SPONSOR: Dinkins
COMMITTEE ACTION: Voted "Do Pass with HCS" by the Standing Committee on Rural Community Development by a vote of 13 to 0. Voted "Do Pass" by the Standing Committee on Rules- Legislative Oversight by a vote of 8 to 2 with 1 voting Present.
The following is a summary of the House Committee Substitute for HB 1320.
Currently, any person who intentionally or knowingly releases any swine to live in the wild or possesses or transports certain live wild boar without a permit from the Department of Agriculture is guilty of a class A misdemeanor. This bill also requires any person found guilty to provide $5,000 restitution for damages to the county commission of the county in which the offense occurred. The county commission must use the restitution as specified in the bill.
The bill also changes the term "feral hog" to "feral swine" and specifies that no person, except the landowner and his or her agent, may take or attempt to take a feral swine with the use of night vision, infrared, or thermal imaging devices. However, this does not prohibit a landowner or his or her agent from using such devices.
The bill also repeals the requirements for the Department of Agriculture to promulgate rules relating to fencing and health standards for certain wild boar and swine held on private property.
This bill is similar to HB 508 (2021) .
The following is a summary of the public testimony from the committee hearing. The testimony was based on the introduced version of the bill.
PROPONENTS: Supporters say that the feral swine population has increased greatly over the last decade and has created many problems in parts of the state. However, much of the efforts to reduce or eradicate the feral swine populations are lacking input from local residents and elected officials.
Testifying for the bill were Representative Dinkins and Joe Loyd, Reynolds County. Additional written testimony was submitted in support of the bill.
OPPONENTS: There was no opposition voiced to the committee. OTHERS: Others testifying on the bill spoke to the Department's efforts to reduce the feral swine populations in the state. However, those testifying also expressed concerns with the definition of feral swine and the replacement of intentionally with recklessly.
Testifying on the bill were Missouri Department of Conservation and Missouri Farm Bureau.
Written testimony has been submitted for this bill. The full written testimony can be found under Testimony on the bill page on the House website.
Statutes affected: