New Disabled License Rule Adopted

Idaho Fish and Game Commission Thursday morning, June 22, adopted amended rules for disabled hunting and fishing licenses. Commissioners adopted rules that would grant reduced cost licenses to hunters and anglers with "permanent disabilities," as directed by new state legislation that takes effect July 1. The law adds "certified as permanently disabled by a physician" to the list of qualifying criteria for a reduced fee license. Under the new law, once a hunter or angler is certified as permanently disabled, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game must keep that certification on record permanently so the license holder would not be required to prove their disability each year. Commissioner Wayne Wright, a Twin Falls physician, pointed out that some people who qualify as "permanently disabled" at one point in time may not qualify later. Some conditions, considered by physicians as having "no expectation for a fundamental or marked change at any time in the future," may not last forever. "People do get better," Wright said. He suggested, instead that the rules require recertification ever five years or 10 years. Department Director Steve Huffaker agreed but noted that the definition was adopted by the Legislature, citing the example of an amputee as permanently disabled. The Legislature was clear that once a person is classified as having a permanent disability they should not be required to prove it every year, he said. That would make it impossible to require periodic recertification and still comply with the legislation. Under current law, certification for a reduced fee disability license is based on eligibility for federal supplemental income or Social Security disability income, railroad retirement board disability, a nonservice connected veterans pension, or a service-connected veterans disability of at least 40 percent. But to qualify for a reduced fee license, a person must provide documentation of their disability each year. That requirement will be dropped under the new rules that take effect July 1. A disabled combination hunting and fishing license costs $5. A regular hunting and fishing combination license costs $33.50; a hunting license alone costs $12.75 and a fishing license costs $25.75.