24-60-2601. Short title. This part 26 shall be known and may be cited as the "Wildlife Violator Compact".
24-60-2602. Execution of compact. The general assembly hereby approves
and the governor is authorized to enter into a compact on behalf of this state
with any other state or states legally joining therein in the form
substantially as follows:
ARTICLE I
Findings, Declaration of Policy, and Purpose
(a) The participating states find that:
(1) Wildlife resources are managed in trust by the respective states for
the benefit of all residents and visitors.
(2) The protection of the wildlife resources of a state is materially
affected by the degree of compliance with state statutes, laws, regulations,
ordinances, and administrative rules relating to the management of such
resources.
(3) The preservation, protection, management, and restoration of wildlife
contributes immeasurably to the aesthetic, recreational, and economic aspects
of such natural resources.
(4) Wildlife resources are valuable without regard to political
boundaries; therefore, every person should be required to comply with wildlife
preservation, protection, management, and restoration laws, ordinances, and
administrative rules and regulations of the participating states as a condition
precedent to the continuance or issuance of any license to hunt, fish, trap, or
possess wildlife.
(5) Violation of wildlife laws interferes with the management of wildlife
resources and may endanger the safety of persons and property.
(6) The mobility of many wildlife law violators necessitates the
maintenance of channels of communication among the various states.
(7) In most instances, a person who is cited for a wildlife violation in
a state other than his home state:
(i) Is required to post collateral or a bond to secure appearance for a
trial at a later date; or
(ii) Is taken into custody until the collateral or bond is posted; or
(iii) Is taken directly to court for an immediate appearance.
(8) The purpose of the enforcement practices set forth in paragraph (7)
of this article is to ensure compliance with the terms of a wildlife citation
by the cited person who, if permitted to continue on his way after receiving
the citation, could return to his home state and disregard his duty under the
terms of the citation.
(9) In most instances, a person receiving a wildlife citation in his home
state is permitted to accept the citation from the officer at the scene of the
violation and immediately continue on his way after agreeing or being
instructed to comply with the terms of the citation.
(10) The practices described in paragraph (7) of this article cause
unnecessary inconvenience and, at times, a hardship for the person who is
unable at the time to post collateral, furnish a bond, stand trial, or pay a
fine, and thus is compelled to remain in custody until some alternative
arrangement is made.
(11) The enforcement practices described in paragraph (7) of this article
consume an undue amount of law enforcement time.
(b) It is the policy of the participating states to:
(1) Promote compliance with the statutes, laws, ordinances, regulations,
and administrative rules relating to management of wildlife resources in their
respective states.
(2) Recognize the suspension of wildlife license privileges of any person
whose license privileges have been suspended by a participating state and treat
such suspension as if it had occurred in their state.
(3) Allow a violator, except as provided in paragraph (b) of article III,
to accept a wildlife citation and, without delay, proceed on his way, whether
or not a resident of the state in which the citation was issued, provided that
the violator's home state is party to this compact.
(4) Report to the appropriate participating state, as provided in the
compact manual, any conviction recorded against any person whose home state was
not the issuing state.
(5) Allow the home state to recognize and treat convictions recorded
against its residents, which convictions occurred in a participating state, as
though they had occurred in the home state.
(6) Extend cooperation to its fullest extent among the participating
states for enforcing compliance with the terms of a wildlife citation issued in
one participating state to a resident of another participating state.
(7) Maximize effective use of law enforcement personnel and information.
(8) Assist court systems in the efficient disposition of wildlife
violations.
(c) The purpose of this compact is to:
(1) Provide a means through which participating states may join in a
reciprocal program to effectuate the policies enumerated in paragraph (b) of
this article in a uniform and orderly manner.
(2) Provide for the fair and impartial treatment of wildlife violators
operating within participating states in recognition of the violator's right to
due process and the sovereign status of a participating state.
ARTICLE II
Definitions
As used in this compact, unless the context requires otherwise:
(a) "Citation" means any summons, complaint, summons and complaint,
ticket, penalty assessment, or other official document issued to a person by a
wildlife officer or other peace officer for a wildlife violation which contains
an order requiring the person to respond.
(b) "Collateral" means any cash or other security deposited to secure an
appearance for trial in connection with the issuance by a wildlife officer or
other peace officer of a citation for a wildlife violation.
(c) "Compliance" with respect to a citation means the act of answering a
citation through an appearance in a court or tribunal, or through the payment
of fines, costs, and surcharges, if any.
(d) "Conviction" means a conviction, including any court conviction, for
any offense related to the preservation, protection, management, or restoration
of wildlife which is prohibited by state statute, law, regulation, ordinance,
or administrative rule, and such conviction shall also include the forfeiture
of any bail, bond, or other security deposited to secure appearance by a person
charged with having committed any such offense, the payment of a penalty
assessment, a plea of nolo contendere and the imposition of a deferred or
suspended sentence by the court.
(e) "Court" means a court of law, including magistrate's court and the
justice of the peace court.
(f) "Home state" means the state of primary residence of a person.
(g) "Issuing state" means the participating state which issues a wildlife
citation to the violator.
(h) "License" means any license, permit, or other public document which
conveys to the person to whom it was issued the privilege of pursuing,
possessing, or taking any wildlife regulated by statute, law, regulation,
ordinance, or administrative rule of a participating state.
(i) "Licensing authority" means the department or division within each
participating state which is authorized by law to issue or approve licenses or
permits to hunt, fish, trap, or possess wildlife.
(j) "Participating state" means any state which enacts legislation to
become a member of this wildlife compact.
(k) "Personal recognizance" means an agreement by a person made at the
time of issuance of the wildlife citation that such person will comply with the
terms of the citation.
(l) "State" means any state, territory, or possession of the United
States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the
Provinces of Canada, and other countries.
(m) "Suspension" means any revocation, denial, or withdrawal of any or
all license privileges, including the privilege to apply for, purchase, or
exercise the benefits conferred by any license.
(n) "Terms of the citation" means those conditions and options expressly
stated upon the citation.
(o) "Wildlife" means all species of animals including, but not limited
to, mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, amphibians, mollusks, and crustaceans,
which are defined as "wildlife" and are protected or otherwise regulated by
statute, law, regulation, ordinance, or administrative rule in a participating
state. Species included in the definition of "wildlife" vary from state to
state and determination of whether a species is "wildlife" for the purposes of
this compact shall be based on local law.
(p) "Wildlife law" means any statute, law, regulation, ordinance, or
administrative rule developed and enacted for the management of wildlife
resources and the uses thereof.
(q) "Wildlife officer" means any individual authorized by a participating
state to issue a citation for a wildlife violation.
(r) "Wildlife violation" means any cited violation of a statute, law,
regulation, ordinance, or administrative rule developed and enacted for the
management of wildlife resources and the uses thereof.
ARTICLE III
Procedures for Issuing State
(a) When issuing a citation for a wildlife violation, a wildlife officer
shall issue a citation to any person whose primary residence is in a
participating state in the same manner as though the person were a resident of
the issuing state and shall not require such person to post collateral to
secure appearance, subject to the exceptions noted in paragraph (b) of this
article, if the officer receives the recognizance of such person that he will
comply with the terms of the citation.
(b) Personal recognizance is acceptable (1) if not prohibited by local
law or the compact manual and (2) if the violator provides adequate proof of
identification to the wildlife officer.
(c) Upon conviction or failure of a person to comply with the terms of a
wildlife citation, the appropriate official shall report the conviction or
failure to comply to the licensing authority of the participating state in
which the wildlife citation was issued. The report shall be made in accordance
with procedures specified by the issuing state and shall contain information as
specified in the compact manual as minimum requirements for effective
processing by the home state.
(d) Upon receipt of the report of conviction or noncompliance pursuant to
paragraph (c) of this article, the licensing authority of the issuing state
shall transmit to the licensing authority of the home state of the violator the
information in form and content as prescribed in the compact manual.
ARTICLE IV
Procedure for Home State
(a) Upon receipt of a report from the licensing authority of the issuing
state reporting the failure of a violator to comply with the terms of a
citation, the licensing authority of the home state shall notify the violator
and shall initiate a suspension action in accordance with the home state's
suspension procedures and shall suspend the violator's license privileges until
satisfactory evidence of compliance with the terms of the wildlife citation has
been furnished by the issuing state to the home state licensing authority. Due
process safeguards will be accorded.
(b) Upon receipt of a report of conviction from the licensing authority
of the issuing state, the licensing authority of the home state shall enter
such conviction in its records and shall treat such conviction as though it
occurred in the home state for the purposes of the suspension of license
privileges.
(c) The licensing authority of the home state shall maintain a record of
actions taken and shall make reports to issuing states as provided in the
compact manual.
ARTICLE V
Reciprocal Recognition of Suspension
(a) All participating states shall recognize the suspension of license
privileges of any person by any participating state as though the violation
resulting in the suspension had occurred in their state and could have been the
basis for suspension of license privileges in their state.
(b) Each participating state shall communicate suspension information to
other participating states in form and content as contained in the compact
manual.
ARTICLE VI
Applicability of Other Laws
(a) Except as expressly required by provisions of this compact, nothing
herein shall be construed to affect the right of any participating state to
apply any of its laws relating to license privileges to any person or
circumstance or to invalidate or prevent any agreement or other cooperative
arrangement between a participating state and a nonparticipating state
concerning wildlife law enforcement.
ARTICLE VII
Compact Administrator Procedures
(a) For the purpose of administering the provisions of this compact and
to serve as a governing body for the resolution of all matters relating to the
operation of this compact, a board of compact administrators is established.
The board shall be composed of one representative from each of the
participating states to be known as the compact administrator. The compact
administrator shall be appointed by the head of the licensing authority of each
participating state and shall serve and be subject to removal in accordance
with the laws of the state he represents. A compact administrator may provide
for the discharge of his duties and the performance of his functions as a board
member by an alternate. An alternate shall not be entitled to serve unless
written notification of his identity has been given to the board.
(b) Each member of the board of compact administrators shall be entitled
to one vote. No action of the board shall be binding unless taken at a meeting
at which a majority of the total number of the board's votes are cast in favor
thereof. Action by the board shall be only at a meeting at which a majority of
the participating states are represented.
(c) The board shall elect annually from its membership a chairman and
vice-chairman.
(d) The board shall adopt bylaws not inconsistent with the provisions of
this compact or the laws of a participating state for the conduct of its
business and shall have the power to amend and rescind its bylaws.
(e) The board may accept for any of its purposes and functions under this
compact any and all donations and grants of moneys, equipment, supplies,
materials, and services, conditional or otherwise, from any state, the United
States, or any governmental agency, and may receive, utilize and dispose of
same.
(f) The board may contract with, or accept services or personnel from,
any governmental or intergovernmental agency, individual, firm, or corporation,
or any private nonprofit organization or institution.
(g) The board shall formulate all necessary procedures and develop
uniform forms and documents for administering the provisions of this compact.
All procedures and forms adopted pursuant to board action shall be contained in
a compact manual.
ARTICLE VIII
Entry into Compact and Withdrawal
(a) This compact shall become effective at such time as it is adopted in
a substantially similar form by two or more states.
(b) (1) Entry into the compact shall be made by resolution of
ratification executed by the authorized officials of the applying state and
submitted to the chairman of the board.
(2) The resolution shall substantially be in the form and content as
provided in the compact manual and shall include the following:
(i) A citation of the authority from which the state is empowered to
become a party to this compact;
(ii) An agreement of compliance with the terms and provisions of this
compact; and
(iii) An agreement that compact entry is with all states participating in
the compact and with all additional states legally becoming a party to the
compact.
(3) The effective date of entry shall be specified by the applying state
but shall not be less than sixty days after notice has been given (a) by the
chairman of the board of the compact administrators or (b) by the secretariat
of the board to each participating state that the resolution from the applying
state has been received.
(c) A participating state may withdraw from participation in this compact
by official written notice to each participating state, but withdrawal shall
not become effective until ninety days after the notice of withdrawal is given.
The notice shall be directed to the compact administrator of each member state.
No withdrawal of any state shall affect the validity of this compact as to the
remaining participating states.
ARTICLE IX
Amendments to the Compact
(a) This compact may be amended from time to time. Amendments shall be
presented in resolution form to the chairman of the board of compact
administrators and shall be initiated by one or more participating states.
(b) Adoption of an amendment shall require endorsement by all
participating states and shall become effective thirty days after the date of
the last endorsement.
(c) Failure of a participating state to respond to the compact chairman
within one hundred twenty days after receipt of a proposed amendment shall
constitute endorsement thereof.
ARTICLE X
Construction and Severability
This compact shall be liberally construed so as to effectuate the purposes
stated herein. The provisions of this compact shall be severable and if any
phrase, clause, sentence, or provision of this compact is declared to be
contrary to the constitution of any participating state or of the United
States, or the applicability thereof to any government, agency, individual, or
circumstance is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of this compact
shall not be affected thereby. If this compact shall be held contrary to the
constitution of any participating state, the compact shall remain in full force
and effect as to the remaining states and in full force and effect as to the
participating state affected as to all severable matters.
ARTICLE XI
Title
This compact shall be known as the "Wildlife Violator Compact".
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