An Act to Amend Certain Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Laws
Maine Legislature, Session 132, LD 0157
Committee: Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Sponsors: WOODSOME
Amends: 12 MRSA §10206, 12 MRSA §10268, 12 MRSA §10902, 12 MRSA §11154, 12 MRSA §11214, 12 MRSA §12201, 12 MRSA §12664, 12 MRSA §12708, 12 MRSA §12953, 12 MRSA §13068-A

Legislative Document
No. 157
H.P. 90
House of Representatives, January 14, 2025
An Act to Amend Certain Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Laws
Submitted by the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife pursuant to Joint Rule 204.
Reference to the Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife suggested and ordered 
printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative WOODSOME of Waterboro.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  12 MRSA §10206, sub-§11, as amended by PL 2023, c. 228, §2, is repealed.
Sec. 2.  12 MRSA §10268 is enacted to read:
§10268.  Fish and Wildlife Management Education Fund
The department shall deposit $1 of every hunting license and trapping license fee 
collected pursuant to sections 11109, 11109‑A and 12201 in a separate account within the 
department, to be known as the Fish and Wildlife Management Education Fund.  The fund 
is nonlapsing. The department shall use money in the fund on an annual basis to educate 
the public on the management of game species of fish and wildlife and to communicate 
with the public about department programs. The department may contract with a private 
entity to provide this education.  Education provided pursuant to this section may include 
information about how hunting and fishing help to manage specific species.  The 
department may continue its activities pursuant to this section during ballot initiative 
campaigns concerning fish and wildlife issues.
Sec. 3.  12 MRSA §10902, sub-§6, ¶D, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 414, Pt. A, §2 
and affected by c. 614, §9, is amended to read:
D.  Discharging a firearm or archery equipment within 100 yards of a residential 
dwelling without owner permission, in violation of section 11209;
Sec. 4.  12 MRSA §11154, sub-§6, as amended by PL 2011, c. 370, §6, is further 
amended to read:
6.  Application procedure.  An eligible person wishing to apply for a permit must file 
a written an application for a permit on a form furnished by the commissioner.  The 
application fee is nonrefundable.  A person may not file no more than one application. A 
person who submits more than one application is disqualified from the selection of 
permittees.  The application must be accompanied by an application fee of:
A.  For a resident:
(1)  Fifteen dollars for a one-chance application; or
B.  For a nonresident:
(1)  Fifteen dollars for a one-chance application;
(2)  Twenty-five dollars for a 3-chance application;
(3)  Thirty-five dollars for a 6-chance application; and
(4)  Fifty-five dollars for a 10-chance application; multiple 10-chance options may 
be purchased.
A clerk or agent appointed by the commissioner under section 10801 may process an 
application under this subsection.  The clerk or agent shall charge a fee of $2 for each 
application under this subsection processed by that clerk or agent.
The commissioner shall allow an applicant to indicate that that applicant does not want to 
receive a moose permit pursuant to the application but wishes to receive the corresponding 
points under subsection 8 for that application.
Sec. 5.  12 MRSA §11214, sub-§1, ¶G, as amended by PL 2015, c. 301, §15, is 
repealed.
Sec. 6.  12 MRSA §12201, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2023, c. 646, Pt. A, §16, is 
further amended to read:
3.  Successful completion of trapper education program required for license.  
Except as provided in paragraph A, a person who applies for a state license to trap, other 
than a junior trapping license pursuant to subsection 2, paragraph B or an apprentice trapper 
license issued under section 12204, must submit proof of having successfully completed a 
trapper education course of the type described in section 10108, subsection 7 or satisfactory 
evidence of having previously held an adult license to trap in this State or any other state, 
province or country in any year beginning in or after 1978.  If a person submits satisfactory 
evidence of having previously held an adult license to trap in any other state, province or 
country, the person must also submit proof of having successfully completed a trapper 
education course comparable to the type described in section 10108, subsection 7.
When proof or evidence can not cannot otherwise be provided, the person may substitute a 
signed affidavit that that person has previously held the required adult trapping license or 
that that person has successfully completed the required trapper education course.
A.  A person who is an enrolled member of the Passamaquoddy Tribe, the Penobscot 
Nation, the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians or the Mi'kmaq Nation who presents 
certification from the respective reservation chief or governor or the Mi'kmaq Nation 
Tribal Council stating that the person is an enrolled member of a federally recognized 
nation, band or tribe listed in this paragraph is exempt from the requirements of this 
subsection.
Sec. 7.  12 MRSA §12664, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2023, c. 231, §2, is further 
amended to read:
2.  Unlawful use.  This subsection governs the use of lead sinkers, bare lead jigs and 
painted lead jigs within inland waters.
A.  A person may not:
(1)  Use a lead sinker;
(2)  Beginning September 1, 2017, use a bare lead jig; or
(3)  Beginning September 1, 2026, use a painted lead jig.
B.  A person who violates this subsection commits a civil violation for which a fine of 
not less than $100 nor more than $500 may be adjudged.
C.  A person who violates this subsection after having been adjudicated as having 
committed 3 or more civil violations under this Part within the previous 5-year period 
commits a Class E crime.
Sec. 8.  12 MRSA §12708, sub-§1, ¶B, as amended by PL 2021, c. 184, §§10 to 
12, is further amended by enacting a new subparagraph (4-A) to read:
(4-A)  Caribou Stream WMA - Washburn, Woodland - Aroostook County;
Sec. 9.  12 MRSA §12708, sub-§1, ¶B, as amended by PL 2021, c. 184, §§10 to 
12, is further amended by enacting a new subparagraph (18-A) to read:
(18-A)  Lexington WMA - Lexington Township - Somerset County;
Sec. 10.  12 MRSA §12708, sub-§1, ¶B, as amended by PL 2021, c. 184, §§10 to 
12, is further amended by enacting a new subparagraph (19-A) to read:
(19-A)  Macwahoc WMA - Upper Molunkus Township, North Yarmouth 
Academy Grant Township (T1 R4 WELS) - Aroostook County;
Sec. 11.  12 MRSA §12708, sub-§1, ¶B, as amended by PL 2021, c. 184, §§10 to 
12, is further amended by enacting a new subparagraph (35-A) to read:
(35-A)  Rangeley WMA - Rangeley - Franklin County;
Sec. 12.  12 MRSA §12708, sub-§1, ¶B, as amended by PL 2021, c. 184, §§10 to 
12, is further amended by repealing subparagraph (46).
Sec. 13.  12 MRSA §12953, sub-§7, as amended by PL 2017, c. 164, §24, is further 
amended to read:
7.  Renewal Expiration and renewal of license; fees.  Licenses  Prior to January 1, 
2026, licenses issued pursuant to this section expire 3 years from the date of issuance unless 
revoked sooner.  Beginning January 1, 2026, a taxidermist license entitles a person to 
practice the art of taxidermy through the remainder of the calendar year in which the license 
was issued plus 2 calendar years unless revoked sooner.  A taxidermist whose license is 
not suspended or revoked may renew the license every 3 years upon application by the 
licensee accompanied by a $77 license fee.
Sec. 14.  12 MRSA §13068-A, sub-§14, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 655, Pt. B, §380 
and affected by §422, is amended to read:
14.  Operating motorboat in bathing swim areas.  The following provisions apply 
to operating a motorboat in a bathing swim area.
A.  A person may not:
(1)  Operate a motorboat within a bathing swim area marked or buoyed for bathing 
swimming; or
(2)  Operate an airmobile on a beach adjacent to a bathing swim area marked or 
buoyed for bathing swimming.
B.  The following penalties apply to violations of this subsection.
(1)  A person who violates this subsection commits a civil violation for which a 
fine of not less than $100 nor more than $500 may be adjudged.
(2)  A person who violates this subsection after having been adjudicated as having 
committed 3 or more civil violations under this Part within the previous 5-year 
period commits a Class E crime.
SUMMARY
This bill makes the following changes to the laws governing inland fisheries and 
wildlife.  
1.  It moves the laws governing the Fish and Wildlife Management Education Fund 
into a subchapter dealing with specific dedicated funds.
2.  It provides a mandatory hunting license suspension for a person convicted of 
discharging archery equipment within 100 yards of a residential dwelling without owner 
permission.
3.  It removes the word "written" from the laws governing the moose permit lottery 
application.
4.  It repeals the prohibition on the use of a set bow for hunting. 
5.  It provides that if a person submits satisfactory evidence of having previously held 
an adult license to trap in any other state, province or country, the person must also submit 
proof of having successfully completed a trapper education course comparable to the type 
described in law.
6.  It provides that the laws governing the use of lead sinkers, bare lead jigs and painted 
lead jigs apply within inland waters.
7.  It adds 4 new wildlife management areas to the list of wildlife management areas 
and removes one from that list.
8.  It provides that, beginning on January 1, 2026, a taxidermist license entitles a person 
to practice the art of taxidermy through the remainder of the calendar year in which the 
license was issued plus 2 calendar years unless revoked sooner.
9.  It changes the term "bathing area" to "swim area" in the laws governing motorboat 
operation.