NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A8021
SPONSOR: Gunther TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in
relation to crossbow hunting
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To classify a crossbow as a bow and to require hunters to take the bow
hunter safety education course; eliminate the 200 pound max draw weight
for crossbows and to allow the use of a crossbow during the Columbus
Weekend Youth Deer Hunt.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
This bill amends various sections of the environmental conservation law
to classify crossbows as bows for the purpose of requiring those who use
crossbows to take the bow hunter safety education course; remove the
maximum draw for crossbows and authorize junior hunters to use crossbows
during the youth deer hunt.
JUSTIFICATION:
The current environmental conservation law states that in order to be
licensed, bow hunters must take a safety course in basic hunter educa-
tion which simply teaches the basic information about a crossbow. This
legislation would require those who use a crossbow to take an additional
eight hour course on bow hunter education in order to ensure responsible
and safe crossbow hunting.
Due to the misconception that draw weight equates directly to energy,
previous legislation has created restrictions on the maximum draw weight
for crossbows for safety reasons. However, energy is a factor of speed
and the weight of the object which explains why a 290 pound recurve
crossbow shoots slower than the 185 pound compound crossbow. Not only
are compound bows and crossbows similar in speed and energy but overall
there is no type of archery equipment, including crossbows that can
compare to the power and performance of a firearm.
In order to have a junior archery license which permits the hunting of
deer and bear during season, an individual must be a resident holder
between fourteen and sixteen years of age. During the Columbus Weekend
Youth Deer Hunt, junior hunters are allowed to use bows, shotguns, muzz-
leloaders and rifles to hunt but they are currently prohibited from
using crossbows. Amending this section of the environmental conservation
law will allow youth with junior archery privilege to utilize crossbows
during the youth deer hunt. These same junior hunters are already
permitted to use a crossbow in the last 14 days of southern zone archery
season, the last 10 days of northern zone archery season, all of the
regular firearms seasons and any late muzzleloader/archery season.
According to DEC, during the 2014-15 hunting season, 5,535 deer were
harvested with a crossbow and there were no hunting related incidents
involving a crossbow. This legislation would add an additional hunter
education requirement and remove unnecessary restrictions on this hunt-
ing implement
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to state.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
8021
2015-2016 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
June 4, 2015
___________
Introduced by M. of A. GUNTHER -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Environmental Conservation
AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to
crossbow hunting
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Paragraph a of subdivision 1 of section 11-0719 of the
2 environmental conservation law, as amended by section 2 of part EE of
3 chapter 55 of the laws of 2014, is amended to read as follows:
4 a. In the circumstances described in paragraph b of this subdivision
5 the department may revoke any license, bowhunting privilege, or muzzle-
6 loading privilege, of any person, to hunt, fish or trap, defined in
7 section 11-0701 of this title or issued pursuant to any provision of the
8 Fish and Wildlife Law, or it may revoke all of such licenses, bowhunting
9 privileges, or muzzle-loading privileges. It may also deny such person,
10 for a period not exceeding five years, the privilege of obtaining such
11 license or licenses, bowhunting privilege, or muzzle-loading privilege,
12 or of hunting, trapping or fishing, anywhere in the state with or with-
13 out license, bowhunting privilege, or muzzle-loading privilege, except
14 as provided in subdivision 1 of section 11-0707 of this title or in
15 section 11-0523 of this article. It may also require that such person
16 successfully complete a department-sponsored course and obtain a certif-
17 icate of qualification in responsible hunting [including responsible
18 crossbow hunting], responsible bowhunting including responsible crossbow
19 hunting or responsible trapping practices before being issued another
20 license.
21 § 2. Paragraphs a and c of subdivision 2 of section 11-0719 of the
22 environmental conservation law, as amended by section 4 of part EE of
23 chapter 55 of the laws of 2014, are amended to read as follows:
24 a. The department may revoke the licenses, tags, bowhunting privi-
25 leges, or muzzle-loading privileges, which authorize the holder to hunt
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11485-02-5
A. 8021 2
1 and/or trap wildlife, and may deny the privilege of obtaining such
2 licenses, tags, bowhunting privileges, or muzzle-loading privileges, and
3 may deny the privileges of hunting and/or trapping with or without a
4 license.
5 (1) of any person who, while engaged in hunting or trapping,
6 (i) causes death or injury to any person by discharging a firearm,
7 crossbow or longbow, or
8 (ii) so negligently discharges a firearm, crossbow or longbow as to
9 endanger the life or safety of another, or
10 (iii) so negligently and wantonly discharges a firearm, crossbow or
11 longbow as to destroy or damage public or private property; or
12 (2) of any agent of the department authorized to issue certificates of
13 qualification in responsible hunting [including responsible crossbow
14 hunting], bowhunting including responsible crossbow hunting, or trapping
15 practices who improperly issues any such certification to a person whom
16 he or she has not trained, or whom he or she knows has not satisfactori-
17 ly completed all of the requirements necessary for such certification.
18 c. In case such discharge of a firearm, crossbow or longbow causes
19 death or injury to any person, the license or licenses, bowhunting priv-
20 ilege, and muzzle-loading privilege shall be revoked and the ability to
21 obtain any such license and of hunting or of trapping anywhere in the
22 state with or without a license denied, for a period not exceeding ten
23 years, except that no revocation shall be made in cases in which facts
24 established at the hearing indicate to the satisfaction of the commis-
25 sioner that there was no negligence on the part of the shooter or
26 bowhunter. In all other cases the license or licenses, bowhunting privi-
27 lege, or muzzle-loading privilege, shall be revoked and the privilege of
28 obtaining such license, bowhunting privilege, or muzzle-loading privi-
29 lege, and of hunting or of trapping anywhere in the state with or with-
30 out a license denied for a period not exceeding five years. The depart-
31 ment may also require that the person causing such death or injury
32 successfully complete a department-sponsored course and obtain a certif-
33 icate of qualification in responsible hunting [including responsible
34 crossbow hunting] or bowhunting practices including responsible crossbow
35 hunting before being issued another hunting license.
36 § 3. Subparagraph 9 of paragraph b of subdivision 4 of section 11-0901
37 of the environmental conservation law, as added by section 6 of part EE
38 of chapter 55 of the laws of 2014, is amended to read as follows:
39 (9) with a crossbow unless such crossbow shall consist of a bow and
40 string, either compound or recurve, that launches a minimum fourteen
41 inch bolt, not including point, mounted upon a stock with a trigger that
42 holds the string and limbs under tension until released. The trigger
43 unit of such crossbow must have a working safety. The minimum limb width
44 of such crossbow shall be seventeen inches[,] and have a minimum peak
45 draw weight of one hundred pounds [and a maximum peak draw weight of two
46 hundred pounds]. The minimum overall length of such crossbow from butts-
47 tock to front of limbs shall be twenty-four inches.
48 § 4. Subparagraph 9 of paragraph c of subdivision 4 of section 11-0901
49 of the environmental conservation law, as added by section 7 of part EE
50 of chapter 55 of the laws of 2014, is amended to read as follows:
51 (9) with a crossbow unless such crossbow shall consist of a bow and
52 string, either compound or recurve, that launches a minimum fourteen
53 inch bolt, not including point, mounted upon a stock with a trigger that
54 holds the string and limbs under tension until released. The trigger
55 unit of such crossbow must have a working safety. The minimum limb width
56 of such crossbow shall be seventeen inches[,] and have a minimum peak
A. 8021 3
1 draw weight of one hundred pounds [and a maximum peak draw weight of two
2 hundred pounds]. The minimum overall length of such crossbow from butts-
3 tock to front of limbs shall be twenty-four inches.
4 § 5. Subdivision 6 of section 11-0713 of the environmental conserva-
5 tion law, as added by section 12 of part EE of chapter 55 of the laws of
6 2014, is amended to read as follows:
7 6. The department shall require training in the safe use of hunting
8 with a crossbow and safe hunting practices in the [basic hunter educa-
9 tion] bowhunter education course required for all new [hunters] bowhun-
10 ters. All persons who have completed [hunter] bowhunter education and
11 who have not certified their completion of a safety course which
12 includes crossbow hunting training prior to April first, two thousand
13 fourteen shall complete an online or other training program approved by
14 the department prior to using a crossbow to hunt.
15 § 6. Subdivision 10 of section 11-0907 of the environmental conserva-
16 tion law, as added by section 14 of part EE of chapter 55 of the laws of
17 2014, is amended to read as follows:
18 10. Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter, or any prior
19 notwithstanding language in this article, the department may, by regu-
20 lation, authorize the taking of big game by the use of a crossbow by any
21 licensed person in any big game season in any area designated in items
22 (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), (i), (k) and (l) of paragraph a of subdi-
23 vision two of this section in which a shotgun or muzzle loader is
24 permitted provided however, that any crossbow use during an archery-only
25 season shall only take place during the last fourteen consecutive days
26 of such archery-only season in the southern zone provided that such
27 archery-only season shall consist of not less than forty-five days and
28 only during the last ten consecutive days of any archery-only season in
29 the northern zone provided that such archery-only season shall consist
30 of no less than twenty-three days. Any muzzle loading season which
31 occurs at the same time as a special archery season may only occur
32 during times when crossbows are authorized to be used. The department
33 may authorize junior hunters that possess the junior archery privilege
34 to use a crossbow during the youth deer hunt.
35 § 7. The closing paragraph of paragraph a of subdivision 2 and subdi-
36 visions 3, 4, 5 and 9 of section 11-0701 of the environmental conserva-
37 tion law, the closing paragraph of paragraph a of subdivision 2 and
38 subdivisions 3, 4 and 5 as amended by section 1-a of part R of chapter
39 58 of the laws of 2013 and subdivision 9 as amended by section 17 of
40 part EE of chapter 55 of the laws of 2014, are amended to read as
41 follows:
42 A holder may take fish with a longbow or crossbow as provided in
43 titles [9] nine and [13] thirteen of this article.
44 3. A bowhunting privilege when included on a hunting license entitles
45 a holder:
46 (1) who is between the ages of twelve and sixteen years to hunt wild
47 deer and bear with a longbow or crossbow during the special archery
48 season and during the regular season, as provided in title [9] nine of
49 this article, subject to the provisions of section 11-0929 and subdivi-
50 sion [3] three of section 11-0713 of this article;
51 (2) who is eighteen years of age or older to hunt wild deer and bear
52 with a longbow or crossbow, as provided in title [9] nine of this arti-
53 cle, in a special longbow or crossbow season; and
54 (3) who is sixteen or seventeen years of age to exercise the same
55 privileges subject to the provisions of section 11-0929 and subdivision
56 [3] three of section 11-0713 of this article.
A. 8021 4
1 4. A fishing license entitles the holder to take fish by angling,
2 spearing, hooking, longbow or crossbow and tipups, to take frogs by
3 spearing, catching with the hands or by use of a club or hook, and to
4 take bait fish for personal use, as provided in titles [9] nine and [13]
5 thirteen of this article, except that such license shall not entitle the
6 holder to take migratory fish of the sea or to take fish from the waters
7 of the marine district.
8 5. A non-resident bear tag entitles a person who has not been a resi-
9 dent of the state for more than thirty days who also possesses a hunting
10 license to hunt bear during the regular open season therefor or in an
11 open season fixed by regulation pursuant to subdivision eight of section
12 11-0903 of this article. It entitles a non-resident holder who also
13 possesses a hunting license with bowhunting or crossbow hunting privi-
14 lege to hunt bear with a longbow or crossbow during the open bear
15 season. It entitles a non-resident holder who also possesses a hunting
16 license with muzzle-loading privilege to hunt bear with a muzzleloader
17 during the open bear season.
18 9. A muzzle-loading privilege when included on a hunting license enti-
19 tles a holder who is fourteen years of age or older to hunt wild deer
20 and bear with a muzzle-loading firearm [or crossbow,] as provided in
21 title [9] nine of this article, in a special muzzle-loading firearm
22 season.
23 § 8. This act shall take effect immediately.
