Deer Task Force Bills Scheduled for Hearing   

Three major legislative bills proposed by SAM’s Deer Task Force are scheduled for a public hearing on Tuesday, March 29, 2007.  The hearing will be conducted by the legislature’s Fish and Wildlife Committee beginning at 1 pm in Room 206 of the State Office Building.

We hope you will attend the hearing and support these bills.  Gerry Lavigne will be presenting SAM’s testimony on all three bills at the March 29 hearing, and will also brief the F&W Committee on these issues on March 22, in advance of the hearing.  Gerry has prepared a 20 page briefing paper that we’ll put on SAM’s website (www.samcef.org) as soon as it is ready.

We have also been informed that two Deer Task Force bills concerning coyotes will be heard on April 5.  I will email you about that hearing as soon as it is confirmed.

The three bills being heard on March 29 are: 

LD 421, An Act to Improve Deer Management and Hunting, would change the any-deer permit system to a doe-only permit system, and establish a $10 fee for the doe-only permit.  All licensed hunters would be allowed one buck and those who win the doe-only permits would also be allowed one doe.

LD 655, An Act to Change the Firearms Season on Deer, would move the southern and central Maine deer season ahead one week.  The bill starts the regular firearms season for deer in WMDs 1 to 11 one week prior to the first Saturday in November, while the season would begin in the other districts on the first Saturday in November.

LD 634, An Act to Encourage Landowners to Allow Hunting, would require DIF&W to allocate at least 30 percent of the antler-less deer permits to landowners who keep their land open to hunting.