SB 586

Under this bill, a person may hunt a wild animal with an airgun in a season

open to hunting that animal with a firearm. “Airgun” is defined to mean a weapon

originally manufactured to expel one or more metal projectiles by the expansion of

compressed air.

Under current law, the Department of Natural Resources is authorized to

establish open and closed seasons for the hunting of wild animals. DNR issues

hunting licenses that authorize the hunting of specified animals, and those licenses

specify the type of weapon that may be used when hunting under those licenses.

Under the bill, if DNR establishes an open season for hunting an animal with

a firearm, the season must also be open for hunting that animal with an airgun. The

bill also provides that each license that currently authorizes the hunting of an

animal with a firearm also authorizes the hunting of that animal with an airgun.

Current law generally prohibits discharging a firearm from a vehicle or

aircraft, across a highway, within 50 feet of a highway, and in the direction of a

transmission facility. The bill expands these prohibitions to include discharging an

airgun.

Because this bill creates a new crime or revises a penalty for an existing crime,

the Joint Review Committee on Criminal Penalties may be requested to prepare a

report.