies within three
years preceding the date of application. Upon the receipt of an application, on forms
provided by the commissioner and containing such information as said commissioner
may require, from any landowner who has or whose primary lessee has an actual or
potential gross annual income of twenty-five hundred dollars or more from the commercial cultivated production of grain, forage, fruit, vegetables, flowers, ornamental plants
or Christmas trees and who is experiencing an actual or potential loss of income because
of severe damage by deer, the commissioner shall issue not more than six damage permits
without fee to such landowner or the primary lessee of such landowner, or the wife,
husband, lineal descendant or designated agent of such landowner or lessee. The application shall be notarized and signed by all landowners or by the landowner or a lessee to
whom a farmer tax exemption permit has been issued pursuant to subdivision (63) of
section 12-412. Such damage permit shall be valid through October thirty-first of the
year in which it is issued and may specify the hunting implement or shot size or both
which shall be used to take such deer. The commissioner may at any time revoke such
permit for violation of any provision of this section or for violation of any regulation
pursuant thereto or upon the request of the applicant. Notwithstanding the provisions
of section 26-85, the commissioner may issue a permit to any landowner or primary
lessee of land owned by such landowner or the husband or wife or any lineal descendant
of such landowner or lessee and to not more than three designated agents of such landowner or lessee to use a jacklight for the purpose of taking deer when it is shown, to
the satisfaction of the commissioner, that such deer are causing damage which cannot
be reduced during the daylight hours between sunrise and one-half hour after sunset on
the land of such landowner. The commissioner may require notification as specified on
such permit prior to its use. Any deer killed in accordance with the provisions of this
section shall be the property of the owner of the land upon which the same has been
killed, but shall not be sold, bartered, traded or offered for sale, and the person who kills
any such deer shall tag and report each deer killed, as provided in section 26-86b. Upon
receipt of the report required by section 26-86b, the commissioner shall issue an additional damage permit to the person making such report. Any deer killed otherwise than
under the conditions provided for in this chapter or regulations adopted pursuant thereto
shall remain the property of the state and may be disposed of by the commissioner at
the commissioner's discretion to any state institution or may be sold and the proceeds
of such sale shall be remitted to the State Treasurer, who shall apply the same to the
General Fund, and no person, except the commissioner, shall retail, sell or offer for sale
the whole or any part of any such deer. No person shall be a designated agent of more
than one landowner or primary lessee in any calendar year. No person shall make, set
or use any trap, snare, salt lick, bait or other device for the purpose of taking, injuring
or killing any deer, except that deer may be taken over an attractant in areas designated
by the commissioner. For the purposes of this section, an attractant means any natural
or artificial substance placed, exposed, deposited, distributed or scattered that is used
to attract, entice or lure deer to a specific location including, but not limited to, salt,
chemicals or minerals, including their residues or any natural or artificial food, hay,
grain, fruit or nuts. The commissioner may authorize any municipality, homeowner
association or nonprofit land-holding organization approved by the commissioner under
the provisions of this section to take deer at any time, other than Sundays, or place using
any method consistent with professional wildlife management principles when a severe
nuisance or ecological damage can be demonstrated to the satisfaction of the commissioner. Any such municipality, homeowner association or nonprofit land-holding organization shall submit to the commissioner, for the commissioner's review and approval,
a plan that describes the extent and degree of the nuisance or ecological damage and
the proposed methods of taking. Prior to the implementation of any such approved plan,
the municipality, homeowner association or nonprofit land-holding organization shall
provide notice of such plan to any abutting landowners of such place where the plan
will be implemented. Such plan shall not authorize the use of a snare. No person shall
hunt, pursue or kill deer being pursued by any dog, whether or not such dog is owned
or controlled by such person, except that no person shall be guilty of a violation under
this section when such a deer is struck by a motor vehicle operated by such person. No
person shall use or allow any dog in such person's charge to hunt, pursue or kill deer.
No permit shall be issued when in the opinion of the commissioner the public safety
may be jeopardized.
(b) Any person who violates any provision of this section shall be fined not less
than two hundred dollars or more than five hundred dollars or imprisoned not less than
thirty days or more than six months, or shall be both fined and imprisoned, for the first
offense, and for each subsequent offense shall be fined not less than two hundred dollars
or more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than one year, or shall be
both fined and imprisoned.
(1949 Rev., S. 4898, 4901; 1949, S. 2493d; 1959, P.A. 398, S. 13; 1963, P.A. 327; 422; February, 1965, P.A. 78; 1969,
P.A. 53, S. 1; 1971, P.A. 872, S. 273; P.A. 74-151, S. 2, 7; P.A. 75-192; P.A. 79-445, S. 1, 2; P.A. 80-305; P.A. 84-172;
P.A. 90-167; P.A. 97-250, S. 4; P.A. 02-103, S. 34; P.A. 03-123, S. 9; 03-192, S. 6; P.A. 04-109, S. 14; 04-257, S. 44.)
History: 1959 act required that proceeds from sale of illegally seized deer be deposited in general fund rather than game
fund; 1963 acts clarified definition of "regular employee" by specifying employees "for wages to perform agricultural,
management or maintenance duties on the property for which a permit is issued", by specifying that twelve-month employment period is "prior to killing any deer", and prohibited taking more than one deer in any year without board's authorization;
1965 act prohibited hunting, pursuing or killing deer which is being pursued by a dog, but exempted persons who strike
a deer with a motor vehicle from consideration as violators of provisions; 1969 act excluded references to lessees throughout
section, made deer killed except as allowed under "chapter" rather than "section" property of the state; 1971 act replaced
references to board of fisheries and game and its director with references to environmental protection commissioner; P.A.
74-151 deleted provisions defining "regular employee" and authorizing such employees to kill deer, referring instead to
designated agents of landowners, added provisions re specific crop protection permits, deleted provision which had allowed
use of bow and arrow and replaced previous reporting procedure with requirement that kills be tagged and reported as
provided in Sec. 26-86b; P.A. 75-192 allowed issuance of three permits rather than one, reducing from two to one the
number of kills allowed per permit and set duration of permit at four months rather than one year; P.A. 79-445 changed
landowner's qualifications for permit from ownership of ten or more acres used for agricultural purposes to landowners
with actual or potential loss of $500 or more from cultivated products, increased number of permits allowed to each
landowner from three to six, restored original expiration date of December thirty-first, authorized commissioner to specify
weapon or shot size to be used, deleted commissioner's power to allow taking more than one deer with a permit, allowed
landowner to designate up to three agents rather than one, authorized issuance of additional permit after commissioner
receives required report, prohibited agents from serving more than one landowner in a year and forbade use of bait to take
deer; P.A. 80-305 added Subsec. (b) re penalties for violation of provisions; P.A. 84-172 amended Subsec. (a) to make a
primary lessee eligible for a damage permit, to eliminate the restriction on the number of deer that may be taken under a
permit and to make a primary lessee, husband or wife or lineal descendant of the landowner or lessee eligible for a jacklight
permit, inserted new Subsec. (b) authorizing damage permits where no commercial damage occurs and relettered the
remaining Subsec. accordingly; P.A. 90-167 amended Subsec. (a) to prohibit possessing the flesh of deer from another
state or country unless it is properly tagged, prohibited persons who are convicted of violating certain statutes from killing
deer pursuant to a damage permit, substituted "twenty-five hundred" for "five hundred", required that all landowners or
the landowner or lessee holding a farmer tax exemption permit sign the application, substituted "October thirty-first" for
"December thirty-first", required a showing that damage cannot be reduced during the daylight hours, authorized the
commissioner to require notification as specified on the permit, deleted Subsec. (b) re damage permits where no commercial
damage occurs and relettered the remaining Subsec. accordingly; P.A. 97-250 amended Subsec. (a) to allow taking of deer
under this section with bow and arrow by persons holding deer damage permits; P.A. 02-103 made technical changes in
Subsec. (a); P.A. 03-123 made a technical change in Subsec. (a), effective June 26, 2003; P.A. 03-192 amended Subsec.
(a) by replacing reference to violation of Sec. 26-82 with reference to violation of "this section" and adding provisions re
the taking of deer over an attractant in areas designated by the commissioner and plans by municipalities, homeowner
associations and nonprofit land-holding organizations to take deer when such plan is approved by the commissioner and
notice to abutting landowners is provided; P.A. 04-109 made a technical change in Subsec. (a), effective May 21, 2004;
P.A. 04-257 made technical changes in Subsec. (b), effective June 14, 2004
See also part IV re hunting and trapping.
See Sec. 22-358(c) re killing of dogs worrying or pursuing deer and imposition of penalty against dogs' owners.