North Carolina § 113-270 - 1D. Sportsman licenses.

§ 113-270. 1D. Sportsman licenses.

Annual Sportsman License -. $50.00. This license shall be issued only to an individual resident of the State and entitles the licensee to take all wild animals and wild birds, including waterfowl, by all lawful methods, except trapping, in all open seasons, and to fish with hook and line for all fish in all inland and joint fishing waters, including public mountain trout waters, but does not entitle the licensee to engage in fishing in coastal waters. An annual sportsman license issued under this subsection entitles the licensee to access and use Wildlife Resources Commission Property. Lifetime Sportsman Licenses. - Lifetime sportsman licenses are valid for the lifetime of the licensees. Lifetime sportsman licenses entitle the licensees to take all wild animals and wild birds by all lawful methods, except trapping, in all open seasons, and to fish with hook and line for all fish in all inland and joint fishing waters, including public mountain trout waters, but do not entitle the licensee to engage in fishing in coastal fishing waters, except if the license was purchased before January 1, 2006, pursuant to G.S. 113-174.2(d)(2). A lifetime sportsman license issued under this subsection entitles the licensee to access and use Wildlife Resources Commission Property. Lifetime sportsman licenses issued by the Wildlife Resources Commission are: Infant Lifetime Sportsman License - $200.00. This license shall be issued only to an individual under one year of age. Youth Lifetime Sportsman License - $350.00. This license shall be issued only to an individual under 12 years of age. Adult Resident Lifetime Sportsman License - $500.00. This license shall be issued only to an individual resident of the State who is 12 years of age or older but younger than 70 years of age. Nonresident Lifetime Sportsman License - $1,200. This license shall be issued only to an individual nonresident of the State. Age 70 Resident Lifetime Sportsman License - $15.00. This license shall be issued only to an individual resident of the State who is at least 70 years of age. Repealed by Session Laws 2005-455, s. 1.7. effective January 1, 2007. Resident Disabled Veteran Lifetime Sportsman License - $100.00. This license shall be issued only to an individual who is a resident of the State and who is a fifty percent (50%) or more disabled veteran as determined by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs or as established by rules of the Wildlife Resources Commission. Resident Totally Disabled Lifetime Sportsman License - $100.00. This license shall be issued only to an individual who is a resident of the State and who is totally and permanently disabled as determined by the Social Security Administration or as established by rules of the Wildlife Resources Commission. Fallen Wildlife Officers Memorial Lifetime Sportsman License. - This license shall also be known as the John Oliver Edwards Memorial Lifetime Sportsman License and shall be issued free of charge only to a surviving spouse, child, grandchild, or great-grandchild of a wildlife enforcement officer killed in the line of duty. History (1993 (Reg. Sess., 1994), c. 684, s. 1; 1997-326, s. 1; 1999-339, s. 4; 2005-455, s. 1.7; 2013-283, s. 2; 2014-100, s. 14.25(e); 2018-82, s. 1; 2019-204, s. 6(c).) Editor's Note. - Session Laws 2005-455, s. 1.20, provides: "The repeal by this act of the statutory authority of the Wildlife Resources Commission to issue a type of license shall not affect the authority of an individual to whom a license of that type is issued prior to the effective date of the repeal to engage in the activity that the repealed license type authorizes so long as the license is otherwise valid." Session Laws 2005-455, s. 4.2, is a severability clause. Session Laws 2013-283, s. 21, provides: "All discounted licenses for persons at least 65 years of age provided for in G.S. 113-270.1D(b), 113-271(d), 113-351(c), and 113-174.2(c) for which the age requirement is increased from 65 to 70 by Sections 2, 7, 10, and 11 of this act shall remain available at age 65 for all persons who were born on or before August 1, 1953." Session Laws 2018-82 provides in its preamble: "Whereas, Deputy Game Warden John W. Hollowell lost his life in the line of duty on August 30, 1930; and "Whereas, Game Warden Joseph D. Whitaker lost his life in the line of duty on November 15, 1936; and "Whereas, District Game and Fish Protector W. I. Wright, Jr., lost his life in the line of duty on October 31, 1948; and "Whereas, Wildlife Agent Grover C. Quinn, Jr., lost his life in the line of duty on March 25, 1949; and "Whereas, Wildlife Protector William G. Holler lost his life in the line of duty on October 19, 1951; and "Whereas, Wildlife Protector Amos M. Bordeaux lost his life in the line of duty on April 10, 1962; and "Whereas, Wildlife Enforcement Officer John O. Edwards lost his life in the line of duty on August 3, 1963; and "Whereas, Wildlife Refuge Manager Dewey H. McCall lost his life in the line of duty on September 5, 1971; and "Whereas, Wildlife Enforcement Area Leader Troy M. Sigmon lost his life in the line of duty on September 1, 1978; and "Whereas, Wildlife Enforcement Officer Lloyd O. Mayse lost his life in the line of duty on November 27, 1980; and "Whereas, Wildlife Enforcement Officer William A. Williamson lost his life in the line of duty on December 4, 1985; and "Whereas, thousands of men and women proudly perform their duties as wildlife enforcement officers throughout the United States and the State of North Carolina; and "Whereas, Section 5 of Article XIV of the North Carolina Constitution declares it to be the policy of this State to conserve and protect its lands and waters for the benefit of all its citizenry; and "Whereas, Section 5 of Article XIV of the North Carolina Constitution also declares it to be the proper function of the State to preserve as a part of the common heritage of this State its forests, wetlands, estuaries, beaches, historical sites, open lands, and places of beauty; and "Whereas, G.S. 143B-135.42 provides that the State of North Carolina offers unique archaeological, geological, biological, scenic, and recreational resources and finds that these resources are part of the heritage of the people of this State and should be preserved and managed by the people for their use and for the use of their visitors and descendants; and "Whereas, the Wildlife Enforcement Officers of the Wildlife Resources Commission are dedicated public servants and work tirelessly to uphold these provisions of the State's Constitution and General Statutes, fulfill their duties to preserve our State's spectacular natural resources, and assure the safety of the State's citizenry in enjoying these resources; and "Whereas, the origins of the Wildlife Resource Commission may be traced to 1947, when the General Assembly established the agency to conserve and sustain the State's wildlife and inland fish resources; and "Whereas, the Wildlife Enforcement Officers of the Wildlife Resources Commission have responsibility for enforcement of the inland fishing, hunting, trapping, and boating laws throughout the State; and "Whereas, many Wildlife Enforcement Officers have been injured in the line of duty, and eleven Wildlife Enforcement Officers have lost their lives in the line of duty; and "Whereas, it is fitting to honor and commend the exemplary group of men and women who have served and continue to serve our State and nation and routinely endure dangerous and difficult conditions in the performance of their duties and those that have been injured and lost in the line of duty through service to their State and nation; Now, therefore," Session Laws 2018-82, s. 4, provides: "The Wildlife Resources Commission may adopt rules to implement this act." Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2005-455, s. 1.7, effective January 1, 2007, in subsection (a), substituted "licensee" for "holder" in the first sentence and added the last sentence; in subsection (b), substituted "Except as provided ... licensees to take" for "Lifetime sportsman licenses are valid for the lifetime of the holders and entitle the holders to take" and added the last sentence; in subdivision (b)(5), substituted "65" for "70" twice and "$15.00" for "$10.00" once; deleted former subdivision (b)(6), which pertained to disabled resident sportsman licenses; and added subdivisions (b)(7) and (b)(8). Session Laws 2013-283, s. 2, effective August 1, 2014, substituted "$50.00" for "$40.00" in subsection (a); substituted "$1,200" for "$1,000" in subdivision (b)(4); substituted "70" for "65" twice in subdivision (b)(5); and added "or as established by rules of the Wildlife Resources Commission" in subdivisions (b)(7) and (b)(8). Session Laws 2014-100, s. 14.25(e), effective August 1, 2014, added "who is 12 years of age or older but younger than 70 years of age" at the end of subdivision (b)(3); and made a punctuation change in subdivision (b)(4). Session Laws 2018-82, s. 1, effective July 1, 2019, added subdivision (b)(9). Session Laws 2019-204, s. 6(c), effective September 1, 2019, rewrote subsections (a) and (b); and deleted the former last sentence of subdivision (b)(7), which read: "This license remains valid for the lifetime of the licensee so long as the licensee remains fifty percent (50%) or more disabled."