2018 -- S 2507

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LC004786

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2018

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO FISH AND WILDLIFE -- LICENSING

     

     Introduced By: Senators Seveney, Coyne, DiPalma, and Felag

     Date Introduced: March 01, 2018

     Referred To: Senate Environment & Agriculture

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Sections 20-2-2 and 20-2-31 of the General Laws in Chapter 20-2 entitled

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"Licensing" are hereby amended to read as follows:

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     20-2-2. Issuance of licenses.

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     The authorized agent of any city or town and any Any person or corporation appointed by

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the director as provided in § 20-2-1 shall, upon the application of any person entitled to receive a

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license under this chapter and upon payment of the specified license fee, register and issue to that

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person a license, either printed or displayed electronically on a mobile device, so long as the

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certificate provides all of the information requested in the data fields identified by the department.

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The certificate shall bear the name, age, occupation, place of residence, signature, and identifying

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description of the registrant and shall authorize the registrant to fish or shellfish, or to pursue,

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hunt, and kill game in the state of Rhode Island during those seasons and in those manners and

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according to those conditions, as shall be provided by law; provided, however, that these

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authorized agents shall not have authority to issue lobster, commercial shellfish, or commercial

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fishing licenses of any kind.

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     20-2-31. Hunting and fishing licenses -- Exceptions.

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     (a) Every valid license to hunt or fish in this state that is held by any resident of this state

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upon joining the armed forces or the merchant marine of the United States is hereby extended and

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is in force and valid until six (6) months following the termination of his or her service.

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     (b) Every member of the armed forces or of the merchant marine of the United States

 

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may hunt or fish in this state if that person procures a hunting or fishing license issued by the

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state of Rhode Island, the fee for which is that charged for a resident civilian.

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     (c) Every man or woman who was a part of the armed forces of the United States

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government and is now a one hundred percent (100%) disabled veteran, and any man or woman

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who is one hundred percent (100%) permanently disabled, is entitled, subject to the provisions of

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this title, to receive a license to hunt and/or fish in this state; and upon the presentation of his or

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her necessary military discharge identification and/or disability papers, as prescribed by the

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department of environmental management, shall, at the discretion of the licensing authority,

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receive, without the payment of any license fee, a continuing special form of license authorizing

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the man or woman to hunt and/or fish in this state in accordance with the provisions of this title

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and regulations issued pursuant to this title for so long as he or she so desires; provided, however,

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that the man or woman, having once made application for this license, shall not again be required

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to appear before the licensing authority to present his or her papers.

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     (d) A freshwater fishing license is not required of any blind person. For the purposes of

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this section, a person is blind only if his or her central visual acuity does not exceed 20/200 in the

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better eye with correcting lenses or if his or her visual acuity is greater than 20/200 but is

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accompanied by a limitation in the fields of vision such that the widest diameter of the visual

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field subtends an angle no greater than twenty degrees (20°).

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     (e) Every resident man or woman over the age of sixty-five (65) years is entitled, subject

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to the provisions of this title and the regulations issued pursuant to this title, to receive a special

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permanent license to hunt and/or fish in this state for which there is no fee.

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     (f) Any man or woman who is one hundred percent (100%) permanently disabled may

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apply to the clerk of any city or town to receive a license to fish in this state, and upon

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presentation of a proof of his or her disability as prescribed by the department of environmental

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management, receive, without the payment of any license fee, a continuing special form of

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license authorizing the man or woman to fish in this state for so long as he or she so desires;

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provided, however, that the man or woman, having once made application for this license, shall

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not again be required to appear before the licensing authority to present his or her papers.

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     (g) The director may, by regulation, designate no more than two (2) days in each year,

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which may or may not be consecutive, during which residents and nonresidents may, without

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having a license and without payment of any fee, exercise the privileges of a holder of a

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freshwater fishing license. These persons are subject to all other limitations, restrictions,

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conditions, laws, rules, and regulations applicable to the holder of a freshwater fishing license.

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     (h) For the purpose of this section, "man or woman who is one hundred percent (100%)

 

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permanently disabled" means an individual who has a physical or mental impairment and is

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receiving:

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     (1) Social Security Disability Insurance Benefits (SSDI);

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     (2) Supplemental Security Income benefits (SSI).

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     All licenses that are issued to persons who qualify pursuant to this subsection shall be

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issued without the requirement of the payment of a fee and shall expire annually on February 28

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of each year. Persons seeking the issuance or reissuance of licenses shall be required to present

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documentation establishing that the applicant is qualified, or remains qualified, pursuant to this

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subsection.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO FISH AND WILDLIFE -- LICENSING

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     This act would remove the requirement that hunting and fishing licenses may be issued

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only by town and city clerks.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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