NEWS &VIEWS You Can Use Legislative Update
By Jane Seigler T e 2018 Maryland General Assembly ses- sion is underway. During the 90 day session that spans from mid-January to mid-April, the legislature will consider approximately 3,000 bills, only a fraction of which will become law. Once again, the dedicated volunteers of the Horse Council’s Legislative Committee are monitoring the legislative goings on and tak- ing action, as necessary, on behalf of Maryland horse people. As we have in most sessions of the past de-
cade and a half or so, MHC is responding to proposals to expand Sunday deer hunting, which was, until the early 2000s, prohibited in Maryland. Since that time, various bills have been introduced to allow Sunday hunt- ing in certain counties, and then to expand it once it was initially allowed in those counties. MHC’s position has been that one weekend day per week should be preserved for other stakeholders (horseback riders, walkers, bikers, birdwatchers, etc.) to have quiet and safe enjoy- ment of the outdoors. In recent years, most Sunday hunting bills
have been focused on a specifi c county or coun- ties. T is year, a much more sweeping bill (SB 817, cross-fi led as HB 1338) was introduced. It would apply statewide, and would authorize the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to: a) allow a full day of hunting on 3 Sundays in deer Firearm season, 2 Sundays in deer muz- zleloader season, and all Sundays in deer bow season; and,
b) allow additional Sundays until 10:30 am, presumably in any deer season. In the current deer gun seasons there are only
fi ve Sundays on the calendar. So these bills ef- fectively authorize full day Sunday hunting on all Sundays throughout the deer seasons (gun and bow). Only Carroll and Frederick current- ly have this many full days of deer hunting on Sundays. T e vast majority of counties would see a big increase in full day Sunday hunting in both gun and bow seasons under these bills. In other words, this is the statewide, full day Sun- day hunting bill that was defeated more than a decade ago. Also, given that the bills authorize DNR to allow all day Sunday hunting on all Sundays in the current deer season, it is not clear what is intended by language that also autho- rizes DNR to add more Sundays until 10:30. With the help of our lobbyist, Frank Boston,
MHC is working hard to oppose these bills. As of this writing, the status of the bills is uncertain. T e Senate’s originally scheduled hearing has been canceled, and has not been re-scheduled. T e House hearing is scheduled for March 7, as of this writing. However, we have received in- formation from the sponsors that the bills may be substantially amended, although the details of any such amendments are not available as the Equiery goes to press. Check the link at the end of this article for up-to-date info on the status of these and any other bills. In additional to the Sunday hunting bill, MHC has already fi led comments expressing safety concerns about a bill (HB 222/SB 268) that would allow drivers to cross a double yel- low line to pass slower moving vehicles such as bicycles and farm equipment (including horse trailers). We have fi led testimony supporting a bond issue ( HB 1037/SB 434) for the Talis- man therapeutic riding center on the Eastern Shore; and a bill (HB 7/SB 182) providing a $50 tax credit to off set expenses for venison donated to the Maryland Food Bank or the Maryland Chapter of Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry. We also submitted com- ments to point out some problems with a bill (HB 1232), that would dedicate 1% of purse funds for aftercare of retired racehorses and sanctuary thoroughbreds. Here are some other bills we are watching:
• HB 46 - Obliging farm equipment wider than 15 feet to display amber lights. Applies to equip- ment carrying hay bales. • HB 119 - Adds Calvert County to the counties (currently St. Mary’s and Charles) where DMP holders may hunt deer with fi rearms through- out the year, including all deer hunting seasons. • HB 212/SB 1038 - Authorizes a court to prohibit a defendant convicted of certain ani- mal cruelty crimes from owning, possessing, or re- siding with an animal for time up to the life of the defendant, etc. • HB 396/SB 354 - Al-
lowing counties that have an agricultural land preservation program to assess an agricultural land preservation fee to fund said program. • HB 421/SB 463 - Authorizes the State Rac- ing Commission to hire an equine director, and requiring Standardbred and T oroughbred track licensees, owners and breeders to pay the cost, 80% by T oroughbreds and 20% by Stan- dardbreds. • HB 565 - Makes mandatory the previously permissive language concerning impounding animals. • HB 1177 - To create/join the Interstate Anti- Doping and Drug Testing Standards Compact to create uniform rules on permitted drugs and medications. • HB 1429 - Altering the safety zone for ar- chery hunters to 50 yards statewide. • HB 1629 - Establishing the Maryland Ani- mal Abuse Registry requiring people convicted of certain crimes involving animals to register with a county sheriff ; requiring a court to order a defendant convicted of an animal abuse crime to participate in and pay for certain counsel- ing; etc.
• SB 747 - Prohibiting holders of Deer Man- agement Permits (crop damage permits) from shooting at night. • SB 851/HB 1592 - Requiring each licensed owner and trainer to be a member of the Mary-
continued... As Seen on Social Media....
Thank you to Valerie Vizcarrondo of Blue Clover Eventing for this shout-out on Instagram!
IF YOU HAVE NEWS, VIEWS OR UPDATES TO CONTRIBUTE, PLEASE SEND THEM TO Editor at The Equiery, P.O. Box 610, Lisbon, MD 21765 • FAX: 410-489-7828 • email
editor@equiery.com.
Be sure to include your full name, phone number and address. All submissions become the property of The Equiery. 8 | THE EQUIERY | FEBRUARY 2018 800-244-9580 |
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