CHAPTER 1533: HUNTING; FISHING

As used in this chapter, “person,” “resident,” “nonresident,” “division rule,” “rule,” “closed season,” “open season,” “take or taking,” “possession,” “bag limit,” “transport and transportation,” “sell and sale,” “whole to include part,” “angling,” “trotline,” “fish,” “measurement of fish,” “wild birds,” “game,” “game birds,” “nongame birds,” “wild quadrupeds,” “game quadrupeds,” “fur-bearing animals,” “wild animals,” “hunting,” “trapping,” “muskrat spear,” “channels and passages,” “island,” “reef,” “fur farm,” “waters,” “crib,” “car,” “commercial fish,” “fishing,” “fillet,” “part fillet,” “round,” “migrate,” “spreader bar,” “fishing guide,” “net,” “commercial fishing gear,” “native wildlife,” “gill net,” “tag fishing tournament,” “tenant,” “nonnative wildlife,” “reptiles,” “amphibians,” and “deer” have the same meanings as in section 1531.01 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 03-18-1999

Fish in the inland and Lake Erie fishing districts, game birds and game quadrupeds throughout the state, and fur-bearing animals in the inland and Lake Erie trapping districts may be taken and possessed only in open season, in compliance with this section or a division rule, stipulating the length of fish and the number of fish, game birds, game quadrupeds, and fur-bearing animals that may be taken.

The waters of Lake Erie and the waters, lands, and marshes included in Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky, Erie, Lorain, Cuyahoga, Lake, and Ashtabula counties constitute the “Lake Erie trapping district,” and all other waters, lands, and marshes within the state constitute the “inland trapping district.”

The waters of Lake Erie; the waters of Sandusky bay as far west as a continuation due south to the Sandusky county shore of the section line between sections 23 and 24 in Bay township, Ottawa county, and as far east as a continuation due north of the township line between Perkins and Huron townships, Erie county, indicated by markers which shall be permanently erected on each shore; and the waters of Maumee bay as far south as a line which shall be a continuation due eastward of the section line between sections 16 and 21 in Washington township, Lucas county, indicated by markers which shall be permanently erected on each shore, constitute the “Lake Erie fishing district.” All other waters over which the state has jurisdiction, whether lakes, rivers, creeks, or reservoirs or whether natural or artificial, including East Harbor, West Harbor, and Middle Harbor in Ottawa county, and the waters of Ten Mile creek lying within this state constitute the “inland fishing district.”

(A) All species or kinds of fish may be taken and possessed only according to the following schedule or as otherwise provided in this chapter or Chapter 1531. of the Revised Code or by division rule.

Minimum

Legal Daily

Lengths Bag

Name of Fish Open Season in Inches Limits

Inland Lake Erie

1 Muskellunge….. No closed No closed 30 None 2 None

season season

2 Yellow Pike-perch No closed No closed 13 None 6 None

season season

3 Bluegill…..... No closed No closed 5 5 20 20

season season

4 Rock Bass….... No closed No closed 5 5 20 20

season season

5 Yellow Perch…. No closed No closed None None 20 None

season season

6 White Bass…... No closed No closed None None 20 None

season season

7 Trout…........ Apr. 15- Apr. 15- 7 7 6 6

Sept. 15 Sept. 15

8 Black Bass…... June 16- July 1- 10 10 6 6

Apr. 30 May 24

9 Crappie…...... No closed No closed 20 20

season season

10 Sunfish…..... No closed No closed None None 20 20

season season

11 Catfish…..... No closed No closed None None 20 None

season season

Division (A)(7) of this section includes brooktrout, rainbow trout, and brown trout.

Division (A)(8) of this section includes largemouth black bass, smallmouth black bass, and spotted black bass.

Division (A)(9) of this section includes white crappies and black crappies.

Division (A)(10) of this section includes pumpkinseed sunfish, long-eared sunfish, and green sunfish.

Division (A)(11) of this section includes channel catfish and shovel head catfish and yellow bullhead, brown bullhead, and black bullhead.

The total daily bag limit throughout the state for the combined species mentioned in division (A) of this section shall not exceed twenty-five, and not more than two days’ legal catch of any one species, nor more than fifty of all species shall be in possession at any one time, except fish allowed to be taken by commercial fishermen in the Lake Erie fishing district.

(B) All species of game birds and game quadrupeds throughout the state may be taken and possessed only according to the following schedule or as otherwise provided in this chapter or Chapter 1531. of the Revised Code, or by division rule.

Bag Possession

Name Open Season Limit Limit

Pheasant (Cockbirds only)........................ Nov.15-Nov.30 2 4

Ruffed Grouse…................................. Nov.15-Nov.30 2 4

Hungarian Partridge…........................... Nov.15-Nov.30 4 4

Sharp-tailed Grouse…........................... No open season

Pinnated Grouse…............................... No open season

Woodcock…...................................... Oct.10-Oct.24 4 8

Wilson’s or Jack Snipe…........................ Oct.16-Dec.14 15 15

Rail and Gallinule…............................ Sept.1-Nov.30 15 15

Black-breasted Plover…......................... No open season

Golden Plover…................................. No open season

Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs…................. No open season

Coot….......................................... Oct.16-Dec.14 25 25

Duck….......................................... Oct.16-Dec.14 10 20

Geese and Brant…............................... Oct.16-Dec.14 3 6

Hare or Rabbit…................................ Nov.15-Jan.1 4 4

Gray, Black, and Fox Squirrel…................. Sept.25-Oct.10 4 8

Red or Pine Squirrel….......................... No closed season

Ground Hog or Woodchuck…....................... No closed season

Deer….......................................... No open season

Bear….......................................... No open season

(C) All species of fur-bearing animals may be taken and possessed only according to the following schedule, or as otherwise provided in this chapter or Chapter 1531. of the Revised Code or by division rule.

Inland Trapping Lake Erie

District Trapping District

Open Season Open Season

Name

Mink …....................................... Dec. 1-Jan. 15 Dec. 15-Mar. 15

Weasel …..................................... No closed season No closed season

Raccoon ….................................... Nov. 15-Jan. 15 Nov. 15-Jan. 15

Skunk …...................................... Nov. 15-Jan. 15 Nov. 15-Jan. 15

Opossum ….................................... Nov. 15-Jan. 15 Nov. 15-Jan. 15

Muskrat ….................................... Dec. 1-Jan. 15 Dec. 15-Mar. 15

Beaver …..................................... No open season No open season

Fox …........................................ Nov. 15-Mar. 1 Nov. 15-Mar. 1

The season provided for the taking of fox does not prohibit the chasing of a fox by dog or on horseback when the chasing does not result in the killing of the fox.

This section does not prevent the owner or operator of a farm or enclosure used to breed and raise raccoon, skunk, mink, muskrat, or opossum from taking or possessing at any time such fur-bearing animals although the farm or enclosure, in addition to that use, also is used during the open season for hunting other game.

No person within the state shall buy, sell, expose for sale, offer for sale, or have in possession for any such purpose any of the fish, or any part thereof, mentioned in this section, whether taken within or without the state, except such fish as are protected by law and taken by licensed commercial fishermen in the Lake Erie fishing district and in other waters wherein fishing with nets is licensed by law. This section does not prohibit the sale of fish taken by angling in the Lake Erie fishing district that are of a length provided by law and permitted to be taken and sold by licensed commercial fishermen. No person within the state shall buy, sell, expose for sale, offer for sale, or have in possession for any such purpose any game bird or game quadruped, or any part thereof, whether taken within or without the state. Each such fish, game bird, or game quadruped, or part thereof, bought, sold, exposed for sale, offered for sale, or had in possession for any such purposes contrary to this section or division rule constitutes a separate offense.

No person shall take a hare or rabbit, within the state, through the use of a ferret, or place a ferret in any hole or opening in the ground, a stone wall, a log, or elsewhere outside a building, in which a hare or rabbit might be confined, or have a ferret in possession or under control while hunting, going hunting, or returning from hunting. Each hare or rabbit caught, killed, or had in possession contrary to this section constitutes a separate offense. This section does not prevent the owner of a young fruit orchard or nursery or his tenant or bona fide employee from possessing a ferret or using a ferret in any manner to take or kill rabbits or hares when they are doing actual and substantial damage to his fruit trees or nursery stock.

The possession of the hide, skin, or pelt of a wild bird or wild quadruped during the closed seasons is prima-facie evidence that it was illegally taken unless the possessor can show an original invoice signed by a shipper that the hide, skin, or pelt was shipped from without the state or furnish satisfactory proof that it was legally taken or acquired.

(D) No person shall take a wild bird or wild quadruped from its nest, house, den, or burrow, or destroy such a nest, house, den, or burrow, or with a spear hunt, pursue, injure, or kill any wild bird or wild quadruped except as otherwise provided in this chapter or Chapter 1531. of the Revised Code or by division rule. Each wild bird or wild quadruped or each hide, skin, or pelt of any such wild bird or wild quadruped, or part thereof, taken or had in possession contrary to this section constitutes a separate offense.

Effective Date: 10-20-1994

(A) No person shall purposely prevent or attempt to prevent any person from hunting, trapping, or fishing for a wild animal as authorized by this chapter by any of the following means:

(1) Placing oneself in a location in which he knows or should know that his presence may affect the behavior of the wild animal being hunted, trapped, or fished for or otherwise affect the feasibility of the taking of the wild animal by the hunter, trapper, or fisherman;

(2) Creating a visual, aural, olfactory, or physical stimulus intended to affect the behavior of the wild animal being hunted, trapped, or fished for;

(3) Affecting the condition or location of personal property intended for use in the hunting, trapping, or fishing activity.

(B) No person shall fail to obey the order of a peace officer or wildlife officer to desist from conduct that violates division (A) of this section.

(C) This section applies only to acts committed on lands or waters upon which hunting, trapping, or fishing activity may lawfully occur. This section does not apply to acts of a peace officer, the owner of the lands or waters, or a tenant or other person acting under authority of the owner on the lands or waters.

(D) Upon petition by a person who is or reasonably may be affected by conduct that violates or will violate division (A) of this section and a showing by that person that the conduct has occurred in a particular place and may reasonably be expected to occur in or near that place again, a court of common pleas may enjoin the conduct in accordance with Civil Rule .

(E) As used in this section, “peace officer” has the same meaning as in section 2935.01 of the Revised Code, and “wildlife officer” has the same meaning as in section 1531.13 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 10-20-1994

(A) No person shall purposely prevent or attempt to prevent any person from hunting a wild animal as authorized by this chapter by creating noise or loud sounds through the use of implements when the use of the implements is intended primarily to affect the behavior of the wild animal being hunted, when the hunting is taking place on lands or waters upon which the hunting activity may lawfully occur, and when the noise or loud sounds are created on lands or waters other than the lands or waters upon which the hunting activity may lawfully occur. “Implements” does not include items being used in the due course of farming, forestry, or commercial practices.

(B) Upon petition by a person who is or reasonably may be affected by conduct that violates or will violate division (A) of this section and a showing by that person that the conduct has occurred in a particular place and may reasonably be expected to occur in or near that place again, a court of common pleas may enjoin the conduct in accordance with Civil Rule .

Effective Date: 11-21-1997

Effective Date: 11-28-1975

(A) As used in this section and section 1533.051 of the Revised Code, “raptor” means a live migratory bird of the family Falconidae or of the family Accipitridae other than a bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus).

(B) The chief of the division of wildlife may authorize the taking, possession, and transportation of raptors for use in the sport of falconry by rules adopted pursuant to section 1531.08 of the Revised Code. The rules shall be consistent with federal regulations governing raptors and may authorize the taking of game by the use of raptors, including taking with a trained raptor and a dog.

The chief, by rules adopted pursuant to section 1531.08 of the Revised Code, may do all of the following:

(1) Notwithstanding any other rule governing the taking of quail, authorize a person engaged in the sport of falconry to permit the person’s raptor to take quail;

(2) Authorize special falconry seasons;

(3) Authorize a person engaged in the sport of falconry to possess and to permit the person’s raptor to take European starlings, English sparrows, and common pigeons, other than homing pigeons, at any time.

(C) No person shall take, possess, or transport a raptor for use in the sport of falconry or shall practice falconry without a permit to do so issued by the chief. The duration of the permit shall be consistent with applicable federal requirements. The chief may require a separate permit for the taking of raptors.

The fees for permits shall be set by the chief in amounts sufficient to cover the expenses of the division of wildlife in exercising its authority under this section and may vary according to class and type of permit. Moneys received from the sale of permits shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the fund established in section 1533.15 of the Revised Code.

An applicant for a permit shall present a valid hunting license issued to the applicant for the current license year under section 1533.13 of the Revised Code and shall maintain a valid and current hunting license thereafter while taking or attempting to take game or raptors to be used for falconry purposes. A permit issued under this section is not transferable. No person shall carry a permit issued in the name of another person.

(D) Every person, while engaged in falconry on the lands of another, shall carry the permit issued to the person under this section together with a valid hunting license issued to the person for the current license year under section 1533.13 of the Revised Code and shall exhibit the permit and license to any law enforcement officer requesting to see them.

(E) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, of any rule adopted by the chief governing falconry, or of any federal regulation governing raptors, no person shall take or disturb for the purpose of falconry the nest of a wild raptor or any young raptor in the wild that is not yet capable of flight except in such situations, and under the direct supervision of a wildlife officer, where the nest otherwise would be destroyed or the raptor would not survive.

Effective Date: 08-14-2002

(A) The chief of the division of wildlife may authorize commercial and noncommercial propagation of raptors by rules adopted pursuant to section 1531.08 of the Revised Code. The rules shall be consistent with federal regulations governing raptor propagation.

(B) No person shall propagate raptors without a permit to do so issued by the chief. The duration of the permit shall be consistent with applicable federal requirements.

The fees for permits shall be set by the chief in amounts sufficient to cover the expenses of the division in exercising its authority under this section and may vary according to the type of permit. Moneys received from the sale of permits shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the fund established in section 1533.15 of the Revised Code.

(C) A permittee may use a raptor possessed for propagation in the sport of falconry only if the permitee is in compliance with section 1533.05 of the Revised Code and the raptor is reported under permits issued under both that section and this section.

(D) This section does not apply to propagation of raptors by the state, any agency of the state, the United States, any agency or instrumentality thereof, or any zoological park.

Effective Date: 10-20-1994

Effective Date: 09-26-2003

No person shall catch, kill, injure, pursue, or have in the person’s possession, either dead or alive, or purchase, expose for sale, transport, or ship to a point within or without the state, or receive or deliver for transportation any bird other than a game bird, or have in the person’s possession any part of the plumage, skin, or body of any bird other than a game bird, except as permitted in Chapter 1531. and this chapter of the Revised Code, or disturb or destroy the eggs, nest, or young of such a bird.

This section does not prohibit the lawful taking, killing, pursuing, or possession of any game bird during the open season for the bird. Bald or golden eagles and ospreys shall not be killed or possessed at any time, except that eagles or ospreys may be possessed for educational purposes by governmental or municipal zoological parks, museums, and scientific or educational institutions. European starlings, English sparrows, and common pigeons, other than homing pigeons, may be killed at any time and their nests or eggs may be destroyed at any time. Blackbirds may be killed at any time when doing damage to grain or other property or when they become a nuisance.

Each bird or any part thereof taken or had in possession contrary to this section constitutes a separate offense.

Effective Date: 08-14-2002; 04-06-2007

Except as otherwise provided by division rule, any person desiring to collect or possess wild animals that are protected by law or their nests or eggs for scientific study, school instruction, other educational uses, or rehabilitation shall make an annual application to the chief of the division of wildlife for a wild animal permit on a form furnished by the chief. Each applicant for a wild animal permit, other than an applicant desiring to rehabilitate wild animals, shall pay an annual fee of twenty-five dollars for each permit. No fee shall be charged to an applicant desiring to rehabilitate wild animals. The chief may issue to the applicant a permit to take, possess, and transport at any time and in a manner that is acceptable to the chief specimens of wild animals protected by law or their nests and eggs for scientific study, school instruction, other educational uses, or rehabilitation and under any additional rules recommended by the wildlife council. Upon the receipt of a permit, the holder may take, possess, and transport those wild animals in accordance with the permit.

Each holder of a permit engaged in collecting or who possesses such wild animals shall carry the permit at all times and shall exhibit it upon demand to any peace officer, as defined in section 2935.01 of the Revised Code, or to the owner or person in lawful control of the land upon which the permit holder is collecting or possesses the wild animals. Failure to so carry or exhibit the permit constitutes an offense under this section.

Each permit holder shall keep a daily record of all specimens collected or possessed under the permit and the disposition of the specimens and shall exhibit the daily record to any official of the division upon demand.

Each permit shall remain in effect for one year from the date of issuance unless it is revoked sooner by the chief.

All moneys received as fees for the issuance of a wild animal collecting permit shall be transmitted to the director of natural resources to be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the fund created by section 1533.15 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 09-26-2003; 04-06-2007

Before the fifteenth day of March of each year, each wild animal permit holder shall file with the division of wildlife a written report of the permit holder’s operations under the permit and the disposition of the specimens collected or possessed during the preceding calendar year on report blanks furnished by the chief of the division. Failure to file a report shall cause the permit to be forfeited as of the fifteenth day of March. Permits are not transferable. No permit holder or person collecting or possessing wild animals under authority of such a permit shall take, possess, or transport the wild animals for any purpose not specified in the permit.

Conviction of a violation of this section, failure to carry a permit and exhibit it to any person requesting to see it as provided in section 1533.08 of the Revised Code, or the violation of any other law concerning wild animals constitutes a revocation and forfeiture of the permit involved. The former permit holder shall not be entitled to another permit for a period of one year from the date of the conviction.

Effective Date: 10-20-1994; 04-06-2007

Except as provided in this section or division (A)(2) of section 1533.12 of the Revised Code, no person shall hunt any wild bird or wild quadruped without a hunting license. Each day that any person hunts within the state without procuring such a license constitutes a separate offense. Except as otherwise provided in this section, every applicant for a hunting license who is a resident of the state and eighteen years of age or more shall procure a resident hunting license or an apprentice resident hunting license, the fee for which shall be eighteen dollars unless the rules adopted under division (B) of section 1533.12 of the Revised Code provide for issuance of a resident hunting license to the applicant free of charge. Except as provided in rules adopted under division (B)(2) of that section, each applicant who is a resident of this state and who at the time of application is sixty-six years of age or older shall procure a special senior hunting license, the fee for which shall be one-half of the regular hunting license fee. Every applicant who is under the age of eighteen years shall procure a special youth hunting license or an apprentice youth hunting license, the fee for which shall be one-half of the regular hunting license fee. The owner of lands in the state and the owner’s children of any age and grandchildren under eighteen years of age may hunt on the lands without a hunting license. The tenant and children of the tenant, residing on lands in the state, may hunt on them without a hunting license. Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(1) of section 1533.12 of the Revised Code, every applicant for a hunting license who is a nonresident of the state and who is eighteen years of age or older shall procure a nonresident hunting license or an apprentice nonresident hunting license, the fee for which shall be one hundred twenty-four dollars unless the applicant is a resident of a state that is a party to an agreement under section 1533.91 of the Revised Code, in which case the fee shall be eighteen dollars. Apprentice resident hunting licenses, apprentice youth hunting licenses, and apprentice nonresident hunting licenses are subject to the requirements established under section 1533.102 of the Revised Code and rules adopted pursuant to it.

The chief of the division of wildlife may issue a small game hunting license expiring three days from the effective date of the license to a nonresident of the state, the fee for which shall be thirty-nine dollars. No person shall take or possess deer, wild turkeys, fur-bearing animals, ducks, geese, brant, or any nongame animal while possessing only a small game hunting license. A small game hunting license or an apprentice nonresident hunting license does not authorize the taking or possessing of ducks, geese, or brant without having obtained, in addition to the small game hunting license or the apprentice nonresident hunting license, a wetlands habitat stamp as provided in section 1533.112 of the Revised Code. A small game hunting license or an apprentice nonresident hunting license does not authorize the taking or possessing of deer, wild turkeys, or fur-bearing animals. A nonresident of the state who wishes to take or possess deer, wild turkeys, or fur-bearing animals in this state shall procure, respectively, a deer or wild turkey permit as provided in section 1533.11 of the Revised Code or a fur taker permit as provided in section 1533.111 of the Revised Code in addition to a nonresident hunting license, an apprentice nonresident hunting license, a special youth hunting license, or an apprentice youth hunting license, as applicable, as provided in this section.

No person shall procure or attempt to procure a hunting license by fraud, deceit, misrepresentation, or any false statement.

This section does not authorize the taking and possessing of deer or wild turkeys without first having obtained, in addition to the hunting license required by this section, a deer or wild turkey permit as provided in section 1533.11 of the Revised Code or the taking and possessing of ducks, geese, or brant without first having obtained, in addition to the hunting license required by this section, a wetlands habitat stamp as provided in section 1533.112 of the Revised Code.

This section does not authorize the hunting or trapping of fur-bearing animals without first having obtained, in addition to a hunting license required by this section, a fur taker permit as provided in section 1533.111 of the Revised Code.

No hunting license shall be issued unless it is accompanied by a written explanation of the law in section 1533.17 of the Revised Code and the penalty for its violation, including a description of terms of imprisonment and fines that may be imposed.

No hunting license, other than an apprentice hunting license, shall be issued unless the applicant presents to the agent authorized to issue the license a previously held hunting license or evidence of having held such a license in content and manner approved by the chief, a certificate of completion issued upon completion of a hunter education and conservation course approved by the chief, or evidence of equivalent training in content and manner approved by the chief. A previously held apprentice hunting license does not satisfy the requirement concerning the presentation of a previously held hunting license or evidence of it.

No person shall issue a hunting license, except an apprentice hunting license, to any person who fails to present the evidence required by this section. No person shall purchase or obtain a hunting license, other than an apprentice hunting license, without presenting to the issuing agent the evidence required by this section. Issuance of a hunting license in violation of the requirements of this section is an offense by both the purchaser of the illegally obtained hunting license and the clerk or agent who issued the hunting license. Any hunting license issued in violation of this section is void.

The chief, with approval of the wildlife council, shall adopt rules prescribing a hunter education and conservation course for first-time hunting license buyers, other than buyers of apprentice hunting licenses, and for volunteer instructors. The course shall consist of subjects including, but not limited to, hunter safety and health, use of hunting implements, hunting tradition and ethics, the hunter and conservation, the law in section 1533.17 of the Revised Code along with the penalty for its violation, including a description of terms of imprisonment and fines that may be imposed, and other law relating to hunting. Authorized personnel of the division or volunteer instructors approved by the chief shall conduct such courses with such frequency and at such locations throughout the state as to reasonably meet the needs of license applicants. The chief shall issue a certificate of completion to each person who successfully completes the course and passes an examination prescribed by the chief.

Effective Date: 09-26-2003; 09-29-2005; 05-17-2006; 04-06-2007

Any person who has been issued a hunting or fishing license, a wetlands habitat stamp, a deer or wild turkey permit, or a fur taker permit for the current license, stamp, or permit year or for the license, stamp, or permit year next preceding the current such year pursuant to this chapter, and if the license, stamp, or permit has been lost, destroyed, or stolen, may be issued a reissued hunting or fishing license, wetlands habitat stamp, deer or wild turkey permit, or fur taker permit. The person shall file with the clerk of the court of common pleas an application in affidavit form or, if the chief of the division of wildlife authorizes it, apply for a reissued license, stamp, or permit to an authorized agent designated by the chief, and pay a fee for each license, stamp, or permit of four dollars send a copy of the reissued license, stamp, or permit to the division of wildlife.

All moneys received as fees for the issuance of reissued licenses, stamps, or permits shall be transmitted to the director of natural resources to be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the funds to which the fees for the original licenses, stamps, and permits were credited.

No person shall knowingly or willfully secure, attempt to secure, or use a reissued hunting or fishing license, wetlands habitat stamp, deer or wild turkey permit, or fur taker permit to which the person is not entitled. No person shall knowingly or willfully issue a reissued hunting or fishing license, wetlands habitat stamp, deer or wild turkey permit, or fur taker permit under this section to any person who is not entitled to receive and use such a reissued license, stamp, or permit.

Effective Date: 09-26-2003

The chief of the division of wildlife may adopt rules under section 1531.10 of the Revised Code that the chief considers to be necessary to administer the issuance of apprentice hunting licenses and apprentice fur taker permits under sections 1533.10 and 1533.111 of the Revised Code, respectively, and their use, except that the rules shall not establish fee amounts for those licenses and permits that differ from the fee amounts established in those sections, as applicable.

Unless otherwise provided by division rule, an apprentice license or permit is valid beginning on the first day of March and ending at midnight on the last day of February of the following year. No person shall purchase more than three apprentice hunting licenses of any type or more than three apprentice fur taker permits of any type.

Any type of apprentice hunting license authorizes the holder of such a license to hunt only while accompanied by another person who is twenty-one years of age or older and who possesses a valid hunting license. Any type of apprentice fur taker permit authorizes the holder of such a permit to hunt or trap fur-bearing animals only while accompanied by another person who is twenty-one years of age or older and who possesses a valid fur taker permit. No holder of a valid hunting license or fur taker permit shall accompany more than two holders of any type of apprentice hunting license or apprentice fur taker permit at one time.

Effective Date: 05-17-2006

(A) Except as provided in this section, no person shall hunt deer on lands of another without first obtaining an annual deer permit. Except as provided in this section, no person shall hunt wild turkeys on lands of another without first obtaining an annual wild turkey permit. Each applicant for a deer or wild turkey permit shall pay an annual fee of twenty-three dollars for each permit unless the rules adopted under division (B) of section 1533.12 of the Revised Code provide for issuance of a deer or wild turkey permit to the applicant free of charge. Except as provided in rules adopted under division (B)(2) of that section, each applicant who is a resident of this state and who at the time of application is sixty-six years of age or older shall procure a senior deer or wild turkey permit, the fee for which shall be one-half of the regular deer or wild turkey permit fee. Each applicant who is under the age of eighteen years shall procure a youth deer or wild turkey permit, the fee for which shall be one-half of the regular deer or wild turkey permit fee. Except as provided in division (A)(2) of section 1533.12 of the Revised Code, a deer or wild turkey permit shall run concurrently with the hunting license. The money received shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the wildlife fund, created in section 1531.17 of the Revised Code, exclusively for the use of the division of wildlife in the acquisition and development of land for deer or wild turkey management, for investigating deer or wild turkey problems, and for the stocking, management, and protection of deer or wild turkey. Every person, while hunting deer or wild turkey on lands of another, shall carry the person’s deer or wild turkey permit and exhibit it to any enforcement officer so requesting. Failure to so carry and exhibit such a permit constitutes an offense under this section. The chief of the division of wildlife shall adopt any additional rules the chief considers necessary to carry out this section and section 1533.10 of the Revised Code.

The owner and the children of the owner of lands in this state may hunt deer or wild turkey thereon without a deer or wild turkey permit. The tenant and children of the tenant may hunt deer or wild turkey on lands where they reside without a deer or wild turkey permit.

(B) A deer or wild turkey permit is not transferable. No person shall carry a deer or wild turkey permit issued in the name of another person.

(C) The wildlife refunds fund is hereby created in the state treasury. The fund shall consist of money received from application fees for deer permits that are not issued. Money in the fund shall be used to make refunds of such application fees.

Effective Date: 09-26-2003; 09-29-2005; 04-06-2007

Except as provided in this section or division (A) of section 1533.12 of the Revised Code, no person shall hunt or trap fur-bearing animals on land of another without first obtaining some type of an annual fur taker permit. Each applicant for a fur taker permit or an apprentice fur taker permit shall pay an annual fee of fourteen dollars for the permit, except as otherwise provided in this section or unless the rules adopted under division (B) of section 1533.12 of the Revised Code provide for issuance of a fur taker permit to the applicant free of charge. Except as provided in rules adopted under division (B)(2) of that section, each applicant who is a resident of this state and who at the time of application is sixty-six years of age or older shall procure a special senior fur taker permit, the fee for which shall be one-half of the regular fur taker permit fee. Each applicant who is a resident of the state and under the age of eighteen years shall procure a special youth fur taker permit or an apprentice youth fur taker permit, the fee for which shall be one-half of the regular fur taker permit fee. Each type of fur taker permit shall run concurrently with the hunting license. The money received shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the fund established in section 1533.15 of the Revised Code. Apprentice fur taker permits and apprentice youth fur taker permits are subject to the requirements established under section 1533.102 of the Revised Code and rules adopted pursuant to it.

No fur taker permit shall be issued unless it is accompanied by a written explanation of the law in section 1533.17 of the Revised Code and the penalty for its violation, including a description of terms of imprisonment and fines that may be imposed.

No fur taker permit, other than an apprentice fur taker permit or an apprentice youth fur taker permit, shall be issued unless the applicant presents to the agent authorized to issue a fur taker permit a previously held hunting license or trapping or fur taker permit or evidence of having held such a license or permit in content and manner approved by the chief of the division of wildlife, a certificate of completion issued upon completion of a trapper education course approved by the chief, or evidence of equivalent training in content and manner approved by the chief. A previously held apprentice hunting license, apprentice fur taker permit, or apprentice youth fur taker permit does not satisfy the requirement concerning the presentation of a previously held hunting license or fur taker permit or evidence of such a license or permit.

No person shall issue a fur taker permit, other than an apprentice fur taker permit or an apprentice youth fur taker permit, to any person who fails to present the evidence required by this section. No person shall purchase or obtain a fur taker permit, other than an apprentice fur taker permit or an apprentice youth fur taker permit, without presenting to the issuing agent the evidence required by this section. Issuance of a fur taker permit in violation of the requirements of this section is an offense by both the purchaser of the illegally obtained permit and the clerk or agent who issued the permit. Any fur taker permit issued in violation of this section is void.

The chief, with approval of the wildlife council, shall adopt rules prescribing a trapper education course for first-time fur taker permit buyers, other than buyers of apprentice fur taker permits or apprentice youth fur taker permits, and for volunteer instructors. The course shall consist of subjects that include, but are not limited to, trapping techniques, animal habits and identification, trapping tradition and ethics, the trapper and conservation, the law in section 1533.17 of the Revised Code along with the penalty for its violation, including a description of terms of imprisonment and fines that may be imposed, and other law relating to trapping. Authorized personnel of the division of wildlife or volunteer instructors approved by the chief shall conduct the courses with such frequency and at such locations throughout the state as to reasonably meet the needs of permit applicants. The chief shall issue a certificate of completion to each person who successfully completes the course and passes an examination prescribed by the chief.

Every person, while hunting or trapping fur-bearing animals on lands of another, shall carry the person’s fur taker permit affixed to the person’s hunting license with the person’s signature written across the face of the permit. Failure to carry such a signed permit constitutes an offense under this section. The chief shall adopt any additional rules the chief considers necessary to carry out this section.

The owner and the children of the owner of lands in this state may hunt or trap fur-bearing animals thereon without a fur taker permit. The tenant and children of the tenant may hunt or trap fur-bearing animals on lands where they reside without a fur taker permit.

A fur taker permit is not transferable. No person shall carry a fur taker permit issued in the name of another person.

A fur taker permit entitles a nonresident to take from this state fur-bearing animals taken and possessed by the nonresident as provided by law or division rule.

Effective Date: 09-26-2003; 09-29-2005; 05-17-2006

Except as provided in this section or unless otherwise provided by division rule, no person shall hunt ducks, geese, or brant on the lands of another without first obtaining an annual wetlands habitat stamp. The annual fee for the wetlands habitat stamp shall be fourteen dollars for each stamp unless the rules adopted under division (B) of section 1533.12 provide for issuance of a wetlands habitat stamp to the applicant free of charge.

Moneys received from the stamp fee shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the wetlands habitat fund, which is hereby established. Moneys shall be paid from the fund on the order of the director of natural resources for the following purposes:

(A) Sixty per cent for projects that the division approves for the acquisition, development, management, or preservation of waterfowl areas within the state;

(B) Forty per cent for contribution by the division to an appropriate nonprofit organization for the acquisition, development, management, or preservation of lands and waters within the United States or Canada that provide or will provide habitat for waterfowl with migration routes that cross this state.

No moneys derived from the issuance of wetlands habitat stamps shall be spent for purposes other than those specified by this section. All investment earnings of the fund shall be credited to the fund.

Wetlands habitat stamps shall be furnished by and in a form prescribed by the chief of the division of wildlife and issued by clerks and other agents authorized to issue licenses and permits under section 1533.13 of the Revised Code. The record of stamps kept by the clerks and other agents shall be uniform throughout the state, in such form or manner as the director prescribes, and open at all reasonable hours to the inspection of any person. Unless otherwise provided by rule, each stamp shall remain in force until midnight of the thirty-first day of August next ensuing. Wetlands habitat stamps may be issued in any manner to any person on any date, whether or not that date is within the period in which they are effective.

Every person to whom this section applies, while hunting ducks, geese, or brant, shall carry an unexpired wetlands habitat stamp that is validated by the person’s signature written on the stamp in ink and shall exhibit the stamp to any enforcement officer so requesting. No person shall fail to carry and exhibit the person’s stamp.

A wetlands habitat stamp is not transferable.

The chief shall establish a procedure to obtain subject matter to be printed on the wetlands habitat stamp and shall use, dispose of, or distribute the subject matter as the chief considers necessary. The chief also shall adopt rules necessary to administer this section.

This section does not apply to persons under sixteen years of age nor to persons exempted from procuring a hunting license under section 1533.10 or division (A)(2) of section 1533.12 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 09-26-2003; 09-29-2005

If the chief of the division of wildlife determines that the licenses, permits, and stamps issued under this chapter and Chapter 1531. of the Revised Code are insufficient for proper wildlife management in specific geographic areas or for specific species of wild animals, the chief may adopt rules in accordance with section 1531.10 of the Revised Code doing all of the following:

(A) Providing for the issuance of management permits;

(B) Establishing requirements governing those permits that modify the requirements established under this chapter and Chapter 1531. of the Revised Code governing licenses, permits, and stamps;

(C) Establishing fees for management permits that shall not exceed the fees established under this chapter and Chapter 1531. of the Revised Code for licenses, permits, and stamps.

Rules adopted under division (C) of this section shall be adopted only upon approval of the controlling board and the wildlife council created in section 1531.03 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 09-29-1995

(A)(1) Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(2) of this section, every person on active duty in the armed forces of the United States who is stationed in this state and who wishes to engage in an activity for which a license, permit, or stamp is required under this chapter first shall obtain the requisite license, permit, or stamp. Such a person is eligible to obtain a resident hunting or fishing license regardless of whether the person qualifies as a resident of this state. To obtain a resident hunting or fishing license, the person shall present a card or other evidence identifying the person as being on active duty in the armed forces of the United States and as being stationed in this state.

(2) Every person on active duty in the armed forces of the United States, while on leave or furlough, may take or catch fish of the kind lawfully permitted to be taken or caught within the state, may hunt any wild bird or wild quadruped lawfully permitted to be hunted within the state, and may trap fur-bearing animals lawfully permitted to be trapped within the state, without procuring a fishing license, a hunting license, a fur taker permit, or a wetlands habitat stamp required by this chapter, provided that the person shall carry on the person when fishing, hunting, or trapping, a card or other evidence identifying the person as being on active duty in the armed forces of the United States, and provided that the person is not otherwise violating any of the hunting, fishing, and trapping laws of this state.

In order to hunt deer or wild turkey, any such person shall obtain a deer or wild turkey permit, as applicable, under section 1533.11 of the Revised Code. However, the person need not obtain a hunting license in order to obtain such a permit.

(B) The chief of the division of wildlife shall provide by rule adopted under section 1531.10 of the Revised Code all of the following:

(1) Every resident of this state with a disability that has been determined by the veterans administration to be permanently and totally disabling, who receives a pension or compensation from the veterans administration, and who received an honorable discharge from the armed forces of the United States, and every veteran to whom the registrar of motor vehicles has issued a set of license plates under section 4503.41 of the Revised Code, shall be issued a fishing license, hunting license, fur taker permit, deer or wild turkey permit, or wetlands habitat stamp, or any combination of those licenses, permits, and stamp, free of charge on an annual, multi-year, or lifetime basis as determined appropriate by the chief when application is made to the chief in the manner prescribed by and on forms provided by the chief.

(2) Every resident of the state who was born on or before December 31, 1937, shall be issued an annual fishing license, hunting license, fur taker permit, deer or wild turkey permit, or wetlands habitat stamp, or any combination of those licenses, permits, and stamp, free of charge when application is made to the chief in the manner prescribed by and on forms provided by the chief.

(3) Every resident of state or county institutions, charitable institutions, and military homes in this state shall be issued an annual fishing license free of charge when application is made to the chief in the manner prescribed by and on forms provided by the chief.

(4) Any mobility impaired or blind person, as defined in section 955.011 of the Revised Code, who is a resident of this state and who is unable to engage in fishing without the assistance of another person shall be issued an annual fishing license free of charge when application is made to the chief in the manner prescribed by and on forms provided by the chief. The person who is assisting the mobility impaired or blind person may assist in taking or catching fish of the kind permitted to be taken or caught without procuring the license required under section 1533.32 of the Revised Code, provided that only one line is used by both persons.

(5) As used in division (B)(5) of this section, “prisoner of war” means any regularly appointed, enrolled, enlisted, or inducted member of the military forces of the United States who was captured, separated, and incarcerated by an enemy of the United States.

Any person who has been a prisoner of war, was honorably discharged from the military forces, and is a resident of this state shall be issued a fishing license, hunting license, fur taker permit, or wetlands habitat stamp, or any combination of those licenses, permits, and stamp, free of charge on an annual, multi-year, or lifetime basis as determined appropriate by the chief when application is made to the chief in the manner prescribed by and on forms provided by the chief.

(C) The chief shall adopt rules pursuant to section 1531.08 of the Revised Code designating not more than two days, which need not be consecutive, in each year as “free sport fishing days” on which any resident may exercise the privileges accorded the holder of a fishing license issued under section 1533.32 of the Revised Code without procuring such a license, provided that the person is not otherwise violating any of the fishing laws of this state.

Effective Date: 09-26-2003; 09-29-2005; 04-06-2007

Except as otherwise provided by division rule, the driver of every motor vehicle that has caused the death of a deer by striking the deer on a highway may take possession of the deer, provided that within twenty-four hours thereafter, the driver reports the accident to a wildlife officer or other law enforcement officer. The officer shall investigate, and, if the officer finds the death has been caused as alleged, the officer shall give a certificate for legal ownership of the deer to the driver. If the deer is unclaimed, the certificate for legal ownership may be given to a private or public institution or charity or to another person.

Effective Date: 08-14-2002

Hunting and fishing licenses, wetlands habitat stamps, deer and wild turkey permits, fur taker permits, and any other licenses, permits, or stamps that are required under this chapter or Chapter 1531. of the Revised Code and any reissued license, permit, or stamp may be issued by the clerk of the court of common pleas, village clerks, township fiscal officers, and other authorized agents designated by the chief of the division of wildlife. When required by the chief, a clerk, fiscal officer, or other agent shall give bond in the manner provided by the chief. All bonds, reports, except records prescribed by the auditor of state, and moneys received by those persons shall be handled under rules adopted by the director of natural resources.

The premium of any bond prescribed by the chief under this section may be paid by the chief. Any person who is designated and authorized by the chief to issue licenses, stamps, and permits as provided in this section, except the clerk of the court of common pleas , a village clerk, and a township fiscal officer, shall pay to the chief a premium in an amount that represents the person’s portion of the premium paid by the chief under this section, which amount shall be established by the chief and approved by the wildlife council created under section 1531.03 of the Revised Code. The chief shall pay all moneys that the chief receives as premiums under this section into the state treasury to the credit of the wildlife fund created under section 1531.17 of the Revised Code.

Every authorized agent, for the purpose of issuing hunting and fishing licenses, wetlands habitat stamps, deer and wild turkey permits, and fur taker permits, may administer oaths to and take affidavits from applicants for the licenses, stamps, or permits when required. An authorized agent may appoint deputies to perform any acts that the agent is authorized to perform, consistent with division rules.

Every applicant for a hunting or fishing license, wetlands habitat stamp, deer or wild turkey permit, or fur taker permit, unless otherwise provided by division rule, shall provide the applicant’s name, date of birth, weight, height, and place of residence and any other information that the chief may require. The clerk, fiscal officer, or other agent authorized to issue licenses, stamps, and permits shall charge each applicant a fee of one dollar for taking the information provided by the applicant and issuing the license, stamp, or permit. The application, license, stamp, permit, and other blanks required by this section shall be prepared and furnished by the chief, in the form the chief provides, to the clerk, fiscal officer, or other agent authorized to issue them. The licenses and permits shall be issued to applicants by the clerk, fiscal officer, or other agent. The record of licenses and permits kept by the clerks, fiscal officers, and other agents shall be uniform throughout the state and in the form or manner as the auditor of state prescribes and shall be open at all reasonable hours to the inspection of any person. Unless otherwise provided by division rule, each hunting license, deer or wild turkey permit, and fur taker permit issued shall remain in force until midnight of the thirty-first day of August next ensuing. Application for any such license or permit may be made and a license or permit issued prior to the date upon which it becomes effective.

The chief may require an applicant who wishes to purchase a license, stamp, or permit by mail or telephone or via the internet to pay a nominal fee for postage and handling and credit card transactions.

The court before whom a violator of any laws or division rules for the protection of wild animals is tried, as a part of the punishment, shall revoke the license, stamp, or permit of any person convicted. The license, stamp, or permit fee paid by that person shall not be returned to the person. The person shall not procure or use any other license, stamp, or permit or engage in hunting wild animals or trapping fur-bearing animals during the period of revocation as ordered by the court.

No person under sixteen years of age shall engage in hunting unless accompanied by the person’s parent or another adult person.

Effective Date: 09-26-2003; 12-20-2005

The chief of the division of wildlife may sell gift certificates that may be used to obtain hunting and fishing licenses, fur taker, deer, and wild turkey permits, and wetlands habitat stamps. For the purposes of this section, the chief shall adopt rules in accordance with section 1531.10 of the Revised Code doing all of the following:

(A) Providing that a gift certificate may be used to obtain a resident or nonresident hunting license under section 1533.10 of the Revised Code, a resident or nonresident fishing license under section 1533.32 of the Revised Code, a fur taker permit under section 1533.111 of the Revised Code, a deer or wild turkey permit under section 1533.11 of the Revised Code, a wetlands habitat stamp under section 1533.112 of the Revised Code, or a combination of those licenses, permits, and stamps;

(B) Prescribing the form for the gift certificates;

(C) Authorizing persons who are designated and authorized under section 1533.13 of the Revised Code to sell licenses and permits under this chapter also to sell gift certificates under this section;

(D) Establishing fees for the gift certificates, which shall equal the total of the fee for a resident or nonresident hunting license, a resident or nonresident fishing license, a fur taker permit, a deer or wild turkey permit, a wetlands habitat stamp, or a combination of those licenses, permits, and stamp, as applicable, and the fee established under section 1533.13 of the Revised Code;

(E) Requiring gift certificates to expire one year after the date of purchase.

Nothing in this section or rules adopted under it relieves an individual who receives a gift certificate for a hunting license from complying with the requirement established under section 1533.10 of the Revised Code to present, when applying for the license, a previously held hunting license or evidence of having held such a license in content and manner approved by the chief, a certificate of completion issued upon completion of a hunter education and conservation course approved by the chief, or evidence of equivalent training in content and manner approved by the chief.

Nothing in this section or rules adopted under it relieves an individual who receives a gift certificate for a fur taker permit from complying with the requirements established under section 1533.111 of the Revised Code to present, when applying for the permit, a previously held hunting license or trapping or fur taker permit or evidence of having held such a license or permit in content and manner approved by the chief, a certificate of completion issued upon completion of a trapper education course approved by the chief, or evidence of equivalent training in content and manner approved by the chief.

Effective Date: 09-13-1999; 04-06-2007

Unless otherwise provided by division rule, no hunting license or wetlands habitat stamp is transferable and no hunter shall carry a hunting license or wetlands habitat stamp that was issued in the name of another person or that does not contain the signature of the agent issuing it.

Every person, while hunting or trapping on the lands of another, shall carry the person’s hunting license on the person’s own self and exhibit it to any wildlife officer, constable, sheriff, deputy sheriff, or police officer, to the owner or person in lawful control of the land upon which the person is hunting or trapping, or to any other person. Failure to so carry or exhibit such a license constitutes an offense under this section. This chapter and Chapter 1531. of the Revised Code do not allow any person to hunt or trap on any land without the written consent of the owner thereof.

Such a license entitles a nonresident to take from this state game birds or game quadrupeds killed and possessed by the nonresident as provided by law or division rule.

Effective Date: 02-25-1998

Except as provided by division rule, the clerks and other agents authorized to issue hunting and fishing licenses, deer and wild turkey permits, and fur taker permits shall issue them in consecutive order of their numbers as stamped on the upper left corner of each license or permit with the date and exact time of day of issuance plainly written thereon and shall keep a record of the licenses and permits issued, together with the names and addresses of the persons to whom the licenses and permits were issued. No license or permit sold in conformity with sections 1533.10, 1533.11, 1533.111 and 1533.32 of the Revised Code shall show any date and hour of issuance prior to the actual date and hour when the license or permit was issued to the applicant, and any violation of this requirement is an offense by both the purchaser of the falsely dated license or permit and the clerk or agent who issued it. A falsely dated license or permit immediately is void, and in any hearing before any court having jurisdiction, it shall be construed that no license or permit was issued.

The clerks and other agents shall transmit with their reports to the director of natural resources, or another person authorized to receive them, all the moneys received as license and permit fees and may include the amounts paid to the clerks and other agents as their fees.

Moneys received as fees under sections 1533.10 and 1533.111 of the Revised Code shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the wildlife fund, which shall be exclusively for the use of the department of natural resources in the education of hunters and trappers, for the purchase, management, preservation, propagation, protection, and stocking of wild birds and wild quadrupeds, for establishing and purchasing or otherwise acquiring title to lands for game preservation, propagation, and protection, and for public hunting grounds under rules to be adopted by the chief of the division of wildlife. The chief may employ on such lands one or more game management agents and wildlife officers at such salary and with such duties as the chief prescribes for improving habitat for wild birds and wild quadrupeds and for all phases of game management, propagation, and protection, including the necessary biological investigations, for printing summarized game laws and the division of wildlife lawbook, and for printing such educational leaflets, pamphlets, and books and promoting such educational, survey, and research activities pertaining to the management, preservation, propagation, and protection of wild animals as are approved by the chief and as provided in this chapter and Chapter 1531. of the Revised Code.

The department shall not spend more than thirty-five per cent of this fund for administration and enforcement.

No moneys derived from hunting licenses, deer or wild turkey permits, and fur taker permits shall be spent for other than hunting and trapping purposes, as defined in this section and sections 1533.11 and 1533.111 of the Revised Code.

The wildlife fund shall be reimbursed, as provided in this section, for the cost of hunting and fishing licenses, permits, and stamps required to be issued free of charge pursuant to rules adopted under division (B) of section 1533.12 of the Revised Code. The chief shall compile data on the number, type, and amount of fees that would have been collected for the licenses, permits, and stamps if they were not issued free of charge. The chief shall certify the amount of foregone revenue for the previous fiscal year for the free licenses, permits, and stamps to the director of budget and management. Beginning with the amount for fiscal year 1992, the director shall transfer the lesser of one million dollars per year or the amount so certified from the general revenue fund to the wildlife fund, by intrastate transfer voucher.

No person, on any lands acquired and set aside for wild animal management, preservation, propagation, and protection or public hunting grounds having plainly marked boundaries, or with knowledge that such lands are so acquired and set aside, shall take, hunt or trap, kill, or pursue any wild animal on such lands, except as provided by law or division rules. No person shall enter upon such lands or lands held by the state for purposes of reforestation with intent to cut growing timber on any such lands or otherwise commit waste thereon. Hunting may be engaged in on lands set aside for purposes of reforestation as provided by division rules and approved by the division of forestry.

Effective Date: 02-25-1998

The chief of the division of wildlife, with the approval of the director of natural resources, may print and issue stamps portraying wild animals of the state. This stamp shall be identified as a wildlife conservation stamp not more than the fee for a wetlands habitat stamp issued under section 1533.112 of the Revised Code.

The purchase of wildlife conservation stamps shall provide no privileges to the purchaser, but merely recognizes the person as voluntarily contributing to the management, protection, and the perpetuation of the wildlife resources of the state. All moneys received from the sale of wildlife conservation stamps shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the nongame and endangered wildlife fund to be used exclusively by the division of wildlife for the purposes outlined in section 1531.26 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 09-26-2003

Game birds and wild quadrupeds shall be taken only by hunting with a gun, with a gun and dog, with a bow and arrow, or with a bow and arrow and dog unless otherwise provided by the Revised Code or division rule. Fur-bearing animals may be taken by trapping according to the Revised Code or division rule. No gun larger than ten gauge shall be used in taking game birds or wild quadrupeds.

Effective Date: 10-20-1994

No person shall throw or cast the rays of a spotlight or other artificial light from any vehicle into any field, woodland, or forest while having in his possession a hunting device, or throw or cast the rays of a spotlight or other artificial light from any vehicle into any field, woodland, or forest for the purpose of locating a wild animal.

This section does not apply to law enforcement officers, wildlife officers, military personnel, and officers or employees of the department of natural resources while in the performance of their duties, or to any landowner or lessee having a reason to use a light while engaged in surveillance or protection of his property.

An officer whose duty it is to enforce this chapter and Chapter 1531. of the Revised Code and division rules may arrest a person whom he has reasonable grounds to believe is violating this section, search the vehicle for firearms or other hunting implements in the possession or under the control of that person, and seize the same.

Effective Date: 10-20-1994

(A) No person shall hunt or trap upon any lands, pond, lake, or private waters of another, except water claimed by riparian right of ownership in adjacent lands, or shoot, shoot at, catch, kill, injure, or pursue a wild bird, wild waterfowl, or wild animal thereon without obtaining written permission from the owner or the owner’s authorized agent.

(B) Except as otherwise provided in this division, the owner, lessee, renter, or occupant of any lands, pond, lake, or private waters upon which a person violates division (A) of this section is not liable in damages to any person in a civil action for injury, death, or loss to person or property that arises during or incidental to the violation. For the purposes of this division, a finding that a person violated division (A) of this section is not dependent upon the person being charged with or convicted of a violation of division (A) of this section. This division does not apply to civil claims based upon alleged willful or wanton misconduct or intentionally tortious conduct of the owner, lessee, renter, or occupant. This division does not create a new cause of action or a substantive legal right against the owner, lessee, renter, or occupant, and does not affect any immunities from civil liability or defenses established by another section of the Revised Code or available at common law, to which the owner, lessee, renter, or occupant may be entitled under circumstances not covered by this section.

(C) A person who obtains the permission required under division (A) of this section shall carry it with the person at all times during which the person is engaged in an activity for which the permission is required and shall exhibit it upon request of a wildlife officer, constable, sheriff, deputy sheriff, police officer, other law enforcement officer, or the owner of the lands, pond, lake, or private waters on which the person is hunting or trapping or the owner’s authorized agent.

Effective Date: 06-01-1998

(A) No person, in the act of hunting, pursuing, taking, or killing a wild animal, shall act in a negligent, careless, or reckless manner so as to injure persons or property.

(B) The court before whom any person is convicted of or pleads guilty to a violation of division (A) of this section shall report that fact, together with the violator’s name and address, to the chief of the division of wildlife not later than ten days after the date of conviction or plea.

(C) Not later than seven days after receiving a notification under division (B) of this section, the chief shall revoke, for not less than one year nor more than five years, each hunting license, fur taker permit, deer permit, wild turkey permit, and wetlands habitat stamp issued to that person under this chapter. No fee paid for such a license, permit, or stamp shall be returned to the person.

Upon revoking a license, permit, or stamp, or a combination thereof, under this division, the chief immediately shall send a notice of that action by certified mail to the last known address of the person. The notice shall state the action taken, order the person to surrender the revoked license, permit, or stamp, or combination thereof, and state that the department of natural resources will not afford a hearing as required under section 119.06 of the Revised Code.

(D) If, after receiving a notice under division (C) of this section, the person decides to petition for a review of the revocation, the person shall file a petition for such a review not later than thirty days after receiving the notice in the municipal court or the county court, or, if the person is under eighteen years of age, the juvenile court, in whose jurisdiction the violation occurred. The review shall be limited to the question of the appropriateness of the period of revocation. The court shall send a copy of the petition to the chief by certified mail together with timely notice of the date, time, and place of a hearing on the petition. The filing of a petition for a review shall not stay the revocation during the pendency of the appeal.

(E) No person whose license, permit, or stamp, or a combination thereof, has been revoked under this section shall attempt to purchase, purchase, apply for, or receive any hunting license, fur taker permit, deer permit, wild turkey permit, or wetlands habitat stamp issued under this chapter or engage in hunting during the time any such license, permit, or stamp, or a combination thereof, is revoked.

Effective Date: 03-18-1999; 04-06-2007

As used in sections 1533.18 and 1533.181 of the Revised Code:

(A) “Premises” means all privately owned lands, ways, and waters, and any buildings and structures thereon, and all privately owned and state-owned lands, ways, and waters leased to a private person, firm, or organization, including any buildings and structures thereon.

(B) “Recreational user” means a person to whom permission has been granted, without the payment of a fee or consideration to the owner, lessee, or occupant of premises, other than a fee or consideration paid to the state or any agency of the state, or a lease payment or fee paid to the owner of privately owned lands, to enter upon premises to hunt, fish, trap, camp, hike, or swim, or to operate a snowmobile, all-purpose vehicle, or four-wheel drive motor vehicle, or to engage in other recreational pursuits.

(C) “All-purpose vehicle” has the same meaning as in section 4519.01 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 04-09-2003; 04-07-2005; 2007 HB67 07-03-2007

(A) No owner, lessee, or occupant of premises:

(1) Owes any duty to a recreational user to keep the premises safe for entry or use;

(2) Extends any assurance to a recreational user, through the act of giving permission, that the premises are safe for entry or use;

(3) Assumes responsibility for or incurs liability for any injury to person or property caused by any act of a recreational user.

(B) Division (A) of this section applies to the owner, lessee, or occupant of privately owned, nonresidential premises, whether or not the premises are kept open for public use and whether or not the owner, lessee, or occupant denies entry to certain individuals.

Effective Date: 09-29-1995

Except as otherwise provided by division rule, recognized field trial clubs may shoot domestically raised quails, chukar partridges, ducks, pheasants, or other game birds and common pigeons at any time during the daylight hours from the first day of September to the thirtieth day of April of the following year, both dates inclusive. Such domestically raised quails, chukar partridges, ducks, pheasants, and other game birds shall be banded prior to release and approved by the division of wildlife for field trial use, provided that permission for the holding of such a trial shall be obtained from the division. Permission shall be requested in writing at least thirty days in advance of the trial. The request shall contain the name of the recognized field trial club and the names of its officers, the date and location of the trial, and the name of the licensed breeders from whom the quails, chukar partridges, ducks, pheasants, or other game birds will be obtained. The division may grant a written permit when it is satisfied that the trial is a bona fide one conducted by a bona fide club under this section. When an application is approved, a permit shall be issued after the payment of a fee of fifty dollars for each day upon which the trials are conducted. Participants in such trials need not possess a hunter’s license while participating in the trials. The division shall supervise all such trials and shall enforce all laws and division rules governing them. If unbanded quails, chukar partridges, ducks, pheasants, or other game birds are accidentally shot during such trials, they immediately shall be replaced by the club by the releasing of an equal number of live quails, chukar partridges, ducks, pheasants, or other game birds under the supervision of the division.

Effective Date: 09-26-2003

Organized field trial clubs or individuals may purchase domestically raised quails, chukar partridges, pheasants, black and mallard ducks, and other game birds from licensed breeders, and may shoot quails, chukar partridges, pheasants, ducks, or other game birds and common pigeons that are approved by the division of wildlife at any time during the daylight hours, only on grounds designated by the division of wildlife as “dog training grounds,” and only as provided in this section and under such additional regulations as the chief of the division of wildlife may prescribe subject to sections 119.01 to 119.13, inclusive, of the Revised Code, for the purpose of the establishment, operation and control of such areas as he deems necessary. Failure to comply with all rules and regulations established by the chief of the division of wildlife pursuant to this section shall be sufficient cause for refusal to issue a permit or for revocation of an existing permit.

Bands furnished by the division of wildlife, shall be used to designate each quail, chukar partridge, pheasant, duck, or other game bird used on such designated grounds and shall be attached to quails, chukar partridges, pheasants, ducks, or other game birds, as prescribed by the chief of the division of wildlife, prior to being released. The division of wildlife shall provide such bands and collect a nominal fee for each band.

If unbanded wild quails, chukar partridges, pheasants, ducks, or other game birds are accidentally shot on such grounds they shall be immediately banded with a band furnished by the division of wildlife and be replaced by releasing an equal number of live quails, chukar partridges, pheasants, ducks, or other game birds under the supervision of the division of wildlife.

“Designated grounds” are areas of land not exceeding fifty acres where permission from the owner or lessee has first been obtained and the exact location and description of the area together with the name of the club or individual operator has been furnished in writing to the division of wildlife. The division shall formulate and provide suitable signs to be placed around the boundaries of such grounds and a nominal fee shall be collected for such signs. The division may then issue a permit, which shall expire at midnight on the thirtieth day of April following the date of issuance, when it is satisfied that the use thereof is a bona fide use in accordance with the provisions of this section.

Any permit issued to a club or individual under the provisions of this section may be revoked at any time for cause, by the chief of the division of wildlife, and no other permit shall be issued to such club or individual during the period for which such revoked permit was issued.

Each quail, chukar partridge, pheasant, duck, or other game bird or common pigeon taken in violation of this section constitutes a separate offense.

Dog training grounds shall not be used to conduct shooting trials except as provided in section 1533.19 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 11-25-1969

The division of wildlife may acquire by gift, lease, or purchase lands to be used and developed for the purpose of conducting field trials for dogs. The division shall set aside field trial areas on lands owned or controlled by the state in each of the conservation districts, when such lands are available for that purpose, whereon field trials for dogs may be conducted. The areas also may be used by the division for the propagation of wildlife and for wildlife experimental purposes, provided that the experiments do not interfere with the use thereof for field trials. Clubs and individuals may be granted permission to stock such areas with wild game and provide food and shelter for that game.

Any organization or person desiring to hold a field trial on any of such areas shall file a request in writing with the division. The division shall grant a written permit when it is satisfied that the field trial to be conducted is a bona fide one.

Effective Date: 10-20-1994

A club or an association organized to conduct field trials which has acquired through purchase, lease, or other agreement with owners or lessees an area of land for a period of not less than twelve months may apply to the division of wildlife to have such area designated as a field trial area for the period of the control of such land by such club or organization or any extended period thereof. The division shall satisfy itself that said area is available to such club or organization for field trials during the period represented. If satisfied that the representation has been correctly presented, it shall certify such area as a field trial area for the period contained in the application or any extension thereof.

Effective Date: 10-01-1953

The division of wildlife shall provide suitable signs to be placed around the boundaries of field trial areas for public notice.

Persons following dogs on field trial areas at any time are not considered to be pursuing wild game with the intent of taking or reducing to possession. The division may grant permission to trap or otherwise destroy vermin on any field trial area only when the vermin is detrimental to the kind of game for which the field trial area has been established.

No person shall hunt or trap within a field trial area except in the manner provided by the division for state owned or leased field trial areas.

Effective Date: 10-01-1953

A nonresident of this state shall not exercise, train, or work a dog in this state at any time when residents of this state are prohibited from exercising, training, or working a dog in the state in which the nonresident resides, except as otherwise provided by division rule. Nonresidents may participate in bona fide field trials at any time after proper entry.

Effective Date: 10-20-1994

No person shall deal in or buy green or dried furs, skins, or parts thereof taken from fur-bearing animals of the state, except domesticated rabbits, without a fur dealer’s permit. Every applicant for a fur dealer’s permit shall make and subscribe a statement setting forth the applicant’s name, place of residence, and whom the applicant represents. Every applicant for a dealer’s permit who is a nonresident of the state, or who is a resident of the state and is an agent or representative of a nonresident person, firm, or corporation, shall pay an annual fee of two hundred dollars to the chief of the division of wildlife issuing such permit, and every applicant for a dealer’s permit who is a resident of the state shall pay an annual fee of seventy-five dollars to the chief issuing such permit. Every fur dealer shall operate under such additional rules as are provided by the chief the fees into the state treasury to the credit of the fund created by section 1533.15 of the Revised Code for the use of the division of wildlife in the purchase, preservation, protection, and stocking of fur-bearing animals and for the necessary clerical help and forms required by this section and section 1533.24 of the Revised Code.

All permits shall be procured from the chief and the application, license, and other blanks required by this section and section 1533.24 of the Revised Code shall be in such form as the chief prescribes. Each such permit shall expire on the thirtieth day of April next after its issuance.

Effective Date: 09-26-2003

Except as otherwise provided by division rule, every fur dealer shall keep a daily record on forms provided by the division of wildlife of all purchases and sales of furs, skins, or parts thereof of fur-bearing animals made during the previous year. The daily record shall include any pertinent information that the division may require. The information may include, but not be limited to, the number and kinds bought and sold, the dates of each purchase and sale, identification of all purchases from another fur dealer, and the state and counties in which the furs, skins, or parts thereof were taken. Every fur dealer shall submit completed forms to the division of all transactions made during the preceding season by the fifteenth day of May each year. All records required to be maintained by a fur dealer shall be open at all reasonable times to inspection by duly authorized division personnel who may inspect the furs, skins, or parts thereof on hand at any time and check and verify the records and reports required to be kept.

No common carrier shall knowingly ship or transport or receive for transportation or shipment any green or dried furs, skins, or parts thereof of fur-bearing animals unless there is plainly written thereon the name of the shipper and the number of the shipper’s hunting license or fur dealer’s permit.

Effective Date: 03-18-1999

Effective Date: 01-01-1974

The state hereby assents to the provisions of the act of congress entitled “An act to provide that the United States shall aid the states in wildlife restoration projects, and for other purposes,” approved September 2, 1937, Public Law Number 415, as amended; and to the provisions of the act of congress entitled “An act to provide that the United States shall aid the states in fish restoration and management projects and for other purposes,” approved August 9, 1950, Public Law Number 681, as amended.

The division of wildlife shall perform such acts as are necessary to the conduct and establishment of cooperative wildlife and fish restoration projects, as defined in said acts of congress, in compliance with said acts and with rules of the secretary of interior thereunder. No funds accruing to the state from license fees paid by hunters, trappers, or fishermen shall be diverted for any other purpose than the administration of the division of wildlife pursuant to Chapters 1531. and 1533. of the Revised Code.

The chief of the division of wildlife with the approval of the director may enter into agreements and participate in federal aid fish and wildlife programs, including, but not limited to:

(A) “Federal Aid To Wildlife Restoration Act,” Public Law Number 75-415 as amended;

(B) “Fish Restoration and Management Act,” Public Law Number 81-681 as amended;

(C) “Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act,” Public Law Number 96-366;

(D) “Endangered Species Act (wild animals),” Public Law Number 93-205 as amended;

(E) “Anadromous Fish Conservation Act,” Public Law Number 89-304 as amended;

(F) “Commercial Fisheries Research and Development Act,” Public Law Number 88-309 as amended.

The chief of the division, with the approval of the director, may, as he deems appropriate, further enter into agreements for the purpose of obtaining financial assistance to benefit fish and wild animals in Ohio.

Effective Date: 11-15-1981

The finding of a gun, net, seine, boat, trap, or other device that is set, maintained, used, or had in possession in violation of the Revised Code or division rule is prima-facie evidence of the guilt of the person setting, maintaining, using, or possessing that property. The finding of a wild animal, or part thereof, unlawfully in the possession of any person is prima-facie evidence of the guilt of that person.

Effective Date: 10-20-1994

No person shall receive for transportation, transport, or cause to be transported any box, package, or other receptacle containing fish, game birds, or wild quadruped[s], or any part thereof, unless such box, package, or receptacle bears a label showing the number and kind of such fish, game birds, or wild quadrupeds, or parts thereof, the name of the consignor and consignee, the initial point of billing, and the destination. Boxes, packages, or receptacles containing shipments of commercial fish may be marked by weight instead of the number of fish contained therein.

No person shall receive for transportation, transport, cause to be transported, or have in his possession with intent to transport or secure the transportation of, beyond the limits of this state, any game bird or game quadruped mentioned in Chapters 1531. and 1533. of the Revised Code, which has been killed in this state.

The reception and acceptance by any person within this state of such game bird or game quadruped for shipment to a point without the state is prima-facie evidence that it was killed within the state for conveyance beyond the limits thereof. If such game bird or game quadruped is legally taken by a nonresident, it may be transported by him from a point within the state to a point without the state, if it is accompanied by the actual owner thereof, and the owner has procured a nonresident hunting and trapping license. If such game bird or game quadruped is taken by a resident of this state in any other state or country, it may be transported by him from a point without the state to a point within the state, if the owner has an affidavit or other satisfactory evidence together with a nonresident license from the state or country in which such game bird or game quadruped was taken as proof of legal ownership.

This section does not apply to a common carrier into whose possession a game bird or game quadruped has come for transportation in the regular course of business, while such game bird or game quadruped is in transit through this state from a point without this state where the killing thereof is lawful to a point without this state.

Each game bird or game quadruped killed, taken, had in possession, received for transportation, or transported contrary to this section constitutes a separate offense.

Effective Date: 11-20-1973

Any person may apply for a permit to transport fish that are for sale, sold, or purchased. The chief of the division of wildlife shall issue an annual permit granting the applicant the privilege to transport such fish, upon filing of an application on a form prescribed by the chief and payment of a fee of sixty-five dollars. No person shall transport any fish or part thereof that is for sale, sold, or purchased, whether acquired in or outside this state, unless the consignor has a permit for the calendar year in which the fish is transported, except that no such permit is required for any of the following:

(A) Fish transported from a point outside this state to another point outside this state if the fish are not unloaded in this state. A fish is not to be considered unloaded for purposes of this section if it remains under the control of a common carrier.

(B) Fish being transported by a person holding a valid license under section 1533.34 of the Revised Code from the place of taking to the person’s usual place of processing or temporary storage as designated by the person in the application for the license under that section;

(C) Fish being transported from a premises designated in a valid permit issued under section 1533.631 of the Revised Code to a premises where fish are to be sold at retail, sold for immediate consumption, or consumed if inspection of the designated premises as required by that section has not been denied during the preceding thirty days;

(D) Any quantity of fish the total weight of which does not exceed five hundred pounds in one vehicle;

(E) Minnows for which a permit is required under section 1533.40 of the Revised Code.

If a fish for which a permit is required under this section is transported in this state from a consignor who does not have a valid permit at the time of transportation, or if such a fish is transported in this state from a consignor who has a valid permit at the time of transportation, but the fish is part of the contents of a box, package, or receptacle that was or could be the basis for conviction of a violation of this chapter or a division rule, the fish may be seized by any law enforcement officer authorized by section 1531.13 of the Revised Code to enforce laws and division rules, and the fish shall escheat to the state unless a court of this state makes a specific finding that the consignor at the time of seizure had a valid permit under this section and that the fish are lawful under the requirements of this chapter or a division rule relating thereto.

A fish for which a permit is required under this section may be transported only if each box, package, or other receptacle bears a label showing the total weight in pounds, the species of the fish, the name of the consignor and consignee, the initial point of billing, the destination, and a statement that each species of fish by weight in the box, package, or other receptacle that are undersized under section 1533.63 of the Revised Code or division rule is ten per cent or less or is in excess of ten per cent, whichever the fact may be. If fish are not boxed or packaged, each compartment of a tank or other receptacle shall be considered a separate receptacle, but in lieu of a label on the compartment or tank a written statement containing the same information required to be contained on a label, and clearly identifying the tank or receptacle concerned, may be carried in the vehicle. Species may be designated in any manner, but the label also shall bear either the common name indicated in section 1533.63 of the Revised Code or the scientific name contained in section 1531.01 of the Revised Code. The consignor shall ascertain that labels are attached or statements carried as required herein and that the facts stated thereon are true.

The permit required by this section may be suspended by the chief for a period not to exceed five days upon conviction of the permittee of a violation of this chapter or Chapter 1531. of the Revised Code or a division rule if the permittee has been convicted of another such violation during the preceding twelve-month period. If the permittee has had two or more such convictions during the twelve-month period preceding such a conviction, the permittee’s permit may be suspended as provided herein for a period not to exceed twenty days. A permit is invalid during the period of suspension, but in no case is a permit invalid until fifteen days after mailing by certified mail a notice of the rule of suspension by the chief.

The chief may not suspend more than one permit of the same permittee, or suspend a permit of the same permittee more than once, for convictions resulting from violations that occur in a load in one vehicle.

A driver or other person in charge of a vehicle transporting fish that are for sale, sold, or purchased, upon demand by any law enforcement officer authorized by section 1531.13 of the Revised Code to enforce laws and division rules, shall stop and open the vehicle and allow inspection of the load, and any box, package, or receptacle, and the contents thereof, for the purpose of determining whether this chapter or a division rule is being violated.

The word “fish” in the English language, at least eight inches high and maintained in a clear, conspicuous, and legible condition at all times, shall appear on both sides of the vehicle body of all vehicles transporting fresh water fish in this state when the fish are for sale or sold, except those fish exempt from a transportation permit in divisions (A), (B), and (E) of this section.

The chief may refuse to issue a permit to any person whose purpose in applying for the permit is to allow it to be used by another person to whom a permit has been refused or revoked. The chief also may revoke a person’s permit when it is used for that purpose.

No civil action may be brought in any court in the state for the value or agreed price of fish that have escheated to the state under this section.

No person shall fail to comply with any provision of this section or a division rule adopted pursuant thereto.

In addition to other penalties provided in the Revised Code, the permit of any person who is convicted of two violations of this section that occurred within a twelve-month period is suspended upon the second such conviction by operation of law for a period of five fishing season days immediately following that conviction.

In addition to other penalties provided in the Revised Code, the permit of any person who is convicted of three or more violations of this section that occurred within a twelve-month period is suspended upon the third or subsequent conviction by operation of law for a period of twenty fishing season days immediately following that conviction.

During any period of suspension, no person shall use or engage in hauling or transporting fish with equipment owned, used, or controlled at the time of conviction by the permittee whose permit has been suspended.

Effective Date: 09-26-2003

The chief of the division of wildlife may permit or forbid or otherwise regulate the receiving of any species of live wild animals for delivery within the state and the shipping of such wild animals from any point in the state to any point within or without the state. Upon the establishment of such regulations, the chief of the division of wildlife or any person designated by him may seize, impound, destroy, or otherwise dispose of such wild animals when received, shipped, or transported in violation of such regulations.

This section does not authorize action to prevent, delay, or impede the transporting of such wild animals in interstate commerce by common carrier, providing neither the point of sending nor the point of receiving is within the state.

Effective Date: 09-30-1963

Except as provided in this section or division (A)(2) or (C) of section 1533.12 of the Revised Code, no person, including nonresidents, shall take or catch any fish by angling in any of the waters in the state or engage in fishing in those waters without a license. No person shall take or catch frogs or turtles without a valid fishing license, except as provided in this section. Persons fishing in privately owned ponds, lakes, or reservoirs to or from which fish are not accustomed to migrate are exempt from the license requirements set forth in this section. Persons fishing in privately owned ponds, lakes, or reservoirs that are open to public fishing through an agreement or lease with the division of wildlife shall comply with the license requirements set forth in this section.

The fee for an annual license shall be thirty-nine dollars for a resident of a state that is not a party to an agreement under section 1533.91 of the Revised Code. The fee for an annual license shall be eighteen dollars for a resident of a state that is a party to such an agreement. The fee for an annual license for residents of this state shall be eighteen dollars unless the rules adopted under division (B) of section 1533.12 of the Revised Code provide for issuance of a resident fishing license to the applicant free of charge. Except as provided in rules adopted under division (B)(2) of that section, each applicant who is a resident of this state and who at the time of application is sixty-six years of age or older shall procure a special senior fishing license, the fee for which shall be one-half of the annual resident fishing license fee.

Any person under the age of sixteen years may take or catch frogs and turtles and take or catch fish by angling without a license.

The chief of the division of wildlife may issue a tourist’s license expiring three days from the effective date of the license to a resident of a state that is not a party to an agreement under section 1533.91 of the Revised Code. The fee for a tourist’s license shall be eighteen dollars.

The chief shall adopt rules under section 1531.10 of the Revised Code providing for the issuance of a one-day fishing license to a resident of this state or of any other state. The fee for such a license shall be fifty-five per cent of the amount established under this section for a tourist’s license, rounded up to the nearest whole dollar. A one-day fishing license shall allow the holder to take or catch fish by angling in the waters in the state, engage in fishing in those waters, or take or catch frogs or turtles in those waters for one day without obtaining an annual license or a tourist’s license under this section. At the request of a holder of a one-day fishing license who wishes to obtain an annual license, a clerk or agent authorized to issue licenses under section 1533.13 of the Revised Code, not later than the last day on which the one-day license would be valid if it were an annual license, shall credit the amount of the fee paid for the one-day license toward the fee charged for the annual license if so authorized by the chief. The clerk or agent shall issue the annual license upon presentation of the one-day license and payment of a fee in an amount equal to the difference between the fee for the annual license and the fee for the one-day license.

Unless otherwise provided by division rule, each annual license shall begin on the first day of March of the current year and expire on the last day of February of the following year.

No person shall alter a fishing license or possess a fishing license that has been altered.

No person shall procure or attempt to procure a fishing license by fraud, deceit, misrepresentation, or any false statement.

Owners of land over, through, upon, or along which any water flows or stands, except where the land is in or borders on state parks or state-owned lakes, together with the members of the immediate families of such owners, may take frogs and turtles and may take or catch fish of the kind permitted to be taken or caught therefrom without procuring a license provided for in this section. This exemption extends to tenants actually residing upon such lands and to the members of the immediate families of the tenants. Residents of state or county institutions, charitable institutions, and military homes in this state may take frogs and turtles without procuring the required license, provided that a member of the institution or home has an identification card, which shall be carried on that person when fishing.

Every fisher required to be licensed, while fishing or taking or attempting to take frogs or turtles, shall carry the license and exhibit it to any person. Failure to so carry and exhibit the license constitutes an offense under this section.

Effective Date: 09-26-2003; 09-29-2005

Effective Date: 03-27-1979

Any person who is duly licensed by any state, district, country, or sovereignty other than this state to take or catch fish by angling shall be exempt from the provisions of sections 1533.32 and 1533.99 of the Revised Code, provided such person has complied with the law in regard to taking or catching fish by angling in the state, district, country, or sovereignty where he is licensed and complies with such law while taking or catching fish by angling in this state. Such exemption shall be operative only if the law of such other state, district, country, or sovereignty makes substantially like and equal exemptions to persons duly licensed by this state to take or catch fish by angling.

Reciprocal agreements between this and any other state, district, country, or sovereignty necessary to administer this section shall be made as provided in section 1533.323 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 09-05-1957

The attorney general, the chief of the division of wildlife and the director of natural resources may enter into any reciprocal contracts and agreements with the proper authorities of other states as are proper and expedient to regulate the taking or catching of fish by angling in any of the waters of this state and the taking and hunting of game of this state by residents of such other states who are licensed under the law thereof.

Said state officials may also confer and advise with the proper officers and legislative bodies of this and other states, and the District of Columbia, for the purpose of promoting reciprocal agreements under which hunting and fishing licenses issued to residents of this state shall be recognized by such other states and federal districts.

Effective Date: 06-04-1968

No person shall take mussels or sell mussels taken in this state.

Effective Date: 02-25-1998

All moneys derived from fishing licenses issued pursuant to section 1533.32 of the Revised Code shall be appropriated exclusively for the use of the department of natural resources for the following purposes:

(A) For the purchase, protection, propagation, preservation, and stocking of fish;

(B) For the construction of fish chutes and dams;

(C) For the securing of more public fishing waters including leasing, purchasing, or otherwise acquiring stream banks, bottoms, and marginal strips, headwaters and other lakes, ponds, quarries, gravel pits, and other suitable public fishing grounds with marginal strips as provided in section 1531.06 of the Revised Code;

(D) For the improvement of streams, lakes, and ponds, including food, cover, breeding conditions, erosion, and reforestation;

(E) For the cooperation with other agencies as provided in section 1501.02 of the Revised Code, to assist in stabilizing water levels and in controlling ditching, dredging, straightening, debrushing, the removal of aquatic vegetation in streams, and to assist in other proper land and water use problems to control stream, lake, and pond turbidities;

(F) For other practical fish management work including biological investigations and printing the summarized fishing laws, the fish and game lawbook, conservation bulletins, and practical fish management leaflets, pamphlets, and books;

(G) For promoting educational and research activities, other methods of fish propagation and fish culture, and other proper conservation activities;

(H) For use as provided in sections 1531.05, 1531.12, 1531.13, 1531.27, 1531.28, and 1533.67 of the Revised Code.

No funds derived from fishing licenses shall be spent for other than fishing purposes as defined in this section. Not more than twenty-five per cent of such moneys shall be used for the payment of administration or other overhead expenses of the division of wildlife and the wildlife council, and the remaining seventy-five per cent shall be used exclusively for the purchase, protection, propagation, preservation, stocking of fish, and for the purposes listed in this section.

Effective Date: 12-19-1986

No person shall use or operate, for the purpose of taking fish, a boat, net, or device other than a minnow net or hook and line with bait or lure, in any of the waters of the state wherein fishing with nets is licensed by law, without a license for that gear from the chief of the division of wildlife. The application for a license and all licenses required by section 1533.35 of the Revised Code shall be in such form as the chief prescribes.

When a person applies to the chief for a license, the chief may issue the license if the person satisfies the qualifications established in division (C) of section 1533.342 of the Revised Code and the chief receives the proper fees. Upon proof of violation of this section, the chief may refuse to issue or renew any license. A license shall remain in force and entitle the holder thereof to fish as permitted by law from the date of issuance to and including the last day of the season for which the license was issued. The license shall be carried by the operator of a boat, net, or other device while the boat, net, or other device is being used in fishing and shall be exhibited on demand to any wildlife officer, constable, sheriff, deputy sheriff, or other police officer, or the chief. No licensee shall fail to exhibit the license on demand to any proper officer. Each boat, net, or other device used in fishing contrary to this section and each net or other device used or operated without having the metal license tag attached thereto as provided by law constitutes a separate offense.

Nonresident commercial fishers and their fishing gear shall not be licensed to fish in this state unless a reciprocal agreement is in force. A resident who purchases commercial fishing gear from out of state, or purchases a boat that has been registered less than a year in the state, shall give bona fide evidence of ownership of at least fifty-one per cent of the boat or gear whenever requested to do so by the chief or the chief’s designated representative.

No person shall fail to comply with any provision of this section or division rules adopted pursuant thereto.

Effective Date: 10-20-1994; 2007 SB77 10-10-2007

The chief of the division of wildlife with the approval of the wildlife council, in managing the Lake Erie fishery resources, may utilize and establish by division rule a quota management system that shall consist of determining on a scientific basis by species and number or pounds the maximum allowable annual taking of those fishery resources or part thereof in order to prevent over exploitation of any species and assure the conservation and wise use of all species, and the determination on an equitable basis of the distribution of that maximum allowable annual taking between and within the sport and commercial fisheries.

The chief and the council, in determining and establishing the apportionment of the maximum allowable annual taking of a species between the sport and commercial fisheries, shall be guided by pertinent scientific, economic, and social data.

The chief and the council, in determining the distribution of the apportionment within the commercial fishery, shall consider pertinent scientific, economic, and social data.

No person shall fail to comply with any quota set pursuant to this section, other provisions of this section, or division rule adopted pursuant thereto.

No person who holds a commercial fishing license issued under section 1533.35 of the Revised Code and who uses trap nets shall harvest a quantity of yellow perch that is in excess of the amount of yellow perch that is allocated for the person’s commercial fishing license in accordance with the quota set pursuant to this section. In addition, no person who holds a commercial fishing license and no employee of such a person shall possess at the same time on a boat on the waters of Lake Erie any yellow perch that have been taken from more than one statistical district established under division rule for the purpose of implementing the quota set pursuant to this section.

Effective Date: 12-02-1996; 2007 SB77 10-10-2007

(A) The chief of the division of wildlife, with the approval of the wildlife council, may limit the type and number of commercial fishing licenses to be issued for fishing in the Lake Erie fishing district and other water wherein nets are licensed by law, except that such limitations shall not prohibit any person who was issued an Ohio commercial fishing license in the prior fishing season from being issued, upon satisfaction of the qualifications established in division (C) of this section and proper application, a license of the same type for the current fishing season unless the issuance of such a license is prohibited by this chapter or Chapter 1531. of the Revised Code or division rule.

In limiting the number and type of licenses, the chief and the council shall give consideration to the number and type of licenses needed to harvest the fish determined to be harvestable; the capacity of the boats and characteristics of the equipment owned or used by the applicant; and any other facts or data relating to the protection, preservation, management, and utilization of fish species in a biologically sound manner.

(B) The chief, in prescribing forms for license applications, may require the applicant to list information relating to the kind and condition of boats and fishing equipment proposed to be used by the applicant, port or ports of entry, years of commercial fishing experience, quantity and kinds of fish taken during the previous five years, conviction records relating to Chapter 1531. and this chapter of the Revised Code and division rules, and any other facts the chief determines necessary to assist the chief in determining whether or not the applicant may engage in commercial fishing in accordance with those chapters and division rules. All questions shall be answered fully and completely by the applicant. The application shall be sworn to and signed by the applicant before a person authorized to administer oaths.

(C) Any person, prior to making application for an Ohio commercial fishing license, first shall satisfy the following qualifications to the satisfaction of the chief: over eighteen years of age; no prior conviction of or plea of guilty on or after the effective date of this amendment to a felony concerning commercial fishing activities for a violation of state or federal law; ninety days Ohio residency immediately preceding application; two years commercial fishing gear experience or holder of an Ohio commercial license of another gear; and posting of a one thousand dollar performance bond or cash deposit in a like amount. In the event the person does not meet these pre-application qualifications or does meet those qualifications, but a license is not granted, the bond or cash deposit immediately shall be returned by the division. In the event the person is granted a license, the bond or cash deposit shall be held by the division during the term of the license.

(D) In determining the terms and conditions of any commercial fishing license, the chief, with the approval of the wildlife council, may do both of the following:

(1) Fix by species, the weight, number, or size of fish to be taken;

(2) Specify the home port and up to two alternate ports at which the licensee shall land the licensee’s catch, as listed on the licensee’s application.

(E) Any wildlife officer, or other division employee designated by the chief to inspect commercial fishing operations, may enter upon any property used, owned, or leased by the holder of a commercial fishing license and may inspect any boat, net, seine, or other equipment used in commercial fishing; any building or premises used to hold, store, repair, or build commercial fishing gear or equipment; and any building or premises used in boxing, storing, or processing fish. No person shall assault, threaten, abuse, or interfere with any wildlife officer or designated inspector when carrying out an inspection under authority of this section, nor shall any person prohibit such an inspection.

(F) No person shall fail to comply with this section or a division rule adopted pursuant thereto.

(G) No person having been issued a commercial fishing license shall fail to comply with all terms, specifications, and conditions set forth in the license.

(H)(1) In addition to other penalties provided in the Revised Code, the license of any person who is convicted of assaulting, threatening, abusing, or interfering with any person inspecting by authority of this section is suspended upon such conviction by operation of law for a period of eighteen fishing season months immediately following that conviction.

(2) In addition to other penalties provided in the Revised Code, the license of any person who is convicted of two violations of provisions of this section relating to inspection or term