HB 412 DE
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 7 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO HUNTING, TRAPPING, GAME ANIMALS, GAME BIRDS, DEER, AND PROTECTED WILDLIFE.
A state bill is a proposed law in a state legislature — separate from the U.S. Congress. Learn more →
Summary
Delaware House Bill 412 amends hunting, trapping, and wildlife regulations. The bill requires all hunters and trappers, including those exempt from licensing, to complete a Department-approved education program. It clarifies that dogs may be used to track or recover wounded or dead deer shot lawfully during open deer season, and it permits the sale of taxidermy and antlers from lawfully harvested deer. The bill also adds fishing, crabbing, and clamming to activities requiring a license and updates technical language governing the administration of drugs to wildlife.
AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill (from the OpenStates abstract — no full text available yet) — neutral, and may be imperfect.
Official abstract
This Substitute is different from the original bill in that it adds the activities of fishing, crabbing and clamming as requiring a license consistent with line 18 already in the code. The substitute also clarifies in section 2 that dogs may be used for tracking or recovering a wounded or dead deer that was lawfully shot during open deer season. Section 1 of this Act closes a loophole that allows hunters and trappers who are exempt from obtaining a Delaware hunting or trapping license to avoid completing a Department-approved hunting or trapping education program. Although many exempt hunters and trappers already complete these programs, this legislation codifies the requirement. This Act also updates and clarifies the statutory language governing administration of drugs to wildlife. Section 2 of this Act adds language to expressly permit the sale of taxidermy and antlers from lawfully taken deer. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform with the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
Sponsors (3)
- William J. Carson Democratic · primary
- Bryan Townsend Democratic · primary
- Brian Pettyjohn Republican · primary
Action history (6)
- May 21, 2026 was introduced and adopted in lieu of HB 412 · lower
- Jun 11, 2026 Passed By House. Votes: 39 YES 2 ABSENT · lower
- Jun 11, 2026 Assigned to Environment, Energy & Transportation Committee in Senate · upper
- Jun 18, 2026 Reported Out of Committee (Environment, Energy & Transportation) in Senate with 1 Favorable, 4 On Its Merits · upper
- Jul 1, 2026 Passed By Senate. Votes: 20 YES 1 ABSENT · upper
- Jul 23, 2026 Signed by Governor · executive
Full text
The full text hasn’t been imported yet. CivicGate fetches it from the state legislature’s published version documents — check now.
Comments
Data from OpenStates. View on OpenStates →
Comments