Senate Bill S10461

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   10461
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 15, 2026
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens.  BOTTCHER, FERNANDEZ, HARCKHAM, JACKSON, KAVANAGH,
   MARTINEZ, SERRANO, SKOUFIS, WEBB -- read twice  and  ordered  printed,
   and  when  printed  to  be committed to the Committee on Environmental
   Conservation
 
 AN ACT to amend the  environmental  conservation  law,  in  relation  to
   protecting  wolves;  and  providing  for the repeal of such provisions
   upon expiration thereof

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  The environmental conservation law is amended by adding a
 new section 11-0542 to read as follows:
 § 11-0542. PROTECTION OF WOLVES.
   1. ALL WILD CANIDS TAKEN IN THE STATE SHALL BE REPORTED TO THE DEPART-
 MENT IN A MANNER TO BE DETERMINED BY THE  DEPARTMENT.  FOR  PURPOSES  OF
 THIS  SECTION,  "WILD  CANIDS"  SHALL MEAN COYOTES AND WOLVES, INCLUDING
 CANIDS THAT WHEN TAKEN WERE THOUGHT TO BE COYOTES BUT  WHICH  SUBSEQUENT
 GENETIC ANALYSIS REVEALED TO BE WOLVES.
   2.  WILD  CANIDS THAT ARE TAKEN, THAT HAVE A WEIGHT GREATER THAN FIFTY
 POUNDS OR THAT MEET ADDITIONAL CRITERIA ESTABLISHED BY THE DEPARTMENT IN
 REGULATION, SHALL BE SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT, IN A MANNER PRESCRIBED
 BY THE DEPARTMENT IN REGULATION.   SUCH  REGULATIONS  SHALL  ENSURE  THE
 ANONYMITY OF ALL PERSONAL IDENTIFYING INFORMATION, EXCLUDING INFORMATION
 RELATING  TO  THE  LOCATION  OF  TAKING.  WILD CANIDS SUBMITTED SHALL BE
 SUBJECT TO GENETIC ANALYSIS, PAID FOR BY THE  DEPARTMENT,  TO  DETERMINE
 THE  GENETIC COMPOSITION OF THE ANIMAL. SUCH ANALYSIS SHALL BE CONDUCTED
 BY A REPUTABLE LABORATORY THAT HAS PRIOR  EXPERIENCE  GENOTYPING  HYBRI-
 DIZED CANIS POPULATIONS IN THE EASTERN UNITED STATES. THE RESULTS OF ANY
 ANALYSIS  PERFORMED  SHALL PROMPTLY BE PROVIDED TO THE PUBLIC BY POSTING
 ON THE DEPARTMENT'S WEBSITE.
   3. THE DEPARTMENT MAY ALSO ACCEPT FOR GENETIC ANALYSIS  A  WILD  CANID
 MEETING  THE  CRITERIA IN SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION THAT IS VOLUN-
 TARILY SUBMITTED, IN A MANNER  PRESCRIBED  BY  THE  DEPARTMENT,  TO  THE
 DEPARTMENT BY ANY PERSON.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD01452-11-6
              

 S. 10461                            2
 
   4. IN THE EVENT THAT THE DEPARTMENT DETERMINES, BASED ON GENETIC ANAL-
 YSIS OR OTHER SCIENTIFIC METHOD, THAT A WILD CANID TAKEN OR FOUND IN THE
 STATE  IS  A WOLF, THE DEPARTMENT SHALL DETERMINE THE LOCATION WHERE THE
 WOLF WAS TAKEN OR FOUND. IN THE EVENT  THE  DEPARTMENT  DETERMINES  THAT
 THERE  IS REASONABLE LIKELIHOOD THAT THERE MAY BE ONE OR MORE ADDITIONAL
 WOLVES IN THE VICINITY WHERE THE WOLF WAS TAKEN OR FOUND, IT MAY TAKE OR
 INSTITUTE  SUCH  MEASURES CONSISTENT WITH ITS EXISTING AUTHORITY THAT IT
 DEEMS NECESSARY TO ENSURE THE PROTECTION  OF  SUCH  ADDITIONAL  WOLF  OR
 WOLVES.
   5. NO LATER THAN APRIL FIRST, TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-NINE, THE DEPARTMENT
 SHALL  SUBMIT TO THE LEGISLATURE A REPORT ON THE STATUS OF WOLVES IN THE
 STATE, BASED ON DATA COLLECTED BY OR SUBMITTED  TO  THE  DEPARTMENT  AND
 SUCH  OTHER  METHODS  AS DETERMINED APPROPRIATE BY THE DEPARTMENT, AND A
 RECOMMENDATION AS TO WHETHER THE WILD CANID TESTING  PROGRAM  SHOULD  BE
 CONTINUED.    THE STATUS REPORT SHALL ALSO BE POSTED ON THE DEPARTMENT'S
 WEBSITE.
   6. THE DEPARTMENT SHALL MODIFY, AND UPDATE AS NECESSARY, THE  SYLLABUS
 REQUIRED  UNDER  SUBDIVISION  TWO OF SECTION 11-0323 OF THIS ARTICLE, TO
 INCLUDE THE LEGAL PROTECTIONS FOR  WOLVES,  THE  TESTING  AND  REPORTING
 REQUIREMENTS  FOR WILD CANIDS UNDER THIS SECTION, AND HOW TO DISTINGUISH
 A WOLF FROM A COYOTE WHEN A HUNTER OR TRAPPER IS IN THE FIELD.
   § 2. This act shall take effect January 1, 2027 and shall  expire  and
 be deemed repealed January 1, 2030. Effective immediately, the addition,
 amendment,  and/or  repeal  of  any rule or regulation necessary for the
 implementation of this act on its effective date  is  authorized  to  be
 made and completed on or before such date.