HF275

The proposed bill in Minnesota makes several adjustments to the state's game and fish laws, particularly regarding trapping regulations. Here are the key changes:

1. Opening Hours for Trapping Seasons: The trapping season for fur-bearing animals now starts at sunrise on the designated opening day.

2. Tending Traps:

   • Restrictions on Using Lights: Traps cannot be tended using artificial lights between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. During permissible hours (5:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.), individuals on foot may use a portable light, but they cannot carry firearms, except for handguns or rifles that fire .17 or .22 caliber rimfire cartridges, including .22 magnum.
   • Body-gripping Traps: These types of traps don’t need to be checked more than once every third day.
   • Snares: Snares that do not drown the captured animal also do not need to be checked more frequently than once every third day. Captured animals must be promptly removed from the snares.

3. Setting Traps Near Water:

   • Generally, setting traps within 50 feet of any water body is prohibited within 30 days before the open season for mink and muskrat unless a special permit is obtained.
   • Exceptions allow for foot-encapsulating traps to be set in these locations without a special permit during the same period. These traps must have enclosed triggering and restraining mechanisms and an entry no larger than two inches in diameter.

4. Repeal of Existing Rule:

   • A specific Minnesota rule regarding the daily tending of snares not capable of drowning their catch is repealed, aligning with the less frequent tending requirements introduced in this bill.

This bill aims to modify existing wildlife trapping regulations to potentially streamline practices and clarify permissible equipment and methods for trappers in Minnesota.