266 [7 8 O p
. A tt ’y

Fe deral inspection and approval does not imply that a meat product 1 mus t be sold i n M ary

land . T heF e de ral Me at Ins pe c tio n A c t pre e mpt s statelaw o nly

wi th regard to la

be lin gand

there gulatio n o f p re mis e s,

(continued...) NATUR AL RES OU RCES

S AL E OF V E NI SON F R OM F AR M -R AI SE D D EER I S P ROH I BI TED

Sept ember 2, 1993
T h e H o n o ra b le K e v in K e lly H ou se of D el ega t es

Y ou have r eques t ed ouropi ni on w h ethe r §10- 404 of t he N at ural R esources A rt i cl e, M ary l and C od e (“N R ” A rt i cl e), w ou ld pr ohi bi tt he s al e of a n i m por t ed “ve ni s on s t i ck” i n M ar y l and.
For t he r eas ons s t at ed bel ow , w e conc l ude t hatN R §10- 404( c)
w oul d pr ohi bi tt he s al e of thi s “veni so n sti ck” i n M ar y l and. A l t hough w e bel i eve thatt hi s con clus ion r efl ect s t he bet t er cons t r uct i on of t he s t atut e, t he l anguage us ed i n N R §10- 404( c) does notconveyt he pr ohi bi t i on’ s t r ue s cope. T hus , w e ur ge ena ct m entof
c lar if y in g leg isla tio n , so th a t th e sta tu to rylan g u a g e a c c u ra tely
r efl ect s t he ac t ual l egi s l at i ve obj ect i ve.

I
I m por t e d “Veni s on St i c k”
“V eni s on s t i ck, ” as des cr i bed i n y our l et t er , i s a pr oces s ed meat produ ct con t ai ning ven i son an d b eef as w el l as ot her fl avo ri ng s. A ccor di ng t o t he food di s t r i but i on companyt hatw i sh es to se l l t he
v en ison sti ck , th e p rod u ct i s im p o rt ed fro m N ew Z ea land , w h ere deerar e r ai s ed on r anche s fort he purpos e of the comm er ci al s al e of veni s on. A copy of t he packagi ng encl os ed w i t h y our l et t eri ndi cat es t hatt he veni s on s t i ck has be en i ns pect ed and a ppr oved byt he U ni t ed St at es D epar t m entof A gr i cul t u re. T he pac kagi ng of t he veni s on 1G en. 266] 267

(...continued) 1 fa c ili tie s, and

op e ratio n o f m e at pro c e ssi ng pla nts

. Thus , state s ar e fre e to prohibit the sale of c erta in meats. See21 U.S.C. §678.
In addition, de er mounts, a ntlers and antler mounts, a nd deer hides 2 cannot besold. SeeMemorandum of Advice f rom Assistant Attorney General Pamela

Ander s ent o M aj o r W o o dwardW i l l i n g (Au gu s t1 3 , 1987). s t i ck, as faras w e can see , does noti ndi cat e w het hert he dee rm eat c o n ta in e d in th e v e n is o n s tic k c o m e s f ro m f a rm -r a is e d d e e r.
II
Cur r e nt St a t ut o r y Te xt
N R §1 0-404 (c) provides as fol l ow s:

A pers on m aynots el l , offe rfors al e, pur chas e, offe rt o pur chas e, bar t eror excha nge, atanyt i m e w i t hi n t he St at e any game bi r d orgame m amm al t aken fr om t he
w i l d exce ptt he meat , pel tor ca rca s s of any
m us kr a t , r a c c o o n , m i nk, ot t er , nut r i a, o p o ssu m , b ea v er, fo x , lon g -t ail w ea sel, fish er, o r sk u n k , w h e th e r c a u g h t in th is S tate , o r in
a n o t h e rs t a t e , t e r r i t o r y, o rc o u n t r y.
A “game m amm al ” i ncl udes a “f or es t g am e mam m al

. ” N R §10- 10 1(h). A “forestgam e m am m al ” i ncludes, am on g o t her t hings,

“ d e e r ... .” N R § 1 0 -1 0 1 (f ). B e c a u se th e ter m “ f

o re st g a m e m a m m a l” al s o encompas s es “any par t ” of t he m amm al , t he m eat of o n e of t hes e mam m al s cannotbe s ol d. 2

I f w e w er e cons i der i ng s ol el y t he pl ai n l anguage of t he s t atut e, w e w oul d concl ude t hatt he s al e of pr oduct s m ade f r om far m - r ai s ed deeri s notpr ohi bit ed

. T h e phr as e “t aken f r om t he w i l d” i s not defi ned byt he s t atut e. “W i l d” i s b roa d ly defi ned as “l i vi ng i n a natur al s t at e; notdom es t i cat ed, cul ti v ated, ort amed. ” A m er i can Her i t age D i ct i onar

y 13 8 1 (2d col l ege e d. 1982)

. D eerr ai s ed on a far m orr anch forveni s on w oul d notexi s ti n “a na t ur al s t at e” s i nce

“ n a t u r e ” g e n e r a l l y r e f

e r s t o t h e woo d s o r f

o r e s t

. Nor woul d deer raise d o n fa rm s an d ran ch es b e c o n side red “n o t do m esti ca ted [ o r]268 [7 8 O p
. A tt ’y

The Department of N atura l Resource s informs us that there is no 3 phy sic a l di ff

e re nc e in t

hesp e c ie s b e tw e e n w ild

and fa rm -ra ise d tu

rk e y s. Acc or d in gto a

1 9 9 2 B il l An a lys is o f

H o u s e B il l 1 3 7 9 , wh ic h 4 would have permitted and regulated deer farming in Maryland, the United States imports over one million pounds o f v en i son annually from Ne w Z eala nd and 30,000 pounds from Canada. A lso, more than 40 st ates a llow deer far ming. It is reasona

ble to concludethat deer

in the countries a

nd (continued...) cul t i vat ed” i f t heyw er e bei ng r ai s ed l i ke ca t t l e, s hee p , ors i m i l ar dom es t i cat ed l i ves t ock. T hus , undert he s t andar d di ct i on ary d e f i n i t i o n o f “ wi l d , ” f

a r m- r a i s e d v e n i s o n wo u l d n o tbe “ g a me m a m m a ls ta k e n f

ro m th e w ild .”
A not herw ayt o des cr i be “ga m e mam m als t aken f r om t he
w ild ” w o u ld b e to re f e r to th e m a s “ w ild m a m m a ls.” “ W ild
m a m m a ls” is d e f

in e d a s “e v e ry m a m m a l w ild b y n a tu re , o r a n yp a rt, egg, oroffs pr i ng, or dead body of any of t hem. ” N R §10- 101( x)

. T he ques t i on t hen bec om es w het herdeerr ai s ed on a f ar m orr anch f

or veni s on w oul d be consi der ed “w i l d by natur e. ” D eer far m i ng i s not w id e sp re a d in th e U n ited S tate s o r ab ro a d , n o r are d e e r tra d iti o n a lly c o n si dered l i vest ock

. T herefore, w e beli eve thatdeer gen erally
w o u ld b e c o n sid e re d “ w ild b yn a tu re .” H o w e v e r, in o rd e r to d e te rm in e w h e th e r f

a rm -r a is e d d e e r a re c o n s id e re d “ w ild b yn a tu re ,”
w e m ust exam i ne t he appli cat i on of t he paral l el t erm “gam e bir d[s] ... ta k e n f ro m th e w ild .”
A s u se d in N R § 1 0 -4 0 4 (c ), th e ter m “ g a m e b ird [ s]” re f e rs to “for es tgame bi r ds , ” w hi ch i s fur t herdefi ned as “ruffe d gr ous e and t ur key

. ” N R §10- 101( e) and ( h)

. So, i f t he t er m “any game bi r d or game m amm al t aken f

r om t he w i l d” w er e interpr et ed t o i ncl ude far m - r ai s ed game bi r ds , t hen t he sal e of al m os tal l t ur key s w oul d be pr ohi b i t ed. T he D epar t m entof N atur al R es our ces has never interpre t ed t he s t atut e t o i ncl ude fa r m - r ai s ed tur keybeca us e t he
r es ul tw oul d, of cour s e, be abs ur d. T he D epar tments ugges t s t hat far m - r ai s ed tur key s ar e t r eat ed di ffe r ent l yt han fa r m - r ai s ed dee r undert he s t atut e bec aus e tur key s ar e not“w i l d bynatur e, ” s i nce they have be en r ai s ed and br ed i n capt i vi t y for m anyy ear s
. A ppl y i ng t he 3 D epar t m ent ’ s r eas oni ng t o far m - r ai s ed dee r , i f t hes e dee rhave be en rai sed a nd bred i n cap t i vityfor y ears , as seem s t o b e t he case
r egar di ng t he dee rfr om w hi ch “ v en ison s t i ck” i s m ade, t hen t hey
w o u ld n o t be c o n side red “w il d b yn ature

. ” A cc o rdin g ly , if w e w ere 4G en. 266] 269

(...continued) 4 states that per

mit deer fa

rming have been raised a

nd bred in c aptivity

for several year s. to a p p ly th e w o rd s o f th e sta tu te lit e ra lly , fa rm -ra ise d v e n iso n w o u ld notbe i ncl uded w i t hi n t he t er m “game m amm al[s] t aken f r om t he
w i l d, ” and i tcoul d be s ol d i n M ar y l and.
T h e t ex t o f a st atute i s the be g inn ing p o int o f s ta tutory cons t r uct i on, how ever , notnece s s ar i l yt he end. I n cons t r ui ng a s t atut e, t he C our tof A ppeal s r ece nt l ys t at ed:

W hi l e t he l anguage of t he st atut e i s t he pr i m ar y s our ce for det er m i ni ng l egi s l at i ve i nt ent , t he pl ai n m eani ng r ul e i s notabs ol ut e. R a th e r, a sta tu te is to b e c o n stru e d re a so n a b ly
w i t h r efe r ence t o t he purpos e, ai m , orpol i ci es of t he l egi s l atur e r efl ect ed i n t he s t atut e. W or ds i n a s t atut e m us t t her efor e, be r ead i n a w ayt hatadvanc es t he l egi s l at i ve pol ic y i nvol ved.
Mar yl and St at e P o li ce v

. McC r eady , 330 M d. 474, 483 ( 1993) ( ci t at i ons om i t t ed)

. M or eover , a l o ngs t andi ng admi ni s t r at i ve c o n stru c tio n o f

a sta tu te b ya n a g e n c y c h a rg e d w ith a d m in iste rin g it and l egi s l at i ve ac qui es cenc e i n t hati nt erpr et at i on “gi ves r i s e t o t he pr es um pt i on t hatt he i n terpr et at i on i s cor r ect

. ” Mor r is v. P r i nce G e o rg e ’s C o u n ty , 319 M d. 597, 613, 573 A

. 2d 1346 ( 1990) ( quot i ng Si nai H os pi t alv. D epar tm ent

of E m pl oym ent , 309 M d. 28, 46, 522 A

. 2d 382, 391 ( 1987) )

. I n t hi s i ns t ance , t he l egi s lat ive pol i cy under l y i ng N R §10- 404( c) i s bes t di s cerned by exami nat i on of pr i or l aw , t he l egi s l at i ve hi s t or yof t he r el evantam endment – i ncl udi ng, i n par t i cul ar , t he bi l l t i t l e – and the cons i s t entad m inist r at i ve c o n s tr u c tio n g iv e n to N R § 1 0 -4 0 4 (c ).270 [7 8 O p
. A tt ’y

After the 1975 amendme nt fo rm er NR §10-404(c ) provided a s 5 fo llo ws : (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2 ) or

unless a per son holds a game bree der’ s license, he may not sell, offer

for sa le, purc hase, ba

rter, or e xch ang e , at any

tim e wi thin th e Stateany g ame bird o r m amma l e xcept t

heme at, p e lt, or

c arc a ss of any muskrat, ra ccoon, mink, otter, nutria , or op os sum, whe the r c a

ught i n th is St ateor

in another state, territory , or country

. Howeve r, a p er s on may

purcha se and ke ep live g ame birds and mammals in ca

ptivity for propag ation if he f i r s to b t a i n s a p e r

m i t f r o mth e S e c r e t ar

y an d p ays a $2 fe e. This per

mit shall ex pire De cembe r 31 of the issuing year
. (2 ) Ape rs on

may purc ha se and se ll p he a sa

nt, qu a il, and ma lla

rd du c ks raise d in or out of State by a g amebr e e de r. Th e se lle r a nd purc ha se r s ha ll maintain rec ords indicatingthe orig in of every bird purcha sed or sold inc luding the name and addre ss of the g ame br eede r. The records are s u b je c t t o in s p e c ti o nb y

th e D ep artm e nt at any rea sonable time. III
E vol ut i on of

N R §10- 404( c)
A. 19 43 Enact

m e nt
Sect i on 10- 404( c) w as or i gi nal l yenac t ed byC ha pt er708 of t he L aw s o f M ary land 1 9 4 3 , co d ifi ed in fo rm er A rt icl e 66 C , § 1 3 2 (j ). T hi s s ect i on pr ovi ded t hata per s on w as pr ohi bi t ed fr om s el l i ng or p u rc h a sin g a n yg a m e b ird o r a n im a l u n les s th e p e rso n h e ld a v a lid game br eede r ’ s l i cens e. T hi s s ect i on w as r ecodi fi ed i n t he N atur al R es our c e s Ar t i c l e a s § 1 0

- 4 0 4 i n 1 9 7 3

. Cha p t e r 4 o f t h e La ws of M ar y l and 1973. U nt i l 1986, t he onl yame n d m en t w as a pr ovi s i on ad d ed in 19 7 5 to perm it a pe rson to sel l p h ea san t, q u ail , an d m all ard d u ck s raised b ya g am e b ree d er. 5

U nder the 1943 l aw , al l veni s on ordeerm eat , ei t herw i l d or f a rm -r a is e d , w a s p ro h ib ite d f ro m b e in g s o ld in M a ryla n d

. SeeG en. 266] 271
M emora ndum of A dvi ce f r om A s s i s t antA t t or neyG ener al B en B ia le k to C o lo n e l J a c k T a y lo r ( J u ly 6 , 1 9 7 9 ).

B. 19 86 Am e ndm e nt
T he cru ci al l anguage w as added byC hapt er805, L aw s of M ar y l and 1986, as par tof a c om pr ehens i ve bi l l t he s hor tt i t l e of
w hi ch w as “R abi es C ont r ol and C apt i ve W i l dl i fe. ” C hapt er 805 i ns er t ed t he phr as e “t aken fr om t he w i l d” fol l ow i ng “game bi r ds and
m amm al s , ” i ns er t ed “ga m e” i n fr ontof “mam m al s , ” r emo v ed t he lice n sin g p ro v isio n a n d th e p ro v isio n th a t a llo w e d a g a m e b re e d e r to s el l game mam m al s , and r epea l ed t he 1975 amendm entregar di ng c e rta in w a ter f

o w l.
C hapt er805 or i gi nat ed as H ous e B il l 1 601, w hi ch w as s p o n so red b ythe C h airm an o f th e E n v ir o n m ent al M att er s C om m i tt ee on behal f of the D epar t m entof N at u ral R es our ces
. T he i nt entof H ou s e Bi l l 1 6 0 1 was t o r e g u l a t e t h e s a l e , d i s t r i b u t i o n , and p o ss e ss io n in c a p tiv ityo f w ild a n im a ls in th e sta te. S e n a te B ill A naly sis o f H ous e B i l l 1601. H ous e B i l l 1601 w as t he r es ul tof a t w o- y ears t udybya j oi ntfede r al

- s t at e comm i t t ee thatexami ned t he p r o b l e m s a t t e n d a n tw i t h t h e p o s s e s s i o n o f l i v e w i l d l i f e i n c a p t i v i t y. M emora ndum fr om D onal d M acLauchl an, D i r ect orof For es t , Par ks and W i l dl i fe t o D el egat e L ar r yY oung, C hai r m an, and M ember s of th e E n v iro n m e n tal M a tters C o m m itt e e (M a rc h 1 2 , 1 9 8 6 ). T h e b ill
r e p e a l e d a l l e x i s t i n g s t a t u t e s c o n c e r n i n g c a p t i v e wi l d l i f e i n NR Subt i t l e 9 and r e- enac t ed t hes e provi s i ons w i t h addi t i onal r egul at i on o f c a p tiv e w ild lif

e
. T he D epar t m entof N atur al R es our ces has s ugges t ed t hatt he i nt ent behi nd t he “t aken fr om t he w i l d” l anguage w as t o cl ar i fyt hat t he s al e of c apt i ve game ani m al s rai s ed and br ed byl i cens ed br eede r s w as t o be governed byt he new Sub ti t l e 9 dea l i ng sp e c if ica lly w ith c a p tiv e w ild life , ra th e r th a n N R § 1 0 -4 0 4 (c ). T h is i nt erpr etat i on i s cons i s t entw i t h N R §10- 905( d) , al s o added by C h a p ter 8 0 5 , au th o riz in g th e S e c re tar yo f N a tu ra l R e so u rc e s to “pr es cr i be, byr ul e orr egul at i on, t he condi t i ons underw hi ch a per s on m aypos s es s and s el l game bi r ds and mam m al s i nt ended f or hum an cons um pt i on w h i ch have been pur chas ed fr om a l i cens ed game br eede r
. ” The sa l e of a l l ot her“game m amm al s , ” i ncl udi ng272 [7 8 O p
. A tt ’y

Intere stingly , the Department of Natural Resource s never adopted 6 regulations that would have pe rmitted and desc ribed the c onditions under wh i c ha p e r s o nc o u l d

s e l l c a p t i v e g am e m amm a l s f

o r f o o d

. C o n s e qu e nt l y, captive g ame mammals c annot be sold for human consumption. far m - r ai s ed veni s on nots ol d bya l i cens ed br eede r, w o u l d s t i l l be p roh ibit ed u n d er N R § 1 0 -40 4 (c). 6

T he bi l l ’ s t i t l e does notdes cr i be t he amendm entt o N R §10- 4 0 4 (c ). O rd in a rily , a s ig n if ica n t ch a n g e in th e law , allo w in g th e sa le of a pr oduct t hat had pr evi ous l ybeen pr ohi bi t ed, w oul d be r efl ect ed i n t he t i t l e. I ndeed, had t he G ener al A s s embl yi nt ended t o eff ect s uch a c hange i n t he l aw , t he omi s s i on of anyr efe ren ce to i ti n t he t i t l e w oul d atl eas thave r ai s ed a que s t i on underA r t icl e III , §29 of th e C o n stitu tio n . B u t th e A tto rn e yG e n e ra l’s b ill re v iew lette r d id notdi s cus s t he i s s ue atal l , l endi ng gr eat er w ei ghtt o ouras s es s m ent t hatt he G eneral A s s embl ydi d noti nt end t o change t he l aw p ro h ib itin g th e s a le o f

a ll v e n is o n
. S ee B il l R evi ew L et t erfr om A tto rn e yG e n e ra l S a c h s to G o v e rn o r H u g h e s (M a y1 6 , 1 9 8 6 ).

M o re o v e r, th e M a rc h 1 9 8 6 m e m o ra n d u m f ro m D o n a ld M a c L auch l an d escr i bed t he am end m ent t o N R §1 0-404 (c) as “to fur t hercl ar i fyt hati t i s t he pol i cy of t he St at e t o pr eventpeopl e fr om k ill in g w ild g a m e b ird s o r ga m e m a m m a ls f o r sa le o f th e m e a t w ith t he s peci fi c exc ept i ons
. ” M emora ndum at2. T hi s des cr i pt i on in d ica tes th a t th e D e p a rtm e n t o f N a tu ra l R e so u rc e s s o u g h t o n lyto cl ar i fyt he s ect i on r at hert han t o change t he pol i cyof pr ohi bi t i ng t he
sa le o f f a rm -ra ise d v e n iso n . F u rth e rm o re , n e ith e r th e B ill A n a ly sis of t he S enat e E conomi c and E nvi r onm ent al A ffa i r s C om m i t t ee nor th e R ese arc h A n aly sis of the H o u se E n v ir o n m en tal M att ers C om m i t t ee, bot h of w hi ch cont ai n a l engt hy d esc ri pt i on of t he leg isla tio n , m e n tio n th e a m e n d m e n t to N R § 1 0 -4 0 4 (c ). R a th e r, b o th analy ses st res s that t he l egis l at i on w ou l d creat e m ore r at her t han l ess r egul at i on overt he s al e of “ game m amm al s
. ”
Fi nal l y , i f t he “t aken f

r om t he w i l d” l anguage w er e cons t r ued t o excl ude far m - r ai s ed veni s on, no m echa ni s m i n t he s t atut e r equi r es a per s on t o do c umen t t ha t t he ve ni s on w a s fa r m- r a i s e d. T hu s, i nves t i gat or s w oul d have no w ayt o di s t i ngui s h bet w een f ar m - r ai s ed veni s on, w hi ch w oul d be l egal , an d w il d veni s on, w hi ch w oul d be pr ohi bi t ed, s i nce i ti s i m pos s i bl e t o t el l t he di ffe r en ce be t w een the t w o t ypes of m eat

. Sel l er s of “w i l d” veni s on coul d s i m pl y cl ai m t hatG en. 266] 273

Ho us e B ill13 79 in 1 99 2 w ou ld hav e autho ri zed de e r f arm ingin 7 Maryland as we ll as ex empted dee r fa rmingfrom the provision of NR §10-404(c ). SenateBill 833 of 1993 would have authorized the imp or tatio n o f f arm -ra ise d a

nd of fi c ia lly ins pe c te d d e e r me at. S e nateB ill 146 of 1993 would haveauthorized fallow de er f armingin Maryland. th e m e a t w a s f

a rm -ra is e d

. H a d th e G e n e ra l A ss e m b lyin ten d e d to aut hor i ze tr aff

i cki ng i n far m - r ai s ed veni s on as par to f a compre hens i ve b il l thatr egul at ed “ga m e mam m al s , ” t he G ener al A s s embl y w oul d l i kel y have pr ovi ded for s om e t ype of regul at i on o v e r th e v e n d o rs o f

th e v e n iso n , so th a t th e p ro h ib iti o n o n th e sa le of “w i l d” veni s on coul d s t i l l be enf or ced.
C
. A dm inis tr ati ve Con s tr ucti on
T h e D e p a rtm e n t o f N atural R esources, the a g e n c yc h a rg e d w ith
e n f o rc in g th e sta tu te, h a s c o n sis ten tlyin ter p re ted N R § 1 0 -4 0 4 (c ) to pr ohi bi tt he s al e of f

ar m - r ai s ed dee r
. Si nce the D epar t m entbel i eves th a t th e in ten t o f

th e “ tak e n f

r o m th e w ild ” lan g u a g e w a s o n lyto cl ar i fy t hat t he sal e of gam e mam m al s s ol d byl i cens ed br eede r s w as t o b e g o v e r n e d b y NR § 1 0

- 9 0 5 , t h e Dep a r t me n t ’ s i n t e rp r e t a t i on of N R § 1 0 -4 0 4 (c ) d id n o t ch a n g e a f ter C h a p ter 8 0 5 w e n t in to e f f e c t.
I n fac t , t he D epar t m enti nt r oduced l egi s l at i on i n 1991 t o al l ow th e sa le o f

“ g a m e b ird s a n d g a m e m a m m a ls” th a t h a v e b e e n leg a lly
m anufa ctur ed i nt o an ar t i cl e of comm er ce i n t hi s s t at e or an o t her count r y
. H ous e B i l l 256. T he bi l l w oul d have r equi r ed t he D epar t m entof N atur al R es our ces t o adoptr egul at i ons t hat
es t abl i s hed a r ecor d- keepi ng pr ocedur e fort he document at i on of t he
ven i son. T he b i l l , ho w ever, w as r epo rt ed unfa vo rabl y byt he H ou se E nvi r onm ent al M at t er s C om m i t t ee.
O t herbi l l s i nt r oduced i n t he 1992 and 1993 l egi s l at i ve s es s i ons w oul d have pe r m i t t ed t he s al e of domest i cal l yr ai s ed veni s on. 7 N ever t hel es s , none of thes e bi l l s w as pas s ed byt he G ener al A s s embl y
. T he bi l l anal y s es foreac h of t hes e bi l l s , as w ell as s t at ement s fro m the D epar t m ent s of N atur al R es our ces and A g ric u ltu re , af

f irm th a t cu rre n t law p ro h ib its the sal e o f d o m e stic a lly
ra is e d v e n is o n
. See B i l l A nal y s i s for H ous e B i l l 1379 ( 1992) ( under
cur r entl aw , deerfar m i ng i s pr ohi bi t ed i n M ar y l and) ; D epar t m entof N atur al R es our ces B i l l R epor ton H B 1379 ( M ar ch 23, 1992) (p re se n t la w p ro h ib its d e e r f a rm in g ); D e p a rtm e n t o f A g ric u ltu re B ill274 [7 8 O p
. A tt ’y
R ep o rto n H B 1 3 7 9 (M arc h 2 7 , 1 9 9 2 ) (M a ry land fa rm ers a re pr ohi bi t ed fr om r ai s i ng game ani m al s , and M ar y l and r es t aur ant s and
r et ai l er s ar e pr ohi bi t ed fr om s el l i ng veni s on) ; B i l l A nal y s i s for Senat e B i l l 833 ( 1993) ( Senat e B il l 833 w oul d aut hor i ze the
c o m m e rc ial sa le o f v e n iso n ); D e p a rtm e n t o f N a tu ra l R e so u rc e s B ill R e p o rt o n S B 8 3 3 (F e b ru a ry1 9 , 1 9 9 3 ) (c u rre n t law is in ter p re ted to p ro h ib it th e sa le o f

p ro c e ss e d , p a c k a g e d v e n iso n im p o rte d to M ary land ).

T hus , bot h t he cont extof the 1986 l egi s l at i on as w el l as t he
cur r enti nt erpr et at i on of t he s t atute in di cat e t hatt he G ener al A ss e m b lyd id n o t in ten d to a llo w th e sa le o f f a rm -ra ise d v e n iso n in M a ryla n d

.

IV
C oncl usi on
A hal f ce nt ur yago, t he G ener al A s s embl y d ec ided t o bart he
s al e of ve ni s on, w hat everi t s s our ce. In ouropi ni on, t he G ener al A s s embl yhas notchange d t hi s pol i cydeci s i on, al t hough l anguage added t o t he st atut e i n 1986 confus es t he i s s ue. H ence , w e conc l ude th a t th e sa le o f

im p o rte d f

a rm -ra ise d v e n iso n is p ro h ib ited in M ar y l and. W e do r ecomm end t hat t he G ener al A s s embl ycor r ectt he
s t atut or yl anguage s o t hati taccu rat el yr efl ect s t he l egi s l at i ve o b je c tiv e
.

J. Jo sep h C u rran , Jr. A tto rn e y G e n e ra l
Ja c k S c h w a rtz C hi ef C ouns el O pi ni ons & Advi ce*
*A m anda St akem C onn, a vol unt eeri nt er n w ith t he O pi ni ons and A d v ice D iv isio n , c o n trib u ted su b sta n tially to th e p re p a ra tio n o f th is opi ni on.