2022 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; Deer Management Assistance Program

1. It shall be unlawful to hunt the following game species at any time during the periods set forth below:

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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:

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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.
6. 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:

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7. As may be appropriate based on sound principles of wildlife management, the department is authorized to establish a deer management assistance program, which may include fees and may prescribe property-specific bag limits without complying with the state-wide bag limit specified in subsection (b) of this Code section.

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 No closed season, except as may be adopted by the board (7) Rabbit March 1 — Oct. 31 (8) Raccoon No closed season, except as may be adopted by the board (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 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 The department may by rule exempt deer taken on department managed lands from the state-wide bag limit. (5) Bobcat Oct. 15 — Feb. 29 No limit No limit (6) Opossum Jan. 1 — Dec. 31 No limit No limit (7) Rabbit Nov. 1 — Feb. 29 12 No limit (8) Raccoon Jan. 1 — Dec. 31 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

Game Species Maximum Bag Limits Daily Season (1) Quail 12 No limit (2) Grouse 3 No limit (3) Rabbit 12 No limit (4) Squirrel 12 No limit

History. 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; Ga. L. 2021, p. 105, § 2-4/HB 362; Ga. L. 2022, p. 743, § 1/HB 1147.

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.”

The 2021 amendment, effective April 27, 2021, added subsection (g).

The 2022 amendment, effective May 10, 2022, in the table in subsection (a), substituted “No closed season, except as may be adopted by the board” for “March 1 — Oct. 14” in items (6) and (8); and, in the table in subsection (b), substituted “Jan. 1 — Dec. 31” for “Oct. 15 — Feb. 29” in items (6) and (8).

Code Commission notes.

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).

Law reviews.

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