EnCon Police Moderator
Registered: 03/01/04
Posts: 3899
Yes, you get your license for free but not the tags. The statute that provides for the free license is specific in it's language. It provides for free licenses but does not address deer/turkey/pheasant tags/permits/stamps as they fall under a different statute. For them to be free the legislature would have to change the statute to reflect the fee change. The applicable statutes and regulations are below. You can see that the statute (26-28) specifically lists a $0 fee for lifetime licenses. The regulations do not, in fact they specifically require the permit as they do not exempt lifetime license holders like 26-28 does.
Sec. 26-28. Hunting, trapping and sport fishing license fees. (a) Except as provided in subsection (b), the fees for firearms hunting, archery hunting, trapping and sport fishing licenses or for the combination thereof shall be as follows: (1) Resident firearms hunting license, ten dollars; (2) resident fishing license, fifteen dollars; (3) resident combination license to firearms hunt and fish, twenty-one dollars; (4) resident trapping license, twenty dollars; (5) resident junior trapping license for persons under sixteen years of age, three dollars; (6) junior firearms hunting license, three dollars; (7) persons sixty-five years of age and over who have been residents of this state for not less than one year and who meet the requirements of subsection (b) of section 26-31may be issued a lifetime license to firearms hunt or to fish or combination license to fish and firearms hunt or a license to trap without fee; (8) nonresident firearms hunting license, forty-two dollars; (9) nonresident fishing license, twenty-five dollars; (10) nonresident fishing license for a period of three consecutive days, eight dollars; (11) nonresident combination license to firearms hunt and fish, fifty-five dollars, and (12) nonresident trapping license, two hundred dollars. The issuing agency shall indicate on a combination license the specific purpose for which such license is issued. The town clerk shall retain a recording fee of one dollar for each license issued by him. (b) Any nonresident residing in one of the New England states or the state of New York may procure a license to hunt or to fish or to hunt and fish for the same fee or fees as a resident of this state if he is a resident of a state the laws of which allow the same privilege to residents of this state.
26-48a-2. Fees for permits to hunt wild turkey The fee for a permit to hunt wild turkey on state-owned and private lands shall be ten dollars for spring season permits and five dollars for fall season permits.
26-48a-3. Migratory Bird Harvest Permit (a) No person required to be licensed under section 26-27 of the Connecticut General Statutes as amended shall hunt, possess or transport any migratory game bird, other than a crow, without also possessing a Migratory Bird Harvest Permit (“Permit”) issued by the Commissioner. (b) The permit is valid for a calendar year, and expires December 31. (c) The permitee shall carry the permit at all times when hunting. (d) A permit may be purchased from any town clerk for two dollars.
26-48a-1. Pheasant season, bag limits, tags, use and reporting (a) (1)The open season for taking pheasant shall be from the third Saturday in October through the second Saturday in January. (2) The second Saturday in October shall be designated as junior pheasant hunting training day. On this day, only hunters having a valid Connecticut junior firearms hunting license and pheasant harvest tags may hunt on private lands with permission of the landowner. The accompanying adult mentor shall have in his/her possession a valid Connecticut hunting license. The adult mentor shall not carry a firearm. (3) The daily bag limit shall not exceed two pheasants and the season bag limit shall not exceed ten pheasants, except as provided in subsection (j) of this section. (b) No person, required to be licensed per section 26-27 of the Connecticut General Statutes as amended, shall kill, take, possess or transport any pheasant without a valid pheasant tag, except as provided in subsection (j) of this section. (c) The pheasant tagging system shall consist of a stamp and a seasonal supply of ten, one dollar pheasant harvest tags. The pheasant tag series may be purchased from any town clerk. The issuing agent shall retain .50 from each series sold to individuals holding current hunting licenses issued per section 26-27 of the Connecticut
Sec. 26-86a. Game management. Deer hunting; permitted weapons, locations, bag limits. Consent forms; permits, selection process. (a) The commissioner shall establish by regulation adopted in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54 standards for deer management, and methods, regulated areas, bag limits, seasons and permit eligibility for hunting deer with bow and arrow, muzzleloader and shotgun, except that no such hunting shall be permitted on Sunday. No person shall hunt, pursue, wound or kill deer with a firearm without first obtaining a deer permit from the commissioner in addition to the license required by section 26-27.
Sec. 26-86c. Permits to hunt deer and small game with bow and arrow. Fees. Applications. Education course requirement. No person may hunt deer or small game with a bow and arrow under the provisions of this chapter without a valid permit issued by the Commissioner of Environmental Protection pursuant to this section or section 26-86a for persons hunting deer with bow and arrow under private land deer permits issued free to qualifying landowners, husband or wife, parent, grandparent, lineal descendant or siblings under that section. The fee for such bow and arrow permit to hunt deer and small game shall be twenty-two dollars for residents and forty-four dollars for nonresidents, or thirteen dollars for any person twelve years of age or older but under sixteen years of age.