reglab/housing_qa huggingface dataset:
MA Gen L ch 131 § 36 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 36 - Fishing, Hunting, or Trapping on Private, Posted Land

Section 36. A person shall not fish, hunt or trap on private land without permission of the owner or tenant thereof, after such owner or tenant has conspicuously posted thereon notices which bear the name of such owner or tenant and which state that fishing, hunting or trapping on such land, as the case may be, is prohibited.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 37 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 37 - Killing of Game by Owner or Tenant of Land; Reports

Section 37. An owner or tenant of land or, if authorized by such owner or tenant, any member of his immediate family or his employee, as defined pursuant to section one of chapter sixty-two B, may, upon such land:—  (1) kill or attempt to kill, by means other than poisoning or trapping, any wild bird damaging his property, including domesticated animals, poultry and game on game-rearing farms or preserves, provided that such killing is not contrary to any federal law, rule or regulation.  (2) hunt or take by other means, except by poison or snare, any mammal which he finds damaging his property except grass growing on uncultivated land. No such owner or tenant shall authorize any person, other than a member of his immediate family or a person permanently employed by him, to place traps for the protection of said property other than during the open season, unless such owner or tenant has first obtained from the director a permit authorizing him so to do, which permit the director is hereby authorized to issue in his discretion, unless such authorized person holds a trapping license. All deer so killed shall be turned over to any environmental police officer and shall be disposed of by the director of law enforcement.  The following written reports shall be sent to the director by such owner or tenant acting under authority of this section:—(a) upon the taking of pheasant, ruffed grouse, hares or rabbits, or the wounding or killing of a deer, a report stating the time and place, kind and number of birds or mammals so taken, wounded or killed, within twenty-four hours of such taking, wounding or killing; (b) upon the taking of any other birds or mammals, a report on or before January thirty-first of each year, stating the number and kinds of birds or mammals taken under authority of this section during the previous year. This section shall not be construed to limit any other provisions of this chapter.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 38 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 38 - Farmers; Permit to Trap and Kill Birds

Section 38. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the director may, upon application of a farmer, as defined in section one A of chapter one hundred and twenty-eight, grant a permit to trap live, and thereafter destroy, birds that are destroying agricultural crops or endangering the health of livestock, poultry or fur bearing animals. Each applicant shall state the type of trap to be used, the location of each such trap and the period within which he intends to use such trap, and such other information as the director may deem necessary. Each application shall be accompanied by a fee, the amount of which shall be determined annually by the commissioner of administration under the provision of section three B of chapter seven for the filing thereof. The farmer shall mark each trap with his name and address and the number of the permit issued to him by the director, and the farmer or his agent shall check each such trap twice daily. The director shall issue rules and regulations relative to the type of traps and kinds of birds which may be trapped, and such other rules and regulations as he may deem necessary for the protection of song and game birds. The director and his agents may, for the purpose of inspecting such traps, enter upon or pass through or over private lands and property whether or not covered by water.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 40b (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 40b - Farmland Advisory Board; Meetings; Advisory Duties

Section 40B. The farmland advisory board established in section forty shall meet quarterly and at the call of the commissioner or upon written request of any two members. The board is charged with advising the commissioner relative to the definitions of ''normal maintenance or improvement of land in agricultural or aquacultural use'' and other issues relating to agriculture including but not limited to, consistency in federal and state statutes, rules and regulations pursuant to agricultural activities governed by section forty, and issues affecting agriculture pursuant to chapter twenty-one G. The farmland advisory board, in conjunction with the department, shall make an annual report to the committee on natural resources and agriculture as to their activities under this section.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 41 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 41 - Protection of Fisheries From Discharge of Waste Materials Into Inland Waters

Section 41. If the director determines that any fisheries in the inland waters of the commonwealth are of sufficient value to warrant the prohibition or regulation of the discharge of any waste or other material from any source, which may, directly or indirectly, injure such fisheries, he may thereupon give written notice of such determination to the director of the division of water pollution control, who shall take appropriate action under the provisions of sections twenty-six to fifty-three, inclusive, of chapter twenty-one.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 42 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 42 - Protection of Fish in Inland Waters; Pollution; Alteration of Flows or Water Levels; Application of Section; Damages

Section 42. A person shall not put, throw, discharge or permit to be discharged or to escape into any inland waters of the commonwealth any waste or other material, in violation of section forty or of any provisions of the Massachusetts Clean Water Act, which may directly or indirectly injure or kill the fish or fish spawn therein, nor shall a person alter or manipulate or permit to be altered or manipulated the flows or water levels in any inland waters of the commonwealth to the extent that directly or indirectly injures or kills the fish or fish spawn therein, except as provided in section forty-eight.  This section shall not apply to agents or persons authorized by the director to use any method or means for the sampling, eradication or management of fish and fish habitat in the waters of the commonwealth. This section shall not prohibit the use of explosives for engineering, construction, fish sampling and public welfare purposes providing the appropriate permit therefor has been given by United States, state or municipal government authorities. This section shall not apply to the providing of water for public water supply purposes.  Whoever, contrary to any provision of this section, except as otherwise provided in this chapter by himself or by his agent does or allows to be done any act that directly or indirectly injures or kills or causes damage to the fish or fish spawn in the inland waters of the commonwealth shall be liable in tort, in twice the amount of the damage thereby done, to the commonwealth through its division of fisheries and wildlife. The director shall establish the value of injured, killed or damaged fish or fish spawn employing current commercial values of fish. In determining the remuneration to the commonwealth for injured, killed or damaged fish or fish spawn the director may negotiate for the commonwealth a settlement of the amount of such remuneration direct with the offender. If such settlement cannot be negotiated to the satisfaction of the director, the superior court shall upon petition of the director establish the value of injured, killed or damaged fish or fish spawn, and shall require the offender to make remuneration to the commonwealth through its division of fisheries and wildlife, as required herein.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 43 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 43 - Poisons

Section 43. A person shall not place poison in any form whatsoever for the purpose of killing any mammal or bird except pursuant to a permit issued under the provisions of this section; provided, that this section shall not prohibit any person from placing in his orchard or in or near his dwelling house, barn or other buildings poison for the purpose of destroying rats, woodchucks or other pests of like nature, or from placing with like intent under the surface of his lands carbon disulphide in any of its forms or any other poison applied in a manner similar to that in which carbon disulphide is applied. The director is hereby authorized to make rules and regulations and, pursuant to the terms thereof, to issue permits to the owners or agents of forest plantations or orchards to place poison for the extermination of rats, mice and other pests of like nature therein and to employees of municipal, state and federal governments and to others found by the director to be qualified persons to place poison elsewhere, for the control of animals and birds, in connection with public health, wood tick suppression and control, propagation and protection of wild birds and mammals, and purposes of a similar nature, or to place poison within an area specified in such permit for the purpose of killing birds which may lawfully be killed under federal and state law and which are present in such area in such numbers as in the opinion of the director to constitute a public nuisance or endanger health or safety. Possession of the raw fur of any mammal or the dead body of any bird killed by poison, except rats, mice, woodchucks or other pests of like nature, shall be prima facie evidence that the person having such possession has violated this section unless he is an employee of the federal government or an employee of the commonwealth or a political subdivision thereof to whom a permit has been issued under the provisions of this section.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 44 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 44 - Deposit of Garbage or Trash on Property While Hunting, Fishing or Trapping

Section 44. A person while engaged in hunting, fishing or trapping shall not deposit or cause to be deposited garbage, paper, refuse, bottles, cans, rubbish or trash of any kind or nature on any public or private property without permission of the owner, tenant or lessee of such property.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 45 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 45 - Great Ponds; Public Use; Rules and Regulations

Section 45. Except as otherwise provided in this section and elsewhere in this chapter, every great pond not actively being used as a source of water supply of any town, water supply or fire district or public institution, and not subject to the provisions of section one hundred and sixty of chapter one hundred and eleven, shall be public for the purpose of hunting or boating thereon and shall, notwithstanding the provisions of any special law relating to fisheries in any particular place, be open to all inhabitants of the commonwealth for fishing purposes; provided that any city or town in which the whole or any portion of any great pond not exceeding five hundred acres in extent is situated may, as to so much thereof, as is located within its boundaries, make and enforce rules and regulations relative to hunting, fishing and boating thereon. Any such rule and regulation relative to boating may include, on all or any portion of said pond, for all or any portion of the year, any of the following: a speed limit, a limit on engine horsepower, a prohibition of the use of internal combustion engines, a ban on water skiing and other high speed uses and a limitation of such uses to certain areas and certain times. Any such rules or regulations shall, to the extent that they authorize hunting or fishing or, both, be subject to the approval of the director, and to the extent that they authorize any other use thereof, be subject to the approval of the commissioner of environmental protection or to the extent that they impose restrictions upon the speed limit, a limitation on engine horsepower, a prohibition of the use of internal combustion engines, a ban on water skiing and other high speed uses, and a limitation of such uses to certain areas and certain times, be subject to the approval of the director of law enforcement. All persons shall be allowed reasonable means of access to such ponds for the purposes aforesaid.  Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section and section thirty-nine B of chapter ninety, any city or town in which is situated the whole or any portion of any great pond, as defined by section one, may, as to so much thereof which is located within its boundaries, make and enforce rules and regulations relative to the use and operation of aircraft equipped with floats or other means of transportation on water; provided, however, that such regulations, ordinances, or by-laws providing for such use and operation shall first be approved by the Massachusetts aeronautics division.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 46 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 46 - Measurement of Ponds

Section 46. The department of environmental protection shall, upon the request and at the expense of any person claiming to be interested in a pond, cause a measurement thereof to be made which shall be recorded in the office of the clerk of each city and town within the limits of which any part of such pond is situated; and no arm or branch shall be included as a part of such pond unless such arm or branch is at least fifty feet in width and normally one foot in depth.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 47 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 47 - Riparian Proprietors; Enclosure of Waters

Section 47. No riparian proprietor of a natural pond other than a great pond, or of an artificial pond of any size, or of a nonnavigable stream, shall enclose the waters thereof within the limits of his own premises unless he furnishes a suitable passage for all anadromous fish naturally frequenting such waters to spawn; nor shall any riparian proprietor enclose the waters of any such pond or stream for the purpose of artificial propagation, cultivation and maintenance of fish, except shiners as authorized in section fifty-two, unless he first procures a propagator's license under section twenty-three authorizing him so to do.  A person, without the written consent of the proprietor or lessee of a natural pond which is not a great pond, or of an artificial pond of any size, or of a nonnavigable stream, where fish are lawfully propagated or maintained under authority of a license under this chapter, shall not take, or attempt to take, fish therefrom.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 48 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 48 - Draining of Pond, Reservoir or Other Body of Water

Section 48. A person shall not, except in case of emergency, drain any pond, reservoir or other body of water, except a body of water used for irrigation or insect control purposes, or for flooding cranberry bogs, or for public water supply, to an extent dangerous to fish life therein, unless such person, at least ten days prior to such draining, shall have notified in writing the director of his intention so to do and thereby enable the director to salvage the fish in such body of water prior to the draining thereof.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 49 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 49 - Ponds on State Boundary; Fishing

Section 49. If, in the case of a pond situated partly in the commonwealth and partly in another state, the laws of such other state permit fishing in that part thereof lying within such other state by persons licensed or otherwise entitled under the laws of the commonwealth to fish in that part of such pond lying within the commonwealth, persons licensed or otherwise entitled under the laws of such other state to fish in the part of such pond lying within such other state shall be permitted to fish in that part thereof lying within the commonwealth, and, as to such pond, the operation of the laws of the commonwealth relative to open and closed seasons, limits of catch, minimum sizes of fish caught and methods of fishing shall be suspended upon the adoption and during the continuance in force of rules and regulations relative to those subjects and affecting that part of such pond lying within the commonwealth, which rules and regulations the director is hereby authorized to make, and from time to time add to, alter and repeal. Before making, adding to, altering or repealing such rules and regulations, said director shall confer with the officer or board having like duties in such other state, in order to secure uniformity of laws, rules and regulations as to the whole of such pond, if practicable. Such rules and regulations shall be printed and available for distribution at the office of the director and of the clerk of each city and town in the commonwealth in which any part of such pond is situated or to which it lies adjacent.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 50 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 50 - Methods of Taking Fish; Angling, Nets and Seines, Pots, Spearing, Bow and Arrow

Section 50. A person shall not, except as otherwise permitted by law, take or attempt to take any fish in inland waters, in any other manner than by angling; but cities and towns may permit the use of nets and seines for taking herring and alewives, and may permit the use of pots for the taking of eels only in ponds having direct openings to the sea. This section shall not prohibit spearing or taking by use of bow and arrow eels, carp or the species of fish commonly known as suckers; provided, that no arrows shall be released within one hundred and fifty feet of any state or hard surfaced highway for the purpose of taking such fish. This section shall not apply to ponds or waters held under lease from the department.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 51 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 51 - Taking of Trout in Coastal Waters

Section 51. Brook, brown and rainbow trout may be taken in coastal waters of the commonwealth by angling only, subject to the rules and regulations promulgated under section five for taking such trout in rivers and streams.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 52 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 52 - Taking of Certain Fish for Bait

Section 52. Shiners, minnows, killifish, sculpin, sticklebacks, and suckers may be taken for bait, but not for the purpose of sale, in any of the inland waters of the commonwealth by means of a single fish trap with openings not over one inch or by a single circular or hoop net not exceeding six feet in diameter to each licensed fisherman or by means of a rectangular net, containing not more than thirty-six square feet of net surface; and shiners and suckers may be taken by resident licensed fishermen, for the purpose of sale as bait, in any of said waters, except great ponds and waters which in whole or in part are held under lease or license as public fishing grounds, by means of not more than ten fish traps with openings not over one inch or by means of a single circular or hoop net not exceeding six feet in diameter, or by means of a net containing not more than two hundred square feet of net surface if such person engaged in operating such fish trap or net is thereto authorized by a license issued by the director, which license the director is hereby authorized to issue upon receipt of a fee, the amount of which shall be determined annually by the commissioner of administration under the provision of section three B of chapter seven for the filing thereof; provided, that any fish taken by any such net or trap, other than those permitted by this section to be taken thereby, are immediately returned, if alive, to the waters whence they were taken.
MA Gen L ch 131 § 52a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XIX - Agriculture and Conservation|Chapter 131 - Inland Fisheries and Game and Other Natural Resources|Section 52a - Commercial Taking of Eels in Inland Waters; Penalties

Section 52A. Eels may be taken commercially in inland waters except ponds having a diked opening to the sea by a licensed fisherman possessing a license to do so for the purpose of sale. The director of fisheries and wildlife is hereby authorized to establish rules and regulations relative to harvest, limit, method of taking, waters where eels may be taken, seasons, time and method of reporting harvest and all other matters pertaining thereto deemed necessary and expedient. The director may issue an annual license upon receipt of a fee of twenty-five dollars authorizing a person to take eels commercially in inland waters.  No person shall take for commercial purposes or attempt to take, with or by the use of an artificial lure, any fish of the species Anguilla rostrata, the North American eel. An artificial lure for the purposes of commercial harvesting of eels shall include but not be limited to, magnetic lures or devices, chemical attractants and tranquillizers, thermal lures, explosives and any other means not authorized under rules and regulations promulgated under the provisions of this section. The permitted commercial taking of eels in inland waters shall be allowed by a pot fishery as specified in rules and regulations promulgated under the provisions of this section.  The commercial taking of elvers, or eels less than 9 inches in length, shall not be permitted in inland waters of the commonwealth.  A violation of the first or second paragraph shall be punished by a fine of not less than $100 or by imprisonment for not more than 30 days, or both. A violation of the third paragraph shall be punished by a fine of not less than $10,000 or by imprisonment for not more than 30 days, or both.