2020 Georgia Code
Title 27 - Game and Fish
Chapter 3 - Wildlife Generally
Article 1 - Hunting
Part 1 - General Provisions
§ 27-3-15. Seasons and Bag Limits; Promulgation of Rules and Regulations by Board; Possession of More Than Bag Limit

1. It shall be unlawful to hunt the following game species at any time during the periods set forth below:
2. It shall be unlawful to hunt the following game species at any time during the period set forth below, except that it shall not be unlawful to hunt the following game species during such periods or portions thereof, and in such number not to exceed the following numbers, as may be designated by the board as open seasons and bag limits for such species:
3. In accordance with subsection (b) of this Code section and as may be appropriate, based on sound wildlife management principles, the board is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations establishing open seasons on a state-wide, regional, or local basis and establishing daily and season bag limits.
4. In accordance with subsection (b) of this Code section and in accordance with the framework of open hunting season dates for migratory game birds established by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and as may be appropriate based on sound wildlife management principles, the board is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations establishing methods of taking, daily and season bag limits, and open seasons for migratory game birds on a state-wide, regional, or local basis. The board is specifically authorized to promulgate such rules and regulations without complying with Chapter 13 of Title 50, the "Georgia Administrative Procedure Act"; and all rules and regulations promulgated by the board pursuant to this subsection shall be effective immediately upon adoption by the board.
5. It shall be unlawful for any person to possess more than the daily bag limit or more than the aggregate of the daily bag limits while in the field or while returning from the field to one's automobile or principal means of land transportation or to one's permanent abode or temporary or transient place of lodging or to a commercial storage facility or to a post office or to a common carrier facility.

Game Species Closed Season ------------ ------------- (1) Quail March 16 - Oct. 31 (2) Grouse March 1 - Oct. 14 (3) Turkey (A) Gobblers May 22 - March 14 (B) Hens All year (4) Deer Jan. 16 - Sept. 7; except that as may be appropriate, and based solely on sound wildlife management principles, the department may by rule extend the season by region, by county, or locale to Jan. 31 for archery only. (5) Bobcat March 1 - Oct. 14 (6) Opossum March 1 - Oct. 14 (7) Rabbit March 1 - Oct. 31 (8) Raccoon March 1 - Oct. 14 (9) Squirrel March 1 - August 14 (10) Bear Jan. 16 - Sept. 7 (11) Sea turtles and their eggs All year (12) Cougar (Puma concolor) All year (13) Alligators Nov. 1 - March 31 (14) Migratory game birds March 11 - August 31

Game Species Maximum Open Season Maximum Bag Limits Daily Season ------------ ------------------- ------- ------ (1) Quail Nov. 1 - March 15 12 No limit (2) Grouse Oct. 15 - Feb. 29 3 No limit (3) Turkey gobblers March 15 - May 21 3 3 (4) Deer Sept. 8 - Jan. 15; 12 12 except that as may be The department may appropriate and based by rule exempt deer solely on sound wildlife taken on department management principles, managed lands from the department may by the state-wide bag rules extend the season limit. by region, by county, or locale to Jan. 31 for archery only (5) Bobcat Oct. 15 - Feb. 29 No limit No limit (6) Opossum Oct. 15 - Feb. 29 No limit No limit (7) Rabbit Nov. 1 - Feb. 29 12 No limit (8) Raccoon Oct. 15 - Feb. 29 No limit No limit (9) Squirrel Aug. 15 - Feb. 29 12 No limit (10) Fox Jan. 1 - Dec. 31 No limit No limit (11) Migratory game birds Sept. 1 - March 10 Subject to limits set by the federal government and adopted by the board (12) Bear Sept. 8 - Jan. 15 2 2 The department may by rule exempt bear taken on department managed lands from the state-wide bag limit. (13) Alligators April 1 - Oct. 31 Subject to limits adopted by the board

(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a) and (b) of this Code section, it shall be unlawful to take the species designated below, except squirrels, by means of falconry at any time during the period March 16 through September 30; but it shall not be unlawful to take the species designated below, except squirrels, by means of falconry during the period October 1 through March 15. It shall be unlawful to take squirrels by means of falconry at any time during the period March 16 through August 14, but it shall not be unlawful to take squirrels by means of falconry at any time during the period August 15 through March 15 in such number not exceeding the bag limits for each such species as follows:

Game Species

Maximum Bag Limits

Daily

Season

(Code 1933, § 45-513, enacted by Ga. L. 1977, p. 396, § 1; Ga. L. 1978, p. 816, § 46; Ga. L. 1979, p. 394, §§ 1, 2; Ga. L. 1979, p. 678, §§ 26, 27; Ga. L. 1980, p. 95, § 2; Ga. L. 1980, p. 323, § 3; Ga. L. 1981, p. 798, §§ 9-12; Ga. L. 1982, p. 3, § 27; Ga. L. 1982, p. 1263, § 1; Ga. L. 1983, p. 3, § 20; Ga. L. 1987, p. 3, § 27; Ga. L. 1988, p. 323, § 1; Ga. L. 1988, p. 835, § 1; Ga. L. 1988, p. 848, §§ 4, 5; Ga. L. 1989, p. 253, § 2; Ga. L. 1989, p. 1552, § 3; Ga. L. 1992, p. 6, § 27; Ga. L. 1992, p. 2863, § 6; Ga. L. 2000, p. 1472, § 1; Ga. L. 2002, p. 1179, § 6; Ga. L. 2005, p. 1218, §§ 1, 2/HB 292; Ga. L. 2010, p. 952, § 4/SB 474; Ga. L. 2019, p. 808, § 5/SB 72; Ga. L. 2020, p. 827, § 4-2/HB 998.)

The 2019 amendment, effective July 1, 2019, in subsection (a), in the table, modified the Closed Season entries for items (4), (6), and (8), by substituting "except that as may be appropriate, and based solely on sound wildlife management principles, the department may by rule extend the season by region, by county, or locale to Jan. 31 for archery only" for "except that the closed season may be Feb. 1 - Sept. 7 in those counties specified as having an extended archery-only open season in paragraph (4) of subsection (b) of this Code section" in item (4), deleting ", for that area north of and including Haralson, Paulding, Bartow, Cherokee, Forsyth, Hall, Banks, Franklin, and Hart counties" in item (6), and by deleting ", for that area north of and including Carroll, Fulton, Gwinnett, Barrow, Clarke, Oglethorpe, Taliaferro, Wilkes, and Lincoln counties" in item (8); and substituted "Puma concolor" for "Felis concolor" in item (12); and, in subsection (b), in the table, rewrote the entries for items (4), (6), (8), and (12).

The 2020 amendment, effective August 5, 2020, deleted former subsection (g), which read; "(g)(1) The department shall report to the General Assembly on or before the fifth day of February of each year the estimated number of deer killed, by sex, in the immediately preceding season.

"(2) Upon completion of its annual analysis of data from the immediately preceding season, the department shall report to the General Assembly on the same day that it reports to the Board of Natural Resources each year the actual number of deer killed, by sex, in the immediately preceding season."

- Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 1987, "August" was substituted for "Aug." in paragraph (a)(14).

Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 1989, a period was deleted at the end of paragraph (b)(13).

- For article, "Game and Fish: Wildlife Generally," see 28 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 181 (2011).

RESEARCH REFERENCES

Am. Jur. 2d.

- 35A Am. Jur. 2d, Fish, Game, and Wildlife Conservation, § 52 et seq.

- Construction and application of statute or ordinance making possession of carcass of game, fish, or bird, or parts thereof, a criminal offense, 125 A.L.R. 1200.

Applicability, to domesticated or captive game, of game laws relating to closed season and the like, 74 A.L.R.2d 974.

Validity, construction, and application of state wildlife possession laws, 50 A.L.R.5th 703.