Sec. 26-86a. Game management. Deer hunting; permitted weapons, locations, bag limits. Consent forms; permits, selection process.
Sec. 26-86a. Game management. Deer hunting; permitted weapons, locations,
bag limits. Consent forms; permits, selection process. (a) The commissioner shall
establish by regulation adopted in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54 standards
for deer management, and methods, regulated areas, bag limits, seasons and permit
eligibility for hunting deer with bow and arrow, muzzleloader and shotgun, except that
no such hunting shall be permitted on Sunday. No person shall hunt, pursue, wound or
kill deer with a firearm without first obtaining a deer permit from the commissioner in
addition to the license required by section 26-27. Application for such permit shall be
made on forms furnished by the commissioner and containing such information as he
may require. Such permit shall be of a design prescribed by the commissioner, shall
contain such information and conditions as the commissioner may require, and may be
revoked for violation of any provision of this chapter or regulations adopted pursuant
thereto. As used in this section, "muzzleloader" means a rifle or shotgun of at least
forty-five caliber, incapable of firing a self-contained cartridge, which uses powder, a
projectile, including, but not limited to, a standard round ball, mini-balls, maxi-balls
and Sabot bullets, and wadding loaded separately at the muzzle end and "rifle" means
a long gun the projectile of which is six millimeters or larger in diameter. The fee for
a firearms permit shall be fourteen dollars for residents of the state and fifty dollars for
nonresidents, except that any nonresident who is an active full-time member of the
armed forces, as defined in section 27-103, may purchase a firearms permit for the same
fee as is charged a resident of the state. The commissioner shall issue, without fee, a
private land deer permit to the owner of ten or more acres of private land and the husband
or wife, parent, grandparent, sibling and any lineal descendant of such owner, provided
no such owner, husband or wife, parent, grandparent, sibling or lineal descendant shall
be issued more than one such permit per season. Such permit shall allow the use of a
rifle, shotgun, muzzleloader or bow and arrow on such land from November first to
December thirty-first, inclusive. Deer may be so hunted at such times and in such areas
of such state-owned land as are designated by the Commissioner of Environmental
Protection and on privately owned land with the signed consent of the landowner, on
forms furnished by the department, and such signed consent shall be carried by any
person when so hunting on private land. The owner of ten acres or more of private land
may allow the use of a rifle to hunt deer on such land during the shotgun season. The
commissioner shall determine, by regulation, the number of consent forms issued for
any regulated area established by said commissioner. The commissioner shall provide
for a fair and equitable random method for the selection of successful applicants who
may obtain shotgun and muzzleloader permits for hunting deer on state lands. Any
person whose name appears on more than one application for a shotgun permit or more
than one application for a muzzleloader permit shall be disqualified from the selection
process for such permit. No person shall hunt, pursue, wound or kill deer with a bow
and arrow without first obtaining a bow and arrow permit pursuant to section 26-86c.
"Bow and arrow" as used in this section and in section 26-86c means a bow with a draw
weight of not less than forty pounds. The arrowhead shall have two or more blades and
may not be less than seven-eighths of an inch at the widest point. No person shall carry
firearms of any kind while hunting with a bow and arrow under said sections.
(b) Any person who takes a deer without a permit 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.
(1959, P.A. 227, S. 1, 2; 1961, P.A. 337; 1971, P.A. 872, S. 276; P.A. 74-151, S. 3, 7; P.A. 77-86; P.A. 78-135, S. 1;
P.A. 79-491, S. 1, 2; P.A. 83-440; P.A. 85-20; P.A. 87-180, S. 2; P.A. 88-98, S. 3, 6; Nov. Sp. Sess. P.A. 91-3, S. 9, 21;
P.A. 93-408, S. 2; P.A. 95-352, S. 2; P.A. 97-250, S. 5; May 9 Sp. Sess. P.A. 02-1, S. 98; P.A. 03-276, S. 2; 03-278, S. 88.)
History: 1961 act changed opening date for bow and arrow season from December first to November first; 1971 act
replaced state board of fisheries and game with commissioner of environmental protection; P.A. 74-151 greatly expanded
provisions, including provisions re use of muzzleloaders and shotguns, deleted specific dates for bow and arrow season
previously in force and deleted requirement that arrows used bear full name and address of their owner; P.A. 77-86 provided
that persons submitting more than one application for muzzleloader or shotgun permits will be disqualified and that those
who are issued a shotgun permit shall be ineligible for such permit the following year; P.A. 78-135 added Subsec. (b) re
penalties for taking deer without permit; P.A. 79-491 clarified provisions, substituted references to firearms permits for
references to separate muzzleloader and shotgun permits, defined rifle for purposes of section, authorized issuance of
"private land deer permit", authorized owners of ten acres or more to allow use of rifles in hunting on their land, authorized
commissioner to determine number of consent forms issued for any regulated area and deleted provisions making those
issued shotgun permits ineligible for such a permit the following year and prohibiting taking of more than one deer, since
regulated areas, bag limits, separate seasons and permit eligibility are to be regulated by commissioner; P.A. 83-440
amended Subsec. (a) to authorize the commissioner to issue private land deer permits to parents and grandparents of
landowners, to remove provision linking issuance of permits in numbers linked to the amount of acreage owned, to remove
the limitation on the number of deer that may be taken pursuant to a private land deer permit and to exempt archery deer
hunters, raccoon and opossum hunters and those hunting deer on their own land from wearing fluorescent clothing while
hunting; P.A. 85-20 amended Subsec. (a) by eliminating the limit on consent forms issued by a landowner and exempting
persons engaged in archery turkey hunting from the requirement of wearing flourescent orange clothing; P.A. 87-180
amended Subsec. (a) by authorizing concurrent archery and firearms deer hunting seasons and requiring that flourescent
orange clothing be worn by archery hunters during concurrent season; P.A. 88-98 deleted requirements for fluorescent
orange clothing; Nov. Sp. Sess. P.A. 91-3 amended Subsec. (a) to delete a requirement that deer hunters using a bow and
arrow also obtain a general hunting permit pursuant to Sec. 26-27; P.A. 93-408 deleted a specification for round ball
ammunition in the definition of muzzleloader; P.A. 95-352 amended Subsec. (a) to allow for free private land deer permits
for siblings of the landowners; P.A. 97-250 amended Subsec. (a) to allow taking of deer under this section with bow and
arrow by persons holding private land deer permits; May 9 Sp. Sess. P.A. 02-1 amended Subsec. (a) to increase fee for
firearms permit from $10 to $14 for residents and from $30 to $50 for nonresidents, effective January 1, 2003; P.A. 03-276 amended Subsec. (a) to make technical changes, to replace "ball" with "a projectile, including, but not limited to, a
standard round ball, mini-balls, maxi-balls and Sabot bullets", to delete "which uses centerfire ammunition and", to add
exception re an active full-time member of the armed forces, and to replace provision re capability of a bow to propel a
certain type of arrow with "a draw weight of not less than forty pounds", effective July 1, 2003; P.A. 03-278 made technical
changes in Subsec. (b), effective July 9, 2003.
See Sec. 26-66(22) re the wearing of fluorescent orange clothing.