Committee backs HB 111 to cap harvest late fees, modernize DWR notices and add grizzly response tools

Representative Belinda Bolander presented House Bill 111, a cleanup bill that would cap late reporting fees for wildlife harvest reports, require the Division of Wildlife Resources to post property-acquisition notices on its website in addition to the state public-notice site, and provide the division limited tools to address a rare grizzly-bear incursion into Utah. "It said you have failed to do your reporting, and it made me feel like I was gonna ding my credit or something almost," Bolander said when describing the current late-reporting notice that she said felt unduly punitive.

The bill would limit late fees on harvest reporting so they do not exceed $25; sponsors said the change responds to constituent complaints that the prior $50 penalty was disproportionate for general-season tags. Justin Shannon of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources told the committee the fee historically encouraged reporting: "We had the $50 fee on the books... it would make mandatory reporting," he said, explaining that a penalty often motivates compliance and provides data necessary for wildlife management. The bill also reduces the discharge buffer for firearms on Department properties from 600 to 300 feet in specific Wildlife Management Area contexts so older on-site structures do not unintentionally ban hunting on adjacent lands.

During public comment, Kirk Robinson of the Western Wildlife Conservancy sought clarification of the grizzly provisions, and Willis Lafebvre (Uintah Basin) urged alternatives to charging pocketbook fines. The committee moved a positive recommendation for HB 111 (moved by Representative Shallenberger) and approved the bill out of committee by unanimous voice vote. The committee recorded the action as a favorable committee recommendation; a roll-call tally was not specified in the transcript. The bill will proceed to the full House for further consideration.