An Act To Allow the Commissioner of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife To Authorize the Hunting of Antlerless Deer without a Permit in Certain Areas
Maine Legislature, Session 130, LD 0116
Committee: Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Sponsors: LANDRY
Amends: 12 MRSA §10902, 12 MRSA §11152

Legislative Document
No. 116
H.P. 82
House of Representatives, January 13, 2021
An Act To Allow the Commissioner of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife 
To Authorize the Hunting of Antlerless Deer without a Permit in 
Certain Areas
Submitted by the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife pursuant to Joint Rule 204.
Received by the Clerk of the House on January 11, 2021.  Referred to the Committee on 
Inland Fisheries and Wildlife pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to Joint 
Rule 401.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative LANDRY of Farmington.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  12 MRSA §10902, sub-§6, ¶F, as amended by PL 2013, c. 538, §5, is 
further amended to read:
F.  Buying or selling deer, exceeding the bag limit on deer or hunting deer after having 
killed one, in violation of section 11217 or 11501 or unlawfully hunting or possessing 
an antlerless deer in a wildlife management district for which no antlerless deer permits 
have been issued in which the taking of anterless deer is not allowed in violation of 
section 11152, subsection 1‑A;
Sec. 2.  12 MRSA §11152, as amended by PL 2019, c. 324, §2, is further amended 
to read:
§11152.  Antlerless deer; regulation and authority to issue permits
1.  Permit required.  Except as otherwise authorized pursuant to this Part, a person 
may not hunt antlerless deer as authorized in this section unless that person has a valid 
permit issued under this section or is hunting in an area that is designated by rule as open 
to the hunting of antlerless deer or either-sex deer without an antlerless deer permit.
A.  Each day a person violates this subsection that person commits a Class E crime for 
which a minimum fine of $50 and an amount equal to twice the applicable license fee 
must be imposed.
1-A.  Antlerless deer in wildlife management districts with no permits issued.  
Except as otherwise provided in this Part, a person may not hunt or possess an antlerless 
deer in a wildlife management district or a portion of a wildlife management district that 
does not have permits issued in which the taking of antlerless deer is not allowed.  A person 
may possess in one of those districts an antlerless deer that has been lawfully registered in 
another district where permits have been issued antlerless deer may be legally taken.
A person that violates this subsection commits a Class D crime for which a minimum fine 
of $1,000 must be imposed, and the court shall impose a sentencing alternative involving 
a term of imprisonment of at least 3 days, none of which may be suspended.
2.  Authority to regulate taking of antlerless deer.  The commissioner may regulate 
the taking of antlerless deer by rule within an area of the State as necessary to maintain 
deer populations in balance with available habitat if the demarcation of each area follows 
recognizable physical boundaries such as rivers, roads and railroad rights-of-way.  This 
subsection does not apply to a person with a special antlerless deer permit under subsection 
7.
2-A.  Authority to regulate taking of antlerless deer in certain areas within wildlife 
management districts where no permits are issued.  The commissioner may by rule issue 
permits in a designated geographical area within a wildlife management district where no 
antlerless deer permits are issued to maintain balanced deer populations. A designated 
geographical area under this subsection may consist of an entire town or other area but 
must have a demarcation of the area that follows recognizable physical boundaries such as 
rivers, roads and railroad rights-of-way.
3.  Rulemaking.  The commissioner may adopt rules necessary for the administration, 
implementation, enforcement and interpretation of this section, except that the 
commissioner is not authorized to establish an antlerless deer permit system lottery unless 
otherwise specified in this section.  The commissioner may appoint clerks or agents under 
section 10801 to process applications for permits issued under this section. A clerk or agent 
appointed by the commissioner to process applications shall charge a fee of $2 for each 
application processed by that clerk or agent under this section.  Rules adopted by the 
commissioner that provide for permits to be issued to nonresident hunters must provide 
that:
B.  No more than 15% of the antlerless deer permits issued in any one district or in any 
one zone may be issued to nonresident hunters.
Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, 
chapter 375, subchapter 2‑A.
4.  Landowner consideration.  An antlerless deer permit system lottery adopted by 
the commissioner pursuant to this section may include a provision giving special 
consideration to landowners who keep their lands open to hunting by the public.  As part 
of the special consideration to those landowners, the commissioner shall provide at least 
25% of the available antlerless deer permits in a wildlife management district to eligible 
landowners that apply for an antlerless deer permit in that district.  Any 2 or more areas of 
land owned by the same person that are open for hunting and that would be contiguous 
except for being divided by one or more roads are considered contiguous for the purposes 
of determining landowner eligibility for special consideration under this subsection.
5.  Hunter permit transfers.  A resident may take an antlerless deer if another resident 
who holds a valid antlerless deer permit transfers the permit to that resident by identifying 
the name and address of the transferee on the permit as well as any other information 
reasonably requested by the commissioner and then returns the permit to the department 
prior to the start of the firearm season on deer.  A nonresident may take an antlerless deer 
if another nonresident who holds a valid antlerless deer permit transfers the permit to that 
nonresident by identifying the name and address of the transferee on the permit as well as 
any other information reasonably requested by the commissioner and then returns the 
permit to the department prior to the start of the firearm season on deer.  The commissioner 
shall record a transfer under this subsection and return the permit to the transferee.  A valid 
permit must be in the possession of the transferee in order for the transferee to take an 
antlerless deer.
5-A.  Permit transfer to junior hunter.  Notwithstanding subsection 5, a junior hunter 
may take an antlerless deer if another person who holds a valid antlerless deer permit 
transfers that permit to that junior hunter by identifying the name and address of the 
transferee on the permit as well as any other information reasonably requested by the 
commissioner and then returns the permit to the department at least 48 hours prior to the 
junior hunter's hunting antlerless deer.  Upon transfer of the antlerless deer permit to a 
junior hunter, the transferor may not hunt an antlerless deer pursuant to the transferred 
permit but remains eligible, unless otherwise prohibited, to take a deer other than an 
antlerless deer in accordance with this Part.
The commissioner shall record a transfer under this subsection and return the permit to the 
transferee.  A valid permit must be in the possession of the transferee in order for the 
transferee to take an antlerless deer.
7.  Special antlerless deer permit.  The commissioner shall issue a special antlerless 
deer permit to an eligible person who has lost all or part of one or more lower limbs, not 
including a partial foot amputation, or is suffering from the permanent loss of use of both 
lower limbs.  The commissioner shall issue a permit upon application and after the 
applicant verifies that person's ambulatory disability with a letter signed by a physician 
confirming the person's condition.  A person who is issued a special antlerless deer permit 
under this subsection may take an antlerless deer in any part of the State open to the taking 
of antlerless deer pursuant to subsection 3.
8.  Junior hunter consideration.  An antlerless deer permit system lottery adopted by 
the commissioner pursuant to this section may include a provision giving special 
consideration to persons with a valid junior hunting license. As part of the special 
consideration to junior hunters, the commissioner shall provide at least 25% of the available 
antlerless deer permits in a wildlife management district to persons with a valid junior 
hunting license who apply for an antlerless deer permit in that district.
SUMMARY
This bill authorizes the Commissioner of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife to allow hunters 
to take antlerless deer without an antlerless deer permit in certain areas of the State.