The Idaho Fish and Game Commission is authorized to establish seasons and rules. Setting the season includes setting season timing and length, species and sex of animal (or fish), size of animal, and number of animals. Season regulations do not require legislative approval. But, all other rules passed by the Commission, such as legal equipment definitions, controlled hunt requirements, allowable method of take, and tag quotas are considered rules and must be adopted following the Idaho Administrative Procedure Act, including approval by the Idaho Legislature whose guidance is that formal negotiated rulemaking should be followed whenever feasible.
Public comment is an important part of rule development and will be used to determine feasibility of negotiated rulemaking. Please be aware that public comments will become part of the official public record. If you are interested in providing comments on one or more of the following proposals, you may do so by submitting your comments in writing to the person identified as the primary contact.
| Proposal / Description | Supporting Information Links | Status | Primary Contact |
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Grizzly Bears: Public Input Sought on Hunting Rule Proposals for The Greater Yellowstone Population of Grizzly Bears Rule Proposals — Idaho Department of Fish and Game is gathering public comments on rules for potential future hunting of the Greater Yellowstone population of grizzly bears in eastern Idaho once it is no longer listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act. There are seven rule proposals, including hunting restrictions and requirements for harvest reporting, checks, and tag validation. The public comment period will run through October 26, 2016. When the Fish and Game Commission adopts rules, the rules are subject to review by the Idaho Legislature before they become final. The Fish and Game Commission has not made a decision to have a hunting season for Greater Yellowstone grizzly bears, and any potential hunting season would be very limited. The Commission makes decisions about hunting seasons and harvest limits through a separate process. These rule proposals involve how Fish and Game would administer grizzly bear hunting if the Commission decides to allow it. Once the Greater Yellowstone population of grizzly bears is delisted, the Idaho Fish and Game Commission and Idaho Department of Fish and Game will continue to manage this population in cooperation with Wyoming and Montana.
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Written comment period closed October 26, 2016 |
Sharon W. Kiefer |
| Bear Baiting: Align Distance Baits May be Placed From Water and From Any Maintained Trail or Any Road
— The current rule (IDAPA 13.01.17.100.02) requires that all bear baits cannot be located within 200 feet of any water (still, flowing, springs) or within 200 yards from any maintained trail or any road. The proposed change to this rule would make the distances consistent so that baits may be located at least 200 feet from roads and maintained trails rather than the current minimum distance of 200 yards from any roads or maintained trails. In addition, a proposed change is that “any roads” would be revised to “established roads”, which is defined in IDAPA as any road that is established, built, maintained, approved or designated by any governmental entity or private landowner for the purpose of travel by full-sized automobiles. An established roadway shows evidence of repeated use by full-sized automobiles, and may include a traveled way of natural earth with depressed wheel tracks and little or no vegetation in the wheel tracks (IDAPA 13.01.08.411.03).
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Comment period closed July 23, 2015 | Jon Rachael State Wildlife Game Manager Idaho Fish and Game P.O. Box 25 Boise, Idaho 83707 208-334-2920 |