ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Fifty-seventh Legislature

First Regular Session

House: LARA DPA 4-2-1-2

HB 2603: hunting; fishing; license; deferred prosecution

Sponsor: Representative Nguyen, LD 1

Caucus & COW

Overview

Allows the Game and Fish Commission (Commission) to revoke or suspend a person’s license to take or possess wildlife if the licensee is entering a deferred prosecution agreement.

History

The Commission may revoke or suspend a license issued to any person and deny the person the right to secure another license to take or possess wildlife for five year on conviction or after adjudication as a delinquent juvenile for:

1) unlawfully taking, selling, offering for sale, bartering or possession of wildlife;

2) carless use of firearms that resulted in the injury or death of a person;

3) destroying, injuring or molesting livestock or damaging or destroying growing crops, personal property, notices or signboards or other improvements while hunting, trapping or fishing;

4) littering public hunting or fishing areas while taking wildlife;

5) knowingly allowing another person to use the person's game tag;

6) taking or driving wildlife from closed areas or while trespassing;

7) trespassing on private land to hunt, fish, trap or guild wildlife;

8) intentionally interfering with, preventing or disrupting the lawful taking of wildlife by another person while in a hunting area as outlined;

9) knowingly purchasing, applying for, accepting, obtaining or using a fraud or misrepresented license, permit, tag or stamp to take wildlife;

10) acting as a guide without having procured a guide license;

11) taking a game bird, game mammal or game fish and knowingly permitting an edible portion thereof to go to waste; or

12) using an aircraft to take, assist in taking, harass, chase, drive, locate or assist in locating wildlife (A.R.S. § 17-340).

Deferred prosecution is a special supervision program in which the county attorney of a participating county may divert or defer, before a guilty plea or a trial, the prosecution of a person who is accused of committing a crime (A.R.S. § 11-361).

Provisions

1. Authorizes the Commission to revoke or suspend a person’s license to take or possess wildlife if the licensee is entering a deferred prosecution agreement. (Sec. 1)

2. Makes a technical change. (Sec. 1)

Amendments

Committee on Land, Agriculture & Rural Affairs

1. Stipulates that an active license revocation for an agreement to defer prosecution terminates after the licensee provides proof to the Commission that:

a) they have satisfactorily completed the terms and obligations of a deferred prosecution;

b) their criminal charges have been dismissed;

c) they have completed all required training courses; and

d) they have paid in full all civil penalties imposed.

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h) HB 2603

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