During a meeting in Salmon on July 25, the Idaho Fish and Game Commission voted to adopt four proposed rules and received an update about the progress of negotiated rulemaking regarding changing gear requirements on snares for gray wolf trapping.
The commission adopted the following proposed rules, which will now be published in the Idaho Administrative Bulletin for an additional period of public comment, and will have to be approved by the Legislature during its next session to become final rules.
- Change minimum age for hunters in possession of a Hunting Passport to hunt turkey to allow youth hunters who are 8 or 9 years of age, in possession of a Hunting Passport, to possess a turkey tag and participate in general season hunts, youth-only general hunts, landowner permission hunts, and depredation hunts for turkey. A Hunting Passport holder must be mentored by a licensed adult who is at least 18 years old.
- Provide Commission the discretionary authority to require hunters to possess an Upland Game Bird Permit to hunt areas in addition to Wildlife Management Areas, should the department stock pheasants at these locations.
- Ban import of live mule deer, white-tailed deer, moose, and wild-origin elk to reduce risk of Chronic Wasting Disease. Fish and Game would not issue any permit for the import into Idaho of any live cervid that is not regulated as a domestic cervid by the Idaho State Department of Agriculture including mule deer, white-tailed deer, moose and wild-origin elk.
- Establish waiting period for controlled hunt applicants to purchase general season big game tags in capped zones/units. This would give the Fish and Game Commission the ability to establish a waiting period of no more than five days for any controlled hunt applicant to buy a high-demand general hunt with tag limits of the same species as their controlled hunt application, allowing individuals who did not apply for a controlled hunt an opportunity to buy a capped zone tag during this period.
- Give the commission the flexibility to manage nonresident distribution in general big game hunts by allowing the commission to limit the number of tags available for nonresident hunters in a zone or big game hunting unit to no less than 10 percent of the average hunter participation estimated for that zone or unit during the previous five year period. Outfitter allocated hunts would be exempted from this limitation.