Legislators axe bear hunting season

HARTFORD — A bill called “An Act Concerning Bear Hunting” made it through a vote of the Connecticut General Assembly’s Environment Commission on March 28, but with a catch: there will be no general bear hunting.

Senate Bill 1523 was originally raised to promote the establishment of a bear hunting season to control the exploding black bear population in the state, which has led to more home entries and conflicts with farmers than ever before.

A contentious public hearing on March 24 saw residents across the state and on both sides of the issue deliver testimony on the bill with highly split opinion.

“The bill we passed today is no longer a bear hunt, despite the title,” said State Rep. Maria Horn, D-64, shortly after the vote was taken.

Horn said the bill was passed with substitute language, which is applied when a bill is amended after having been heard by the state legislature.

Horn explained that the new SB 1523 essentially updates legislation from 2023 that was similarly raised with the prospect of a bear hunt. By the time it was adopted, though, it only allowed self-defense killings to protect oneself, family or pets. It also established a program for farmers suffering depredation to their livestock or crop damage to apply for a permit to enable them to kill the bear.

Horn, whose Northwest Corner constituency sits in the heart of Connecticut bear country, said she had been told by area farmers that the permitting process under the 2023 law was laden with “unrealistic hurdles.”

The new bill allows farmers to take immediate action to protect their livestock, when before the law extended only to pets. It also enables farmers, with proof of bear damage to their crops or livestock, to preemptively obtain a permit for the next season if the bear were to return to the farm.

Connecticut, alongside Rhode Island, is the only state in the Northeast without a public bear hunting season. Horn said she was satisfied that farmers’ voices were being heard in this legislation, but expressed concern that since Connecticut lacks a hunt, the new legislation may push farmers “to the front lines in addressing these challenges.”

SB 1523 is not the only bear-focused bill with legs during this legislative session. House Bill 7051, which calls for a black bear management plan, has passed a Public Safety and Security Committee vote.

Presenting a broader scope than SB 1523, HB 7051 proposes a multifaceted and inter-organizational approach to “ensure public safety and the protection of property and maintain a sustainable black bear population in the state,” according to its statement of purpose.

With both bills having passed committee votes, they will now “be part of the conversation of what makes it to the floor,” Horn said.