Clarify the minimum age requirements for a hunting license.
Summary
SB 41 clarifies South Dakota’s minimum age rules for hunting licenses and related hunting privileges. The bill amends several provisions in Title 41 to state that, except where otherwise provided, a person under age 12 may not be granted a hunting license, while a person age 10 or older may receive a hunting preference point. It also preserves a narrow exception for an 11-year-old who will turn 12 between September 1 and December 31, allowing that person to receive a license or preference point and begin hunting on September 1.
The bill also reinforces the hunter education requirement for youth hunters under 16, while keeping the mentored youth hunting license program in place. Under the amended law, a child under 16 generally must complete hunter safety or hunter education before receiving a resident or applicable nonresident hunting license, unless the child is hunting under the mentored youth license provisions. The mentored youth section continues to require adult supervision, limits each mentor to one child at a time, and allows the mentor to carry a concealed pistol or other legally possessed handgun.
Impact
SB 41 updates South Dakota Code chapters 41-6 and 41-7 by clarifying age eligibility for hunting licenses, preference points, and mentored youth hunting. It does not create a new licensing category, but it refines when children may obtain licenses and how the hunter education requirement applies. The bill affects youth hunters, parents or guardians, hunting mentors, and the Game, Fish and Parks Commission, which retains rulemaking authority over fees, eligibility, duration, and program conditions.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial. The recorded votes were unanimous or near-unanimous at each stage, with no recorded opposition in committee or on the floor. The lack of committee transcript discussion suggests the measure was viewed as a technical clarification rather than a major policy change.
Contention
There is little evidence of substantive contention in the available record. The main policy balance in the bill is between allowing limited early access to hunting opportunities for youth and maintaining safety requirements through hunter education and adult supervision. Any potential concern would likely center on the minimum age threshold, the special exception for 11-year-olds nearing age 12, or the scope of the mentored youth hunting program, but no organized opposition is reflected in the votes or transcripts.
A BILL for an Act to create and enact a new section to chapter 20.1-03 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to nonresident upland and small game licenses; and to amend and reenact section 20.1-03-07 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to nonresident hunting licenses.