1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to game and fish; providing for the use of 
  1.3             motorized vehicles by disabled deer hunters; providing 
  1.4             criminal penalties; proposing coding for new law in 
  1.5             Minnesota Statutes, chapter 97B. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  [97B.107] [MOTORIZED VEHICLE USE BY DISABLED 
  1.8   DEER HUNTERS.] 
  1.9      Subdivision 1.  [PERMIT.] The commissioner may issue a 
  1.10  permit, without a fee, to a deer hunter with a permanent or 
  1.11  temporary physical disability to allow the hunter to use an 
  1.12  all-terrain vehicle or a snowmobile at any time for 
  1.13  transportation to and from a deer hunting location.  Application 
  1.14  for a permit under this section must be made to the commissioner 
  1.15  through the department's license bureau. 
  1.16     Subd. 2.  [REQUIREMENTS.] (a) To qualify for a permit under 
  1.17  this section, a person must provide the commissioner with 
  1.18  medical evidence of a temporary or permanent physical 
  1.19  disability, verified in writing by a licensed physician or 
  1.20  chiropractor.  The temporary or permanent physical disability 
  1.21  must significantly impair the person's ability to walk or the 
  1.22  person's ability to remain afield for more than 4.5 hours. 
  1.23     (b) A permit issued under this section must be used 
  1.24  together with a valid deer hunting license. 
  1.25     Subd. 3.  [DURATION.] The commissioner shall issue a 
  2.1   permanent permit to a person with a permanent disability.  The 
  2.2   commissioner shall issue a temporary permit, valid for the 
  2.3   applicable firearms deer hunting season, to a person with a 
  2.4   temporary disability. 
  2.5      Subd. 4.  [RESTRICTIONS.] A deer hunter who possesses a 
  2.6   permit issued under this section may operate an all-terrain 
  2.7   vehicle or a snowmobile at any time in an area open to firearms 
  2.8   deer hunting where the use of all-terrain vehicles or 
  2.9   snowmobiles is otherwise permitted for nonhunters.  The hunter 
  2.10  may not shoot from the all-terrain vehicle or snowmobile unless 
  2.11  the hunter possesses a permit issued under section 97B.055, 
  2.12  subdivision 3.  The all-terrain vehicle or snowmobile may be 
  2.13  used only for transportation directly to and from a deer hunting 
  2.14  location. 
  2.15     Subd. 5.  [PENALTIES.] A person who knowingly makes a false 
  2.16  application or assists another in making a false application for 
  2.17  a permit under this section is guilty of a misdemeanor.  A 
  2.18  physician or chiropractor who fraudulently certifies to the 
  2.19  commissioner that a person is disabled as described in this 
  2.20  section is guilty of a misdemeanor.