AB605: Bill Text

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB605,1 Section 1. 29.241 (5) of the statutes is created to read:

AB605,2,4 29.241 (5) Youth trapping. A person under the age of 16 may engage in trapping under the supervision of a licensed trapper without holding a trapping license or a certificate of accomplishment under s. 29.597 (5).

AB605,2 Section 2. 29.241 (6) of the statutes is created to read:

AB605,2,6 29.241 (6) Mentored trapping license. (a) In this section:

AB605,2,7 1. “Contact” has the meaning given in s. 29.324 (1) (a).

AB605,2,8 2. “Mentor" means a person who provides trapping instruction to a mentee.

AB605,2,10 3. “Mentee" means a person holding a mentored trapping license who is receiving trapping instruction from a mentor.

AB605,2,14 (b) A mentored trapping license shall be issued subject to ss. 29.024 and 54.25 (2) (c) 1. d. by the department to any resident applying for this license or to any nonresident of this state who applies for this license and who resides in a state that allows nonresidents of that state to trap within that state.

AB605,2,16 (c) A mentored trapping license authorizes trapping by a mentee while in contact with a mentor who meets the following qualifications:

AB605,2,17 1. The person is 18 years of age or older.

AB605,3,3 2. The person is the parent or guardian of the mentee or is authorized by the parent or guardian to serve as a mentor. This requirement does not apply to a person serving as a mentor for a person who is 18 years of age or older.

AB605,3,5 3. At all times when serving as a mentor, the person is in contact with the mentee.

AB605,3,7 4. The person holds a current valid trapping license or is authorized to trap without holding a trapping license as provided under s. 29.337.

AB605,3,10 (d) A person may be issued only 2 mentored trapping licenses in his or her lifetime, and each mentored trapping license shall be valid for only one trapping season.

AB605,3,13 (e) A mentor under this subsection may take more than one person trapping at a time if the mentor determines he or she can adequately and safely serve as a mentor for all of the persons he or she takes trapping at one time.

AB605,3,17 (f) A person holding a mentored trapping license is not eligible to receive a harvest tag for trapping purposes for any species for which the department limits the number of available tags but may assist his or her mentor in the trapping of a species for which the department limits the number of available tags.

AB605,3 Section 3. 29.331 (1) of the statutes is renumbered 29.331 (1) (a) and amended to read:

AB605,4,3 29.331 (1) (a) Each Except as provided under par. (b), each trap used under a trapping license shall be tagged with a metal tag stamped with the name and address or customer identification number of the operator of the trap. If a trap is operated by more than one licensed trapper, the trap shall be tagged with the metal stamp of each operator of the trap. All untagged traps shall be seized and confiscated, and the owner or person using or attending the untagged traps shall be punished as provided under s. 29.971 (4) and (12). This paragraph does not apply to a person under the age of 16 trapping under the supervision of a licensed trapper as provided in s. 29.241 (5).

AB605,4 Section 4. 29.331 (1) (b) of the statutes is created to read:

AB605,4,10 29.331 (1) (b) Each trap used by a person who is trapping with a qualified mentor as provided under s. 29.241 (6) shall be tagged with a metal tag stamped with the name and address or customer identification number of the person using the trap, the qualified mentor, or both. If the trap is tagged only by a person who is trapping with a qualified mentor, the trap may be operated only by that person or by the mentor and only when both are present.

AB605,5 Section 5. 29.331 (5) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB605,4,18 29.331 (5) (a) No person may molest, take or appropriate a trap belonging to another person when the trap is lawfully placed. No person may take or appropriate the animal or contents of any lawfully placed trap belonging to another person. This paragraph does not apply to a person taking a trap belonging to a supervising trapper or mentor, or taking the contents of that trap, if the person is acting under the direction of a supervising trapper under s. 29.241 (5) or a mentor providing instruction under s. 29.241 (6).

AB605,6 Section 6. 29.351 (1r) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB605,5,2 29.351 (1r) No person may possess the raw skin of any muskrat, mink, otter, fisher, or pine marten at any time unless the person is the holder of a valid scientific collector permit, fur dealer license, trapping license, mentored trapping license, or resident conservation patron license. No license is required for a person breeding, raising, and producing domestic fur-bearing animals in captivity, as defined in s. 29.627, or for a person authorized to take muskrats on a cranberry marsh under a permit issued to the person by the department.

AB605,7 Section 7. 29.563 (6) (a) 1s. of the statutes is created to read:

AB605,5,4 29.563 (6) (a) 1s. Mentored trapping license: $9.25.

AB605,8 Section 8. Effective dates. This act takes effect on the day after publication, except as follows:

AB605,5,8 (1) The treatment of sections 29.241 (6), 29.331 (1) (b), 29.351 (1r), and 29.563 (6) (a) 1s. of the statutes takes effect on September 1, 2018.

AB605,5,9 (End)