CARSON CITY, Nevada — A Senate committee cleared four bills Thursday addressing a plethora of animal-related issues including trapping laws, bear hunting, exotic pet ownership and feeding wild animals in the Silver State.
The Senate Committee on Natural Resources passed bills on all four topics just a day before the deadline for bills to clear committee. Some were heavily amended, however.
The bear hunt bill, SB82, was rewritten to resolution form. That means it does not force any action and will not be codified in state law, but it does advise wildlife officials to consider the concerns of bear hunt opponents. It also urges the Wildlife Commission to carefully review the impact of three consecutive bear hunts on the state bear population.
SB245 originally proposed to regulate the ownership of dangerous animals such as chimps, tigers or lions, but was amended to give counties control over exotic pet ownership regulations.
“It was ambiguous before who had control over these laws so this leaves the decision-making to the local level where it belongs,” said Sen. Pete Goicoechea, R-Eureka.
An effort to prohibit the feeding of all wild animals except birds — SB371 sponsored by Sen. Ben Kieckhefer, R-Reno — was altered to only prohibit the intentional feeding intended to attract big game mammals like deer, mountain goats and lions, elk, bears and bighorn sheep.
The bill exempts certain state and federal employees from the prohibition….READ MORE http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/3ab0d6bfa4724a4cbca2a6ac560b4d45/NV-XGR–Animal-Bills-Roundup