2019 Connecticut General Statutes
Title 26 - Fisheries and Game
Chapter 490 - Fisheries and Game
Section 26-31 - Instruction in handling and use of hunting weapons. Required education course for reinstatement of suspended license.

(a) The Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection shall formulate conservation courses of instruction in safe trapping, hunting and archery practices and the handling and use of traps and hunting implements, including bow and arrow, for such persons as are applying for a license to hunt with firearms or to hunt with bow and arrow or trap for the first time and for minors who fall within the provisions of section 26-38, and shall designate one or more competent persons or organizations to give such instruction. Any person or organization so designated shall give such instruction online or in a classroom to any person requesting the same and shall, upon the successful completion thereof, recommend to the commissioner issuance of a certificate of completion to such person. Successful completion of such instruction for hunting license applicants shall include, but not be limited to, achieving a passing grade on an examination formulated by the commissioner, which shall include correctly stating in writing, or reciting orally, the regulations for hunting in proximity to buildings occupied by persons or domestic animals or used for storage of flammable or combustible materials and the regulations for shooting towards persons, buildings or animals. Any such person or organization may charge any person taking a course of instruction a reasonable fee, established by the commissioner.

(b) No firearms hunting, archery hunting or trapping license shall be issued to any person unless he presents proof in the form of a license or certified copy thereof that he has held a similar resident license to hunt with firearms or with bow and arrow or to trap within five years from the date of application in any state or country or possession thereof, or unless he presents to the town clerk a certificate of completion issued under subsection (a) of this section or an equivalent, as deemed by the commissioner, of such certificate. Each town clerk shall transmit all such certificates presented to him to the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection in connection with his report to the commissioner under section 26-36.

(c) Any person who obtains a firearms hunting, archery hunting or trapping license by giving false information or by presenting a fraudulent certificate shall be fined not less than twenty-five dollars or more than one hundred dollars and such license, or any such subsequent license procured by such person on the basis of any fraudulent statement or act in procuring such original license, shall be revoked and shall not be reissued for one year from the date of such revocation.

(d) Any certified conservation education-firearms safety instructor while giving such instruction and any person scheduled to receive such instruction may possess and transport shotguns and rifles on Sunday and on said day may discharge such firearms on any state-owned property with prior approval of the agency controlling such property and on any privately owned property with the permission of the owner, the provisions of section 26-73 to the contrary notwithstanding.

(e) There is annually appropriated to the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection from the General Fund the sum of fifty thousand dollars to be used by said department for the purchase of supplies and materials and necessary personal services in carrying out the provisions of this section.

(f) Any person who has been refused a certificate of completion under the provisions of subsection (a) of this section may appeal from such refusal to the commissioner, who shall make the final determination on issuance of such certificate to the applicant.

(g) Any holder of a hunting license which has been suspended under section 26-61, for a hunting safety violation as identified by the commissioner in the Hunting and Trapping Guide published annually by the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection or any holder of such a license which has been suspended under section 26-62 shall successfully complete a remedial hunter education course formulated by the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection and show proof that the hunter has successfully completed a conservation education-firearms safety course or its equivalent, as deemed by the commissioner, prior to any reinstatement of such license.

(1955, S. 2473d, 2474d; 1957 P.A. 638, S. 1; 1961, P.A. 133, S. 1; 415; 1963, P.A. 329, S. 3; 1967, P.A. 244, S. 3; 1971, P.A. 872, S. 230; P.A. 81-298, S. 4–7, 9; P.A. 82-366, S. 4; P.A. 85-22; P.A. 87-25; P.A. 91-378, S. 2; P.A. 97-250, S. 7; P.A. 00-142, S. 2; P.A. 11-80, S. 1; P.A. 14-201, S. 3.)

History: 1961 acts required course of instruction for minors “who fall within the provisions of section 26-38” and allowed instructors to charge $1 for course where previously no charge was permitted under Subsec. (a); 1963 act required course of instruction for first-time applicants for trapping license, made changes to reflect change to hunting and trapping license from separate license for each activity and clarified nature of combination license; 1967 act added reference to licenses for hunting only; 1971 act replaced references to board of fisheries and game with references to environmental protection commissioner and department; P.A. 81-298 mandated courses of instruction in safe trapping and archery and authorized persons or organizations to charge a reasonable fee for instruction in trapping only, deleting provision which had allowed $1 per person charge for hunting course in Subsec. (a), amended Subsec. (b) to require that license applicant must have held license to hunt with firearms within 5, rather than 10, years from date of application, amended Subsec. (e) by adding reference to trapping license, by imposing firearms restriction on a combination license which commissioner may require to be noted on a license and by deleting phrase which had made provisions inapplicable to use of bow and arrow in hunting, and increased appropriation in Subsec. (g) to implement the provisions of the section from $2,500 to $50,000; P.A. 82-366 amended Subsec. (a) to authorize persons giving instruction to recommend issuance of a certificate of competency by the commissioner of environmental protection where before the instructor himself issued such certificates, amended Subsec. (b) to allow equivalent courses as a prerequisite for a certificate of competency and deleted Subsec. (d) which had required the town clerk to note any restrictions on hunting and fishing licenses, relettering remaining Subsecs. accordingly; P.A. 85-22 replaced general requirement that person seeking license “to hunt or to trap” have held license “to hunt with firearms” with specific requirement that person seeking license for firearms hunting, archery hunting or trapping have held a similar resident license within 5 years; P.A. 87-25 amended Subsec. (b) by requiring proof of having held a license, eliminated Subsec. (e) concerning special insurance for conservation education-firearms safety instructors and deleted provision in former Subsec. (e) re appropriation to defray insurance costs, relettering the remaining Subsecs. accordingly, and substituted references to certificates of completion for references to certificates of competency; P.A. 91-378 amended Subsec. (a) to provide for certain requirements for passage of the examination required for a hunting license; P.A. 97-250 added new Subsec. (g) re completion of remedial education course prior to reinstatement of suspended license; P.A. 00-142 amended Subsec. (g) to require showing of proof of completion of a conservation education-firearms safety course prior to reinstatement of suspended license; pursuant to P.A. 11-80, “Commissioner of Environmental Protection” and “Department of Environmental Protection” were changed editorially by the Revisors to “Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection” and “Department of Energy and Environmental Protection”, respectively, effective July 1, 2011; P.A. 14-201 amended Subsec. (a) by adding provision re instruction online or in a classroom, authorizing charge of reasonable fee for any course of instruction, rather than a course of instruction in trapping, and providing that reasonable fee be established by commissioner, rather than by regulation adopted pursuant to Ch. 54.