An Act to Reinstate a Minimum Age for Hunting
Maine Legislature, Session 131, LD 0261
Committee: Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Sponsors: STROUT
Amends: 12 MRSA §11102-A, 12 MRSA §11106, 12 MRSA §11108, 12 MRSA §11108-C, 12 MRSA §11109, 12 MRSA §11154

Legislative Document
No. 261
H.P. 166
House of Representatives, January 26, 2023
An Act to Reinstate a Minimum Age for Hunting
Reference to the Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife suggested and ordered 
printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative STROUT of Harrington.  (BY REQUEST)
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  12 MRSA §11102-A is enacted to read:
§11102-A.  Minimum age for obtaining hunting license
A person who has not attained 5 years of age is ineligible to obtain a hunting license.
Sec. 2.  12 MRSA §11106, sub-§1, ¶B, as amended by PL 2015, c. 136, §3 and 
affected by §12, is further amended to read:
B.  A resident or nonresident 5 years of age or older and under 16 years of age may 
hunt with bow and arrow if that person holds a valid junior hunting license.
Sec. 3.  12 MRSA §11108, sub-§1, as repealed and replaced by PL 2015, c. 494, 
Pt. A, §6, is amended to read:
1.  On certain land.  Notwithstanding section 11109, subsection 1 as it applies to this 
subchapter, and subject to all other applicable laws and rules, a resident 5 years of age or 
older and a member of the resident's immediate family 5 years of age or older, as long as 
the hunter's license to hunt is not under suspension or revocation, may hunt without a 
license, including, but not limited to, an archery hunting license, a crossbow permit and a 
muzzle-loading permit, on a single plot of land:
A.  To which they are legally entitled to possession;
B.  On which they are actually domiciled;
C.  That is used exclusively for agricultural purposes; and
D.  That is in excess of 10 acres.
Sec. 4.  12 MRSA §11108-C, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2019, c. 639, §6, is further 
amended to read:
2.  Junior hunter eligibility.  A resident or nonresident who is 5 years of age or older 
and under 16 years of age may obtain a junior hunting license, which allows that person to 
hunt subject to the conditions set out in this section.
Sec. 5.  12 MRSA §11108-C, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2019, c. 639, §6, is further 
amended to read:
3.   Junior hunter supervisor required.  A hunter who is at least 10 years of age or 
older and under 16 years of age may not hunt unless that person holds a junior hunting 
license and is in the presence of and under the effective control of a junior hunter 
supervisor.  A hunter who is 5 years of age or older and under 10 years of age may not hunt 
unless that person holds a junior hunting license and is in the presence of and under the 
effective control of a junior hunter supervisor who remains at all times within 20 feet of 
that hunter.
Sec. 6.  12 MRSA §11109, sub-§3, ¶A, as amended by PL 2017, c. 164, §8, is 
further amended to read:
A.  A resident junior hunting license, for a person 5 years of age or older and under 16 
years of age, is $8 and permits hunting of all legal species, subject to the permit 
requirements in subchapter 3.  Notwithstanding the permit fees established in 
subchapter 3, a resident junior hunting license includes all permits, stamps and other 
permissions needed to hunt at no additional cost.  A license holder under this paragraph 
who qualifies to hunt during the special season on deer under section 11153 and who 
meets the eligibility requirements of section 11106 must have included in that person's 
license one antlerless deer permit and one either-sex permit.  A resident junior hunting 
license does not exempt the holder of the license from lottery-related application 
requirements under this Part.
Sec. 7.  12 MRSA §11109, sub-§3, ¶F, as amended by PL 2019, c. 501, §8, is 
further amended to read:
F.  A nonresident junior hunting license, for a person 5 years of age or older and under 
years of age, is $35 and permits hunting of all legal species, subject to the permit 
requirements in subchapter 3.  Notwithstanding the permit fees established in 
subchapter 3, a nonresident junior hunting license includes all permits, stamps and 
other permissions needed to hunt at no additional cost.  A license holder under this 
paragraph who qualifies to hunt during the special season on deer under section 11153 
and who meets the eligibility requirements of section 11106 must have included in that  
person's license one antlerless deer permit and one either-sex permit.  A nonresident 
junior hunting license does not exempt the holder of the license from lottery-related 
application requirements under this Part.
Sec. 8.  12 MRSA §11154, sub-§13, as amended by PL 2015, c. 136, §11 and 
affected by §12, is further amended to read:
13.  Hunting adventure permits for children.  Notwithstanding subsection 6 and 
section 11102-A, the commissioner may issue 2 moose permits to a nonprofit organization 
dedicated to providing hunting and fishing adventures to children under 21 years of age 
with life-threatening, critical or terminal illnesses.  The commissioner may issue these 
permits upon written request by an eligible nonprofit organization but may not issue more 
than 2 permits in total for a calendar year.  These permits are in addition to the moose 
hunting permits issued under subsection 2 for each wildlife management district and are at 
no cost to the organization.
SUMMARY
This bill sets a minimum age of 5 years of age to hunt most game in Maine with an 
exception for hunting adventure permits for children. This bill does not alter the minimum 
age to hunt moose in Maine.