SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Assemblywoman Heather Hadwick (R-Alturas) has introduced a bill that would bring back the use of hound dogs to hunt bears in California, and she will be holding a rally in Sacramento on Tuesday to kick it off. She won’t be alone, though, as the BEAR League and others against the bill will also be there to have their voices heard.
Hadwick is a first-term member of Congress who represents Lake Tahoe and a large swath of Northern California. In February, she introduced AB1038. It was amended on April 21, and it is now scheduled to be heard before the Assembly Water, Parks, and Wildlife Committee.
Hadwick was issued a permit to hold a rally on Capitol grounds before the bill is heard in committee on Tuesday, April 29.
She introduced AB1038, which would bring back the use of hound dogs to hunt bears in California, something outlawed for over a decade. Hadwick states she authored the bill to control the black bear population in the state.
“Bears are out of control in California, while rural communities live in fear of their lives and livelihoods. Wildlife managers need more tools to responsibly manage the bear population and protect the public,” stated Assemblywoman Hadwick. “This bill will keep bears wild and our communities safe.”
The BEAR League disagrees with AB1038 and will be testifying in opposition Tuesday.
“This bill would bring back the ability of hunters to use GPS-collared dogs to track and kill bears in California, a practice outlawed in 2012 and opposed by 83 percent of Californians surveyed,” said the BEAR League. “This is not hunting—this is animal cruelty, both for the bears and the dogs. And bears like little Mocha here have little chance to survive such odds.”
The BEAR league gives the public a few ways to help them – Call the committee members on the Water, Parks & Wildlife Committee, who are hearing the bill (see end of story). They will also be in Sacramento, in room 444 of the State Capitol. The BEAR League says the hearing has been moved to 11 a.m., but the legislature calendar still states 9 a.m. Hadwick’s rally permit states an 8:15 a.m. start time.
The amended Bill:
The Legislature finds and declares all of the following (additions in bold, eliminations with strike-through):
(a) California currently has more black bears than any other state in the nation contiguous United States, and their numbers continue to increase unabated statewide. (b) With black Black bear populations far are beyond the social carrying capacity of their traditional habitats, capacity, with bears are being forced into ranges occupying habitat they have never occupied before, including suburban and urban areas (c) Commensurate with the unabated increase in black bear numbers, incidences of encounters between bears and humans, and public safety concerns, have escalated statewide. (d) California’s first confirmed death due to attack by a black bear took place in 2024.(e) The Department of Fish and Wildlife has not updated the state’s Bear Management Plan (plan) since 1998. (f) The current overpopulation of black bears in the state will be confirmed via an updated plan that the department is on schedule to finalize imminently. (g) The final draft of the revised plan estimates the state’s black bear population at 60,000 to 80,000 bears, which is a two times higher than what the department previously estimated. (h) Because bears are apex predators, they have no natural enemies except humans. They are not managed by “nature,” rather humans must manage them. predators. Bear populations should be managed as other game animals through sustainable harvest. (i) Except for taking problem black bears with a depredation permit, there is no other way other than legal hunting to manage their numbers, ensure public safety, and keep bear populations in balance with the ecosystem and their prey. (j) Black bears were traditionally hunted in California via the using pursuit by dogs, which is by far the most effective method of take for harvesting bears. (k) Senate Bill 1221 (Chapter 595 of the Statutes of 2012), legislation which was lobbied on emotions and void of science, was signed into law in 2012 and 2012) prohibited the use of dogs for hunting and the simple pursuit of bears beginning in 2013. (l) Since the passage of SB Senate Bill 1221, annual bear harvest by hunters has been substantially reduced. (m) Since bears have not been pursued by houndsmen with dogs for over a decade, black bears have now lost the fear of humans or and dogs that historically have hazed helped keep them away from suburban or urban areas, resulting in escalating conflict between humans and bears and public safety concerns. areas.(n) California does not limit the number of bear tags they sell annually to hunters, with over 30,000 sold in 2024. (o) California does limit the number of bears that can be annually harvested by hunters at 1,700. (p) The annual harvest limit of 1,700 was set years ago when the state’s bear populations were much lower. (q) Before SB Senate Bill 1221 placed a prohibition on using dogs as a method of take for harvesting bears, the annual harvest cap of 1,700 bears was reached nearly every year. (r) Since pursuit by dogs was prohibited as a method of take for black bears in 2013 the annual harvest has typically been closer to 1,000 and never exceeded more than 1,441 bears. (s) As of January 8, March 18, 2025, the department is only reporting 808 972 bears harvested by hunters in 2024. (t)Before the passage of SB 1221, when pursuit by dogs was still an allowable method of take for bears and the 1,700 annual cap was regularly filled, the department recognized that more than 1,700 bears must be annually harvested to maintain black bear populations within the carrying capacity of their traditional habitats, and in balance with the ecosystem. (u)(t) Twice the department requested the Fish and Game Commission to increase the 1,700 annual harvest quota for black bears. bears to increase opportunity and to work towards reducing and balancing the population. Both times the commission rejected that request due to siding with the emotional objection of animal-rights interests. (v) (u) In addition to escalating threats to human safety, another consequence of black bear populations being out of balance with the ecosystem is the impact that has on other predator species, including mountain lions, and their prey. (w) (v) The final draft of the plan states that research has demonstrated that black bears “frequently displace mountain lions from their kills, a behavior called kleptoparasitism.” The final draft of the plan states that studies have “found black bears at 77% of mountain lion kills, and black bears displaced mountain lions from them 72% of the time. Black bear kleptoparasitism caused mountain lions to increase their kill rates substantially to recoup energetic losses to black bears and mountain lion kill rates in this system were the highest reported for the species across their range.” (y) (x) The steady increase in the population of black bears in our state is directly contributing to the undesirable changes the state is seeing in mountain lion behavior, the upsurge in conflict between mountain lions and humans, and the substantial increase in mountain lion depredation of livestock in the County of El Dorado. (z) (y) The final draft of the plan also notes that the overpopulation of black bears is putting severe stress on California’s deer populations. The plan states that “high rates of predation on deer fawns and kleptoparasitism of mountain lion kills by black bears have likely contributed to a declining deer population in this area.” (aa) (z) Additional research performed about a decade ago suggested that up to 80 percent of deer fawns are killed in their first 30 days of life by black bears. (ab) (aa) The inability of houndsmen to pursue bears with dogs for the past decade has substantially contributed to California’s perilously high black bear populations and dangerous changes in their behavior, resulting in an unacceptable increase in conflict between human and bears, human fatalities, crashing deer populations, and harmful impacts to mountain lions and other predators that compete for their prey.
SEC. 2.
Section 3960.7 is added to the Fish and Game Code, to read:
3960.7.
(a) As used in this section, the terms “bear” and “pursue” have the same meanings as defined in Section 3960.
(b) Notwithstanding Section 3960, a person may allow dogs to pursue a bear during seasons established pursuant to subdivision (c). A person shall not injure or kill a bear or allow a bear to be injured or killed while engaging in the activity authorized by this section.
(c) The commission shall establish seasons during which a person may allow dogs to pursue a bear pursuant to subdivision (b).
(d) This section does not authorize a person to allow dogs to pursue a bear in a game refuge or ecological reserve if hunting within that refuge or ecological reserve is unlawful.
SEC. 3.
Section 3960.8 is added to the Fish and Game Code, to read:
3960.8.
(a) As used in this section, the terms “bear” and “pursue” have the same meanings as defined in Section 3960.
(b) Notwithstanding Section 3960, the commission may establish a bear hunting season during which a person may allow dogs to pursue a bear pursuant to a tag issued pursuant to Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 4750) of Part 3 of Division 4 in any area determined by the commission.
(c) The commission shall not open a season pursuant to subdivision (b) until the department finalizes the update of its 1998 Bear Management Plan.
Papan, Diane (Chair) (21st District) (916) 319-2021
Gonzalez, Jeff (Vice-Chair) (36th District) (916) 319-2036
Alvarez, David (80th District) (916) 319-2080
Avila Farias, Anamarie (15th District) (916) 319-2015
Bains, Jasmeet Kaur (35th District) (916) 319-2035
Bennett, Steve (38th District) (916) 319-2038
Boerner, Tasha (77th District) (916) 319-2077
Caloza, Jessica (52nd District (916) 319-2052
Hart, Gregg (37th District) (916) 319-2037
Macedo, Alexander (33rd District) (916) 319-2033
Rodriguez, Celeste (43rd District) (916) 319-2043
Rogers, Chris (2nd District) (916) 319-2002
Tangipa, David (8th District) (916) 319-2008