Committee advances bill to move regulation of commercial deer ranches to agriculture department

House Bill 1668, which would move regulation of commercial deer ranches and hunting-harvest operations from the Department of Wildlife to the Department of Agriculture, was reported out of the House committee with a 6-0 vote.

Representative Cantrell, who presented the bill, said the measure is similar to language passed previously in HB 1229 and was filed at the request of ranch owners and whitetail associations. "This bill moves, deer ranches, hunting deer ranches from the department of wildlife to the department of ag," Cantrell said during her opening remarks.

The bill drew several rounds of questioning from committee members about what problem it seeks to solve and how regulation and licensing would be handled. "I've been in this business for over 30 years and I have not had a problem," Representative Cornwell said, pressing for specifics on the need for the change and how operators who only run hunting facilities (and not breeder operations) would be treated.

Cantrell said stakeholders asked for a single regulatory authority so operators would not have to navigate two departments. She acknowledged remaining questions about licensing and fiscal impacts and said she was "willing to work with you before this thing gets to oversight committee so we can make sure everybody's completely clear before this thing goes to the house floor." Cantrell also confirmed that an amendment that would have allowed some operators to choose regulation by wildlife or agriculture had been drafted but was not filed at stakeholders' request.

Committee members raised concerns about fees and budget effects. One member said he had heard a fiscal impact estimate "somewhere between 300,000 to 500,000," but the exact amount was not supplied in the hearing. Cantrell acknowledged concerns about license costs, saying, "Anytime we're talking about increasing licenses for hunting, that's a conversation that everybody needs to be a part of." She also corrected earlier wording, saying that if regulation moves to agriculture the proper term is "harvesting" rather than a hunting license.

After discussion, a motion for a "do pass" recommendation was made and seconded. The committee roll call yielded a 6-0 tally and the chair said the bill would be reported out of committee with a due pass. Cantrell said she would work with members to clarify regulatory roles and licensing language before the oversight committee stage.

The committee did not adopt any amendments on the floor during the hearing; the draft amendment that would have given operators an option to remain under wildlife regulation was not filed.