Hunting and fishing guides.

Existing law requires a person who engages in the business of guiding or packing, or who acts as a guide for any consideration or compensation, to first obtain a guide license from the Department of Fish and Wildlife before engaging in those activities. Existing law requires an application for a guide license to contain specified information and requires an applicant to submit proof of having obtained a surety bond in the amount of not less than $1,000 as a condition of receiving a license. Existing law sets the fee for a guide license at $150 for a resident and $350 for a nonresident beginning in the 2004 license year and requires those fees to be adjusted annually pursuant to a specified index. Under existing law, a guide license is valid from February 1 to January 31 of the succeeding year or, if issued after February 1, for the remainder of the license year. A violation of any provision of the Fish and Game Code, or any rule, regulation, or order made or adopted under those provisions, is a misdemeanor, unless otherwise specified. An existing provision of the Fish and Game Code makes it a crime to submit, or conspire to submit, any false, inaccurate, or otherwise misleading information on any application or other document offered or otherwise presented to the Department of Fish and Wildlife for any purpose, including obtaining a license pursuant to the Fish and Game Code or regulations adopted pursuant to the code. This bill would change the valid period of a guide license to the period of a calendar year, as provided, and would make related conforming changes. The bill would increase the fee required for a guide license to an unspecified amount. The bill would increase the amount of the above-described surety bond to $2,500 and would require an applicant for a guide license to submit proof of compliance with various other requirements as a condition of receiving a guide license. Because submission of false, inaccurate, or otherwise misleading information in a guide application to the department pursuant to these provisions would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the Fish and Game Commission, in consultation with the department and licensed guides, to adopt a visual system of guide identification stickers, as specified, and would require a guide to use the guide identification sticker when providing guiding or packing services to a client. Because a violation of the requirement to use a guide sticker would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would make these provisions operative on January 1, 2021. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.