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12  AN ACT concerning big game permits; relating to nonresident permits;
13    amending K.S.A. 1996 Supp. 32-937 and repealing the existing section.
14
15  Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
16    Section 1.  K.S.A. 1996 Supp. 32-937 is hereby amended to read as
17  follows: 32-937. (a) When used in this section:
18    (1)  ``Landowner'' means a resident owner of farm or ranch land of
19  80 acres or more located in the state of Kansas.
20    (2)  ``Tenant'' means a resident of this state who is actively engaged
21  in the agricultural operation of 80 acres or more of Kansas farm or ranch
22  land for the purpose of producing agricultural commodities or livestock
23  and who: (A) Has a substantial financial investment in the production of
24  agricultural commodities or livestock on such farm or ranch land and the
25  potential to realize substantial financial benefit from such production; or
26  (B) is a bona fide manager having an overall responsibility to direct, su-
27  pervise and conduct such agricultural operation and has the potential to
28  realize substantial benefit from such production in the form of salary,
29  shares of such production or some other economic incentive based upon
30  such production.
31    (3)  ``Regular season'' means a statewide big game hunting season au-
32  thorized annually which may include one or more seasons restricted to
33  specific types of equipment.
34    (4)  ``Special season'' means a big game hunting season in addition to
35  a regular season authorized on an irregular basis or at different times of
36  the year other than the regular season.
37    (5)  ``General permit'' means a big game hunting permit available to
38  Kansas residents not applying for big game permits as a landowner or
39  tenant.
40    (6)  ``Nonresident landowner'' means a nonresident of the state of
41  Kansas who owns farm or ranch land of 80 acres or more which is located
42  in the state of Kansas.
43    (7)  ``Nonresident permit'' means a big game hunting permit available
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 1  to individuals who are not Kansas residents.
 2    (b)  Except as otherwise provided by law or rules and regulations of
 3  the secretary and in addition to any other license, permit or stamp re-
 4  quired by law or rules and regulations of the secretary, a valid big game
 5  permit and game tags are required to take any big game in this state.
 6    (c)  The fee for big game permits and game tags shall be the amount
 7  prescribed pursuant to K.S.A. 32-988, and amendments thereto.
 8    (d)  A big game permit and game tags are valid throughout the state
 9  or such portion thereof as provided by rules and regulations adopted by
10  the secretary in accordance with K.S.A. 32-805 and amendments thereto.
11    (e)  Unless otherwise provided by law or rules and regulations of the
12  secretary, a big game permit and game tags are valid from the date of
13  issuance and shall expire at the end of the season for which issued.
14    (f)  The secretary may adopt, in accordance with K.S.A. 32-805, and
15  amendments thereto, rules and regulations for each regular or special big
16  game hunting season and for each management unit regarding big game
17  permits and game tags. The secretary is hereby authorized to issue big
18  game permits and game tags pertaining to the taking of big game. Sep-
19  arate big game permits and game tags may be issued for each species of
20  big game. No big game permits or game tags shall be issued until the
21  secretary has established, by rules and regulations adopted in accordance
22  with K.S.A. 32-805, and amendments thereto, a regular or special big
23  game hunting season.
24    (g)  The secretary may authorize, by rule and regulation adopted in
25  accordance with K.S.A. 32-805, and amendments thereto, landowner or
26  tenant hunt-on-your-own-land big game permits. Such permits and ap-
27  plications may contain provisions and restrictions as prescribed by rule
28  and regulation adopted by the secretary in accordance with K.S.A. 32-
29  805, and amendments thereto.
30    (h)  The secretary may authorize, by rule and regulation adopted in
31  accordance with K.S.A. 32-805 and amendments thereto, special land-
32  owner or tenant hunt-on-your-own-land deer permits. Such special per-
33  mits shall not be issued to landowners or tenants in possession of a hunt-
34  on-your-own-land deer permit as authorized in subsection (g). The special
35  permits shall be transferable to any immediate family member of the
36  landowner or tenant, whether or not a Kansas resident, or the permit may
37  be retained for use by the landowner or tenant. The special permits shall
38  be transferable through the secretary at the request of the landowner or
39  tenant and by paying the required fee for a general or nonresident deer
40  permit and the additional payment of the permit transfer fee The special
41  permits may be sold or otherwise transferred by the landowner or
42  tenant to any resident or nonresident individual who holds a valid
43  Kansas hunting license or to a person exempt by law from the re-
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 1  quirement of having a license to hunt in this state. The landowner
 2  or tenant may sell such permits for an amount in excess of the fee
 3  paid by the landowner or tenant. The special permits and applications
 4  may contain provisions and restrictions as prescribed by rule and regu-
 5  lation adopted by the secretary in accordance with K.S.A. 32-805 and
 6  amendments thereto. For the purposes of this subsection, ``member of
 7  the immediate family'' means lineal or collateral ascendants or descen-
 8  dants, and their spouses.
 9    (i)  Fifty percent of the big game permits authorized for a regular
10  season in any management unit shall be issued to landowners or tenants,
11  provided that a limited number of big game permits have been authorized
12  and landowner or tenant hunt-on-your-own-land big game permits for
13  that unit have not been authorized. A landowner or tenant is not eligible
14  to apply for a big game permit as a landowner or as a tenant in a man-
15  agement unit other than the unit or units which includes such landowner's
16  or tenant's land. Any big game permits not issued to landowners or ten-
17  ants within the time period prescribed by rule and regulation may be
18  issued without regard to the 50% limitation.
19    (j)  Members of the immediate family who are domiciled with a land-
20  owner or tenant may apply for a big game permit as a landowner or as a
21  tenant, but the total number of permits issued to a landowner or tenant
22  and a landowner's or tenant's immediate family shall not exceed one per-
23  mit for each 80 acres owned by such landowner or operated by such
24  tenant. The secretary may require proof of ownership or tenancy from
25  individuals applying for a big game permit as a landowner or as a tenant.
26    (k)  The secretary may issue permits for deer or turkey to nonresident
27  landowners, but any such permit shall be restricted to hunting only on
28  lands owned by the nonresident landowner.
29    (l)  The secretary may issue turkey hunting permits to nonresidents
30  in turkey management units with unlimited turkey hunting permits avail-
31  able.
32    (m)  The secretary may issue deer hunting permits to nonresidents,
33  subject to the following limitations:
34    (1)  The total number of nonresident deer firearm permits issued for
35  a deer season in a management unit shall not exceed 5% of the total
36  number of resident deer firearm permits authorized for such season in
37  such management unit; and
38    (2)  the total number of nonresident deer archery permits issued for
39  a deer season in a management unit shall not exceed 5% of the total
40  number of resident deer archery permits authorized for such season in
41  such management unit.
42    If an unlimited number of resident deer permits is authorized for a
43  deer season or management unit, the percentage limitations of subsec-
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 1  tions (l)(1) and (l)(2) (m)(1) and (m)(2) shall be based upon the total
 2  number of resident firearm permits and the total number of archery per-
 3  mits, respectively, issued in the management unit during the most recent
 4  preceding similar season. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this
 5  subsection, nonresident firearm deer permits of a particular type and
 6  nonresident archery deer permits of a particular type may be issued in a
 7  firearms management unit only if resident firearm permits of such type
 8  remained unissued after the close of the previous year's first permit se-
 9  lection process in that management unit.
10    (n)  Any recipient of a nonresident deer hunting permit as authorized
11  under subsection (l) shall be ineligible to apply for or to receive a non-
12  resident deer hunting permit for any deer season established for the fol-
13  lowing year nonresident deer hunting permits authorized under subsec-
14  tion (m) that remain unissued due to an insufficient number of
15  nonresident applications as of a deadline determined by the secretary,
16  shall be made available to residents.
17    (o)  No big game permit issued to a person under 14 years of age shall
18  be valid until such person reaches 14 years of age, except that a wild
19  turkey firearm permit may be issued to any individual who is 12 years of
20  age or older but is under 14 years of age if the individual has been issued
21  a certificate of completion of an approved hunter education course. Such
22  turkey firearm permit shall be valid only while the individual is hunting
23  under the immediate supervision of an adult who is 21 years of age or
24  older.
25    (p)  A big game permit shall state the species, number and sex of the
26  big game which may be killed by the permittee. The secretary may furnish
27  an informational card with any big game permit and, at the conclusion of
28  the open season, each permittee receiving such card shall return the card
29  to the department, giving such information as is called for on the card.
30    (q)  The permittee shall permanently affix the game tag to the carcass
31  of any big game immediately after killing and thereafter, if required by
32  rules and regulations, the permittee shall immediately take such killed
33  game to a check station as required in the rules and regulations, where a
34  check station tag shall be affixed to the game carcass if the kill is legal.
35  The tags shall remain affixed until the carcass is consumed or processed
36  for storage.
37    (r)  The provisions of this section do not apply to big game animals
38  sold in surplus property disposal sales of department exhibit herds or big
39  game animals legally taken outside this state.
40    Sec. 2.  K.S.A. 1996 Supp. 32-937 is hereby repealed.
41    Sec. 3.  This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
42  publication in the statute book.