September 21, 2012
Hunting
Rules Change with the Times
Wisconsin is known for its
proud hunting heritage, and
the sportsmen and women who
participate in the many
outdoor opportunities are
dedicated to the sport they
enjoy. Many have a long
lineage of family hunting,
passing the tradition on
from one generation to
the next,
the same as in my family.
Each fall, Wisconsin opens
its doors to hunters across
the state and the nation,
offering something for every
hunter at varying skill
levels. Hunting and
trapping seasons include
deer, bear, wolf, game
birds, migratory birds,
ducks, furbearers, turkey,
and small game. This fall’s
hunting seasons will
incorporate a few changes
recently made to various
hunts around Wisconsin,
including bear, wolf, and
deer.
This past session, the
Legislature passed 2011
Senate Bill 72 in order to
improve the safety and
quality of bear hunting in
Wisconsin by expanding the
privileges for a Class B
bear license. Senate Bill
72 makes a number of changes
to Class B bear licenses,
including authorizing a
holder of a Class B license
to shoot a bear already shot
by a Class A license holder
when it is necessary to
protect the safety of the
members of the hunting party
or the public. Senate Bill
72 was signed into law and
is in effect for the current
bear hunting season.
In response to the
devastation to domestic
animals and livestock caused
by the growing wolf
population in Wisconsin, the
Legislature created a wolf
management season from
October 15 through the end
of February. Senate Bill
411, which was signed into
law, requires the Department
of Natural Resources (DNR)
to divide the state into
wolf harvesting zones,
requires the zones be
identified in the DNR’s wolf
management plan, and
specifies that a wolf
harvesting license
authorizes hunting and
trapping only in a specified
zone. For the new wolf
hunting season, the DNR
received more than
20,000 applications to
participate in the wolf
hunt. Of those
applications, 1,160 hunters
were chosen through a
computerized lottery drawing.
Deer hunters should be
pleased with recent changes
made to the deer hunting
season. Last fall, the
Legislature passed
legislation ending the
earn-a-buck (EAB)
requirement. The EAB
program, instituted in 1996,
required those holding a
deer hunting license to
harvest
an
antlerless deer before
harvesting an antlered deer.
Hunters needed to take a doe before taking
the prized buck. The DNR
stated the purpose of the EAB program was to control
both the deer population and
Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD).
However, unintended
consequences of the EAB
requirement led to a deluge
of hunters leaving the field
and fewer deer being
harvested. In
response, lawmakers
re-examined the EAB
requirement and introduced
2011 Senate Bill 75, which
prohibits the DNR from
establishing certain
restrictions on hunting
antlered deer and eliminates
the four-day October hunt
outside the CWD management
zone. Senate Bill 75 was
signed into law just in time
for last season’s hunt, and
is still in effect, so there
is no EAB requirement for
this fall’s hunt or any
future deer hunt.
After listening to the frustrations of deer hunters across the
state, Governor Walker hired
Dr. James Kroll, a respected
national deer management
consultant,
to examine the DNR’s deer
management policies. Though
Wisconsin has one of the
largest deer herds in the
nation and is one of the top
states in annual deer
harvests, the DNR’s
regulations over the past
decade have led to an uproar
among hunters, with a number
of hunters becoming more
frustrated with the sport,
or leaving it altogether.
The Governor directed Dr.
Kroll to conduct an
independent, objective, and
scientifically based review
of the state’s deer
management practices, and
make recommendations to both
the DNR and the Legislature
for improvements.
Dr. Kroll, along with two
other researchers, spent
months meeting with the
general public, DNR
employees, stakeholder
groups, and Native American
tribes. After nine months
of research, Dr. Kroll
released his final report
this past July. In the
136-page report, he detailed
a number of suggestions,
stating the DNR should focus
on the number of deer in
different regions,
give the public better
access to computerized maps,
simplify hunting rules and
fees, and allow landowners
and hunting clubs to run
hunts on their property
after consulting with DNR
biologists. Currently, the
DNR is reviewing the
comprehensive report and
working on implementation
strategies.
Finally, last month the
Governor suspended the
four-day October deer hunt
in the south central CWD
management zone, putting
into sync what had already
been enacted into law by
eliminating the four-day
October hunt outside the CWD
zone. The suspension of the
October hunt was also in
response to hunters who
expressed concerns with the
October hunt, and follows
Dr. Kroll’s report, which
questioned whether the
October hunt was effective
enough to continue.
As Wisconsin embarks on the
new the fall hunting seasons, the changes
made by both the
Legislature and Governor
should help ensure
Wisconsin’s hunting
traditions will continue to
thrive for generations to
come. For more information
about the hunts and their
corresponding seasons, visit
the DNR’s Web site at
http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/hunt/
or contact my office anytime.
-30-
Senator Kedzie can be reached
in Madison at P.O. Box 7882,
Madison, WI 53707-7882 or by
calling toll-free 1 (800)
578-1457. He may be reached
in the district at (262)
742-2025 or online at
www.senatorkedzie.com
