User:CKraniak/sandbox/Falconry Laws in the United States

Falconry in the United States is governed by many laws. At the federal level, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, CITES, and Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act apply. Additionally, state laws often extend federal regulation, and municipal laws may apply as well. The laws govern the ability to possess raptors, maintenance of raptors, the qualification of the falconer, required facilities, reporting requirements, importing and exporting raptors, special rules for eagles, and so forth.

History
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Pre-1970s
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Mention Operation Falcon and the perception of widespread smuggling.

2008
On October 8, 2008, USFWs implemented the most recent major change in falconry regulation. Among the changes were:
 * The dual federal / state permit system was replaced with a state-only permit system; federal permits are no longer necessary
 * Implementation of electronic reporting
 * Expansion of species apprentices are allowed to take (federal only; states may be more restrictive, and some states subsequently chose to be more restrictive)
 * Apprentices allowed non-imprinted captive-bred raptors
 * Changes to the golden eagle permitting process
 * Allowed master falconers to possess up to 5 wild-caught raptors
 * Allowed master falconers to possess an unlimited number of captive-bred raptors, so long as they are used for falconry
 * Allowed general falconers to possess up to 3 raptors (wild-caught or captive-bred)
 * The required falconry examination was delegated to the states
 * New US residents may skip license classes if they have prior experience; the new resident must, however, pass the falconry test
 * Facilities requirements rewritten / clarified
 * Facilities no longer required for a permit (but still required before possession of a raptor)
 * Trapping seasons were removed
 * Hybrids now required to have 2 transmitters when being free-flown, and no intentional release of a hybrid is allowed
 * Falconers now liable for injuries to a raptor incurred during trapping
 * Goshawk banding / microchipping now required
 * Hacking explicitly allowed
 * Continue at number 18 here: https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2008/10/08/E8-23226/migratory-bird-permits-changes-in-the-regulations-governing-falconry#h-7

Federal Law
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Migratory Bird Treaty Act
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Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act
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CITES
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US Fish and Wildlife Service Regulations
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Falconry Permits
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The majority of the federal law which directly applies to falconers is found in USFWS falconry permit regulations. These regulations derive their authority from the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

50 CFR 21.29 establishes the three classes of falconry permits: apprentice, general, and master.

State Laws
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In order to practice falconry in a state, the state must have adopted the federal regulations into its own state level laws. When doing this, states are allowed to be more restrictive than federal law stipulates, but not less. If a state does not have a state law that has been reviewed by USFWS, then falconry in that state is not permitted; currently, the only state in which falconry is illegal is Hawaii.

Several important aspects of the law tend to vary from state to state. For instance, apprentices may be restricted to possessing only a red-tailed hawk or a kestrel in some states while they are permitted to take most species in others.

Local Laws
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City ordinances can often apply to falconers or to the possession of raptors. Some cities outright forbid possession of raptors, while others require insurance. Some cities ambiguously define "dangerous animal," such that trying to determine whether possession is legal becomes difficult. In other cases, broadly written leash laws may limit the extent to which a falconer is allowed to train or fly their bird in a city.

There are some cases where falconers have approached their city governments and had laws rewritten more favorably for them, or had a variance given to them. In other cases, the laws are ignored. Cities do not typically intend to limit the practice of falconry (e.g. in cases where "animal" is used in leash laws and it appears the laws are only contemplating dogs and cats), and in most cases only the falconer would know the law well enough to know it was a problem.

Notable Events
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