Florida Senate - 2024                       CS for CS for SB 632
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Fiscal Policy; the Appropriations Committee
       on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government; and
       Senators Simon and Collins
       
       
       
       594-03091-24                                           2024632c2
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to taking of bears; providing a short
    3         title; creating s. 379.40411, F.S.; providing for the
    4         taking of bears without certain penalties under
    5         specified conditions; requiring the disposal of such
    6         bears by the Fish and Wildlife Conservation
    7         Commission; prohibiting certain possession, sale, and
    8         disposal of such bears or their parts; requiring the
    9         commission to adopt rules; providing an effective
   10         date.
   11          
   12  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   13  
   14         Section 1. This act may be cited as the “Self Defense Act.”
   15         Section 2. Section 379.40411, Florida Statutes, is created
   16  to read:
   17         379.40411 Taking of bears; use of lethal force in defense
   18  of person or certain property.—
   19         (1) A person is not subject to any administrative, civil,
   20  or criminal penalty for taking a bear with lethal force if:
   21         (a) The person reasonably believed that his or her action
   22  was necessary to avoid an imminent threat of death or serious
   23  bodily injury to himself or herself or to another, an imminent
   24  threat of death or serious bodily injury to a pet, or
   25  substantial damage to a dwelling as defined in s. 776.013(5);
   26         (b) The person did not lure the bear with food or
   27  attractants for an illegal purpose, including, but not limited
   28  to, training dogs to hunt bears;
   29         (c) The person did not intentionally or recklessly place
   30  himself or herself or a pet in a situation in which he or she
   31  would be likely to need to use lethal force as described in
   32  paragraph (a); and
   33         (d) The person notified the commission within 24 hours
   34  after he or she used lethal force to take the bear.
   35         (2) A bear taken under this section must be disposed of by
   36  the commission. A person who takes a bear under this section may
   37  not possess, sell, or dispose of the bear or its parts.
   38         (3) The commission shall adopt rules to implement this
   39  section.
   40         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024.