Lander County commissioners direct staff to draft ordinance allowing night hunting with thermal or night-vision scopes

Lander County commissioners voted Feb. 13 to direct staff to amend County Code 9.16.020 (discharge of firearms) to add a narrow exception allowing night hunting of coyotes, bobcats and badgers when hunters use night-vision or thermal optics, then return the draft for a second reading.

The item drew more than two hours of public comment and back-and-forth between ranchers, sportsmen and residents concerned about safety and land stewardship. Proponents argued the change would aid predator control and local hunting economies; opponents and several ranchers urged strict equipment and setback rules to reduce risk to people and livestock.

Daniel Goodwin, who addressed the board as a proponent, said the change is intended to provide a regulated option for predator control rather than allow an informal or dangerous practice: "We're not just night hunters trying to push day hunters out. We do both. It's about land management, conservation and predator control." He told the commission that modern thermal equipment makes it easier to identify targets and what lies beyond them.

Speakers representing hunting associations and ranching interests said night hunting can be more effective for reducing coyote populations, which they said are damaging livestock and local wildlife. George Forbush of the Nevada Predators Hunting Association said counties that removed nighttime restrictions saw a measurable reduction in fawn losses and better predator control. "By taking the night restriction off, they can now go out and they can hunt at night," he said, describing Elko County's experience.

Several ranchers and nearby residents expressed safety concerns and asked the commission to require minimum equipment standards and minimum distances from occupied dwellings. Paul Tamara of Tamara Ranches said thermal equipment and modern rifles can reach large distances and asked whether ordinance language could require optics capable of identifying a target and what lies behind it: "The first rule of gun safety is know what you're aiming your gun at and what is behind it," he told the board.

Commission discussion noted the range of local practice in neighboring counties — some use 1,500 feet or half-mile setbacks for rifles vs. shotguns, others restrict spotlighting seasonally — and emphasized the need for specific, enforceable language. Commissioner comments also raised enforcement practicality and the need to involve local ranchers and experienced night hunters in drafting precise distances, equipment minimums and other safeguards.

After public comment, the commission member who moved the measure directed staff to update the draft ordinance to include the exemption for night hunting with night vision and thermal scopes and to return with a plan and revised language for a second reading. The motion was seconded and the board voted in favor.

The commission did not adopt final ordinance language at the Feb. 13 meeting; rather, it directed staff to prepare a draft with clarifying limits and proposals for enforcement and bring it back for the formal second reading and vote.

The item was presented under agenda item 1.8; the public hearing and final ordinance language will be set after the draft is returned to the commission.