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ORANGE COUNTY <br />BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br />Meeting Date: January 21, 2010 <br />Action Agen a <br />Item No. - <br />SUBJECT: Dogging Deer Issue in Northern Orange County <br />DEPARTMENT: County Manager's Office PUBLIC HEARING: (Y/N) No <br />ATTACHMENT(S): <br />1) Report from the Hunting Community <br />2) Report from Concerned Private <br />Property Owners <br />3) Population Density and Acreage <br />Maps <br />4) Report from Staff Attorney <br />5) Survey of Landowners Who Own <br />Large Tracts of Land Concerning <br />Management and Hunting - <br />Conducted for the NC Wildlife <br />Resources Commission <br />Available for Review Under "Meeting <br />Agendas" -January 21, 2010 -Item <br />6-a - on County Website - <br />www. co. orange. nc. us <br />INFORMATION CONTACT: <br />Gwen Harvey, Assistant County Manager, <br />245-2307 <br />Craig Benedict, Planning Director, 245-2575 <br />Bob Marotto, Animal Services Director, 942- <br />7387 <br />Annette Moore, Staff Attorney, 245-2317 <br />Lindy Pendergrass, Sheriff, 245-2900 <br />PURPOSE: To present findings and conclusions to enable the BOCC to determine next steps <br />regarding the practice of using dogs to hunt deer in northern Orange County. <br />BACKGROUND: "Dogging Deer" is the practice whereby deer hunters use dogs to chase the <br />quarry in order to facilitate the kill. Dogging deer has been prohibited in that portion of Orange <br />County lying south of I-85 since 1979 when the General Assembly adopted NC General Statute <br />113-291.5. No hard evidence exists as to why this occurred when it did, why the line was drawn <br />the way it was, or if it were preceded by any local debate or special request. Law enforcement <br />speculates the action emerged due to changes in the urban environment and community <br />culture. State approval is required for the BOCC to take similar action on the portion of the <br />County lying north of I-85; i.e., to ban dogging deer completely throughout Orange County. The <br />County already has a requirement for written permission by the owner to allow hunting to occur <br />on private property. <br />The BOCC expressed an interest last winter in taking action to ban the practice in northern <br />Orange. County as part of its package of legislative requests to the local delegation for the 2009 <br />session of the General Assembly. The idea was tentatively raised when the BOCC met with <br />