Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Predator Control Raccoon topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commission discusses year‑round raccoon hunting; asks agency to pursue statutory cleanup before policy change
Summary
Commissioners discussed requests to allow year‑round raccoon (and opossum) hunting on private land to aid predator control for turkeys. No policy change was adopted; commissioners asked TWRA and legislative staff to pursue statutory clarification and potential statutory repeal to enable future commission action.
The Tennessee Wildlife Commission engaged in a lengthy discussion about whether to allow raccoon and opossum hunting year‑round on private lands as a predator-control tool to benefit turkey populations, but took no immediate regulatory action.
Key points from the discussion - TWRA staff and counsel outlined statutory complexity. Two Tennessee Code Annotated provisions were cited during the meeting: 70‑4‑112 (authority to extend hunting or training seasons subject to conditions) and 70‑4‑122 (statutory provisions governing training seasons). Counsel said overlapping statutes and private acts create a “Swiss cheese” of regulations that complicate a straightforward commission action to change seasons. - TWRA wildlife staff noted the statewide taking season currently runs from the third Friday in September until March 15 with a separate private‑land take season dating earlier in the summer months for certain counties and that some WMAs and counties have separate rules. Trapping remains allowed year round. Agencies and commissioners discussed potential user conflicts on WMAs if hunting were opened year round because of concurrent dog‑training seasons and other user activity.
Commission direction - Commissioners did not vote to change season dates at the meeting. Instead they asked TWRA leadership, legal counsel and the agency’s legislative team to pursue statutory review and legislative action to clean up conflicting provisions and private acts so that the commission could consider consistent, statewide policy changes in future seasons. - Chief Benedict and legal counsel described a pragmatic path forward: begin legislative workflow and prepare amendments to proclamation language and statutes so that the commission could revisit the topic in a future season‑setting process.
Why it matters: Raccoon and opossum abundance is a recurring management concern for turkey production in some areas. Commissioners acknowledged differing views among hunters and noted the policy requires careful statutory analysis to avoid unintentionally contravening state law regarding dog training and statutory training seasons.
