Senate Bill No. 448
(By Senators Kessler, Fanning, Stollings, Chafin, Williams,
Jenkins, Prezioso, Unger, Palumbo, D. Facemire and White)
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[Introduced March 4, 2009; referred to the Committee on Natural
Resources; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new section, designated §20-2-46f, relating
to wildlife resources; and creating a special hunting and
fishing license for severely disabled and terminally ill
persons under twenty-one years of age.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new section, designated §20-2-46f, to read as
follows:
ARTICLE 2. WILDLIFE RESOURCES.
§20-2-46f. Class DT special hunting permit for severely disabled
or terminally ill youth.
(a) A Class DT permit is a special statewide hunting and
fishing permit entitling the permittee to fish or hunt all legal species of game at no charge, on a one time basis in accordance
with the provisions of this section.
(b) A permit form shall be furnished by the director to an
applicant, resident or nonresident, who meets the following
requirements:
(1) He or she has been diagnosed by a licensed physician as
severely disabled or terminally ill; and
(2) He or she is under twenty-one years of age.
(c) A licensed physician must certify the applicant's severe
disability or terminally ill condition by completing the permit
form. When completed, the permit form constitutes a Class DT
permit. The Class DT permit and a completed license application
shall be submitted to the division, which will issue a wallet sized
card to the permittee. The card and all other documents and
identification required to be carried by this article shall be in
the permittee's possession when hunting.
(d) A Class DT permit entitles the holder to hunt and fish
only under the following circumstances:
(1) The permittee is accompanied by a parent, guardian or,
with written consent of the parent or guardian, any other competent
adult at least twenty-one years of age;
(2) The individual assisting the permittee must hold a valid
fishing or hunting license appropriate to the situation;
(3) The permittee and the individual assisting observe all other pertinent laws and regulations.
(e) The director shall propose rules for legislative approval
in accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter twenty-
nine-a of this code setting forth the qualifications of applicants
and the permitting process.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to create a new one time
basis hunting and fishing license for severely disabled and
terminally ill, residents and nonresident, under twenty-one years
of age.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.