§2706. Resident license and fee exemptions.

(a) Agricultural lands.--Unless the privilege to hunt or take furbearers has been denied, any person domiciled within this Commonwealth who has reached their 12th birthday and attained accreditation as provided in section 2704 (relating to eligibility for license) and, as a primary means of gaining a livelihood, is regularly and continuously engaged in cultivating the soil for general farm crop purposes, commercial truck growing, commercial orchards or commercial nurseries, as either the owner, lessee or tenant of these lands, or as a member of the family or household, or regularly hired help of the owner, lessee or tenant, shall be eligible to hunt and take furbearers on these lands, including the woodlands connected therewith and operated as a part thereof, without a hunter's or furtaker's license as required in this title. Any of these persons may hunt or take furbearers on detached land which is operated under written lease as a part of the same farm and is within ten air miles of the home farm. Any person eligible to hunt or take furbearers on these lands without securing the required license may also, by and with the written consent of the owner or lessee thereof, hunt or take game or wildlife upon any lands other than those publicly owned which lie immediately adjacent to and are connected with the lands upon which these persons may lawfully hunt or take game or wildlife without securing a license.

(b) Disabled veterans.--

(1) Any resident disabled veteran who has a disability incurred in any war or armed conflict which consists of the loss of one or more limbs, or the loss of the use of one or more limbs, or who is 100% disabled as certified by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, and who meets all other qualifications of this title and is otherwise mentally and physically fit, shall be issued a free regular hunting or furtaking license upon application to the commission or a county treasurer.

(1.1) Any disabled veteran who has a disability incurred in any war or armed conflict and possesses a disability rating between 60% and 99% as certified by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs and who meets all other qualifications of this act and is otherwise mentally and physically fit shall be issued a resident hunting or furtaking license at the cost of $1 upon application to the commission or a county treasurer.

(2) The application for the issuance of a license under paragraph (1) or (1.1) shall, in addition to the other information required by the commission, contain a statement that the applicant is a war or armed conflict veteran and that the qualifying disability was service incurred.

(3) The issuing agent or the commission may require the production of the discharge papers of the applicant.

(4) If a disabled veteran who qualifies for issuance of a license under paragraph (1) presents documentation to show that the qualifying disability is permanent, the county treasurer shall issue the disabled veteran a lifetime hunting or furtaking license.

(5) In a county where there is no county treasurer by virtue of a home rule charter or optional plan of government, the county official who performs the functions of a county treasurer and who has been designated an issuing agent by the commission shall issue licenses under this subsection.

(b.1) Prisoners of war.--A former prisoner of war shall be entitled to purchase a resident hunting license at the cost of $1 plus the current issuing fee upon application to the commission. An application under this subsection shall contain the same information as is required for other resident hunting license applications. As used in this subsection, the term "former prisoner of war" means an individual who was imprisoned by enemy forces while in the service of the armed forces of the United States as certified by the appropriate branch of the armed forces of the United States.

(c) Landowner antlerless deer license.--Eligible landowners who own 50 or more contiguous acres of land within any county where the landowners desire to hunt antlerless deer shall be entitled to obtain one antlerless deer license for that county, at the prescribed fee, issued to one and only one person whose name appears on the deed. These antlerless deer licenses shall be allocated in advance of their availability to the general public from the quota established by the commission for the county where the land is situated to landowners who meet all of the following requirements:

(1) The 50 or more contiguous acres of land are owned by a natural person individually or as tenants by the entirety, or by a corporation of four or fewer shareholders, or by tenants in common of four or fewer natural persons.

(2) The 50 or more contiguous acres of land are open to public hunting and trapping and shall remain open to hunting and trapping during the hunting license year for which the antlerless deer license is issued.

(3) The applicant for an antlerless deer license shall furnish proof of ownership of 50 or more contiguous acres of land to the county treasurer within the county where the land is situated.

(d) Owners or possessors of land open to public hunting.--A resident owner or possessor of land, comprising greater than 80 contiguous acres farmed under a conservation plan which does not conflict with the act of June 22, 1937 (P.L.1987, No.394), known as The Clean Streams Law, and which meets the requirements of 25 Pa. Code Ch. 102 (relating to erosion control), shall, if he permits public hunting as evidenced by enrollment in a Cooperative Public Access Program, be entitled to purchase a Landowners Hunting License at the cost of $3 plus the current issuing fee. The 80-acre requirement shall be exclusive of safety zones in excess of 20% of the total acreage. The license shall be issued to the owner or possessor or an immediate family member of either the owner or possessor living in the same household so designated by the owner or possessor in the case of a single owner or possessor and to the individual so designated in the case of more than one owner or possessor. No person shall be issued a hunting license under this subsection unless the person is 12 years of age or older, has met the requirements prescribed in section 2704 and has not been denied the privilege to hunt. A person entitled to receive a hunting license under this subsection shall certify to the commission in the form and manner prescribed by the commission that the land tract he owns or possesses is presently in his ownership or possession.

(e) Military personnel hunting licenses.--Resident military personnel hunting licenses shall be issued by the commission, county treasurer or issuing agent to persons who satisfy all of the following requirements:

(1) Are residents of this Commonwealth.

(2) Are on active and full-time duty in the United States Armed Forces.

(3) Are assigned to a facility outside this Commonwealth.

(4) Are on temporary leave in this Commonwealth.

Such persons shall comply with the regulations of the commission.

(f) Pennsylvania National Guard hunting licenses.--

(1) Pennsylvania National Guard hunting licenses shall be issued by the commission, county treasurer or issuing agent to any person otherwise eligible for a resident hunting license in this Commonwealth who provides documentation that within the previous 24 months the person was deployed overseas as a member of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard or Air National Guard on active Federal service for a period of 60 consecutive days or more or was released early from such service because of an injury or disease incurred in the line of duty. Only one Pennsylvania National Guard hunting license under this subsection may be issued for each qualifying deployment of a person applying for the license.

(2) The commission may promulgate regulations to implement this subsection.

(g) Reserve component of armed forces hunting licenses.--

(1) Reserve component of the armed forces hunting licenses shall be issued by the commission, county treasurer or issuing agent to any person otherwise eligible for a resident hunting license in this Commonwealth who provides documentation that within the previous 24 months the person was deployed overseas as a member of the reserve component of the armed forces pursuant to 51 Pa.C.S. § 7301 (relating to definitions) for a period of 60 consecutive days or more or was released early from service because of an injury or disease incurred in the line of duty. Only one hunting license under this subsection may be issued for each qualifying deployment of a person applying for the license.

(2) The commission may promulgate regulations to implement this subsection.

(Dec. 17, 1990, P.L.687, No.170, eff. July 1, 1991; Dec. 19, 1996, P.L.1442, No.184, eff. July 1, 1997; Dec. 30, 2003, P.L.436, No.63, eff. July 1, 2004; July 5, 2005, P.L.55, No.19, eff. imd.; July 5, 2005, P.L.56, No.20, eff. imd.; July 7, 2011, P.L.283, No.64, eff. 60 days; June 13, 2012, P.L.637, No.64, eff. imd.; June 26, 2014, P.L.803, No.80, eff. 60 days)

Notation

2014 Amendment.  Act 80 amended subsec. (b).

2012 Amendment.  Act 64 amended subsecs. (f)(1) and (g)(1).

2011 Amendment.  Act 64 amended subsecs. (e), (f) and (g).

2005 Amendments.  Act 19 added subsec. (b.1) and Act 20 added subsecs. (f) and (g).

1990 Amendment.  Act 170 added subsec. (d).

Cross References.  Section 2706 is referred to in sections 2701, 2704, 2705, 2709 of this title.