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Volunteer urges Oneonta to amend city code to allow DEC-authorized deer management inside city limits
Summary
A volunteer deer coordinator asked the council to amend city code to permit participation in New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC)–authorized wildlife management within Oneonta, and asked staff to check whether proposed language complies with the Smithtown court decision.
Susan, speaking as the volunteer deer coordinator, asked the council to amend portions of the city code so the deer management plan can be fully implemented within city limits. She said she has been “working with the city’s attorney on…draft amendments” and described the change as an exception in several code sections to allow people to participate in a wildlife management program authorized by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and approved by the city.
Susan said the city’s online codification (eCode) is not yet updated to reflect the proposed language and that she has a follow-up question for a staff member she identified as Dave Merzick. She also told the council the plan contemplates the use of crossbows in a later phase, saying, “The plan calls for crossbows. That’s what I heard.”
Council members asked procedural questions: whether the proposed language designates public versus private land, how crossbows are described in the draft, and whether the proposal complies with recent case law. Susan said she is checking the Smithtown case (a New York State court case) and wants confirmation that the draft complies with that decision before the code is codified online.
No formal action or vote was recorded. Staff direction recorded in the discussion: staff and the city attorney will review the draft amendments, confirm whether the language complies with the Smithtown decision, and report back to the council. Susan said she will want to hear back after staff review.
Why this matters: Amending the municipal code to include a DEC-authorized wildlife management exception would allow elements of the city’s deer-management plan to be carried out inside city boundaries; whether the city can adopt the specific language depends in part on applicable case law and how the code defines permitted exceptions.
Next steps: Council members and staff agreed to revisit the amendments after the city attorney and staff confirm legal compliance and finalize codification for the online eCode. No ordinance number, vote tally, or effective date was given in the meeting.
