In a continued effort to reduce firearm accidents, the State of California requires all first time resident hunters, regardless of age, to complete hunter education training or pass a comprehensive equivalency test before purchasing a hunting license. The California Department of Fish and Game conducts this training throughout the state. Each year approximately 30,000 students complete the state's ten-hour minimum hunter education course.
Statistics show hunter education training is a success.
Hunting accidents of all types have declined substantially since the start of the program. The initial law required all junior hunters to take a Hunter Safety Class prior to obtaining their first hunting license. In most states, hunters can not hunt legally unless they have had some type of formal education in the proper handling of firearms. Today, California requires hunter education training for all persons who have not formerly held a California hunting license, who do not have a hunter education certificate of completion, or who do not have a current, valid, hunting license from another state or province. Click on the link above to find a class or call the class recording at the regional office closest to your residence.