Subdivision 1. Establishment. The commissioner shall establish a statewide course in the safe use of firearms and identification of wild mammals and birds. A course may be held in a school district. The courses must be conducted by the commissioner in cooperation with other organizations. The courses must instruct youths in commonly accepted principles of safety in hunting and handling common hunting firearms and identification of various species of wild mammals and birds by sight and other unique characteristics.
Subd. 2. Administration, supervision, and enforcement. (a) The commissioner shall appoint a qualified person from the Enforcement Division under civil service rules as supervisor of hunting safety and prescribe the duties and responsibilities of the position. The commissioner shall determine and provide the Enforcement Division with the necessary personnel for this section.
(b) The Enforcement Division may appoint instructors necessary for this section. Instructors shall serve on a voluntary basis without compensation. The Enforcement Division must supply the materials necessary for the course. School districts may cooperate with the commissioner and volunteer instructors to provide space for the classroom portion of the training.
Subd. 3. Liability insurance. The commissioner shall obtain insurance to cover all liability incurred by the county directors and instructors for bodily injury, death, and property damage in the performance of their duties under this section.
Subd. 4. Student fee. To defray the expense of the course, the Enforcement Division shall collect a fee from each person that takes the firearm safety course. The commissioner shall establish a fee that neither significantly overrecovers nor underrecovers costs, including overhead costs, involved in providing the services. The fee is not subject to the rulemaking provisions of chapter 14 and section 14.386 does not apply. The fees shall be deposited in the game and fish fund and the amount thereof is appropriated annually to the Enforcement Division of the Department of Natural Resources for the administration of the program. In addition to the fee established by the commissioner, instructors may charge each person up to the established fee amount for class materials and expenses.
Subd. 5. Firearms safety certificate. The commissioner shall issue a firearms safety certificate to a person that satisfactorily completes the required course of instruction. A person must be at least age 11 to take the firearms safety course and may receive a firearms safety certificate, but the certificate is not valid for hunting until the year the person reaches age 12. A person who is age 11 and has a firearms safety certificate may purchase a license to take big game that will be valid for hunting during the entire regular season for which the license is valid if the person will reach age 12 during that calendar year. A firearms safety certificate issued to a person under age 12 by another state as provided in section 97B.020 is not valid for hunting in Minnesota until the person reaches age 12. The form and content of the firearms safety certificate shall be prescribed by the commissioner.
Subd. 5a. Exemption for military personnel. Notwithstanding subdivision 5, a person who has successfully completed basic training in the United States armed forces is exempt from the range and shooting exercise portion of the required course of instruction for the firearms safety certificate. The commissioner may require written proof of the person's military training, as deemed appropriate for implementing this subdivision. The commissioner shall publicly announce this exemption from the range and shooting exercise requirement and the availability of the department's online, remote study option for adults seeking firearms safety certification. Military personnel are not exempt from any other requirement of this section for obtaining a firearms safety certificate.
Subd. 6. Provisional certificate for persons with permanent physical or developmental disability. Upon the recommendation of a course instructor, the commissioner may issue a provisional firearms safety certificate to a person who satisfactorily completes the classroom portion of the firearms safety course but is unable to pass the written or an alternate format exam portion of the course because of a permanent physical disability or developmental disability as defined in section 97B.1055, subdivision 1. The certificate is valid only when used according to section 97B.1055.
Subd. 7. Fee for duplicate certificate. The commissioner shall collect a fee, to include a $1 issuing fee for licensing agents, for issuing a duplicate firearms safety certificate. The commissioner shall establish a fee that neither significantly overrecovers nor underrecovers costs, including overhead costs, involved in providing the service. The fee is not subject to the rulemaking provisions of chapter 14 and section 14.386 does not apply. The commissioner may establish the fee notwithstanding section 16A.1283. The duplicate certificate fees, except for the issuing fee for licensing agents under this subdivision, shall be deposited in the game and fish fund and, except for the electronic licensing system commission established by the commissioner under section 84.027, subdivision 15, and issuing fees collected by the commissioner, are appropriated annually to the Enforcement Division of the Department of Natural Resources for the administration of the firearm safety course program.
1986 c 386 art 2 s 4; 1989 c 45 s 1; 2000 c 473 s 6; 2000 c 495 s 36,37; 2004 c 215 s 18; 2004 c 221 s 41; 2005 c 56 s 1; 2005 c 146 s 23-25; 1Sp2005 c 1 art 2 s 106; 2007 c 131 art 1 s 33; 2008 c 368 art 2 s 38; 1Sp2019 c 4 art 3 s 55
Structure Minnesota Statutes
Chapters 97 - 102 — Game And Fish
Section 97B.002 — Civil Trespass.
Section 97B.005 — Training Dogs.
Section 97B.011 — Dogs Pursuing Big Game.
Section 97B.015 — Firearms Safety And Wildlife Identification Course.
Section 97B.020 — Firearms Safety Certificate Required.
Section 97B.021 — Possession Of Firearms By Persons Under Age 16.
Section 97B.0215 — Parent Or Guardian Responsibility; Violation.
Section 97B.022 — Apprentice-hunter Validation.
Section 97B.025 — Hunter And Trapper Education.
Section 97B.026 — Trapper Education Certificate; Requirement.
Section 97B.031 — Use And Possession Of Firearms.
Section 97B.035 — Restrictions On Archery Equipment.
Section 97B.036 — Crossbow Hunting During Firearms Season.
Section 97B.037 — Crossbow Hunting; Age 60 Or Over.
Section 97B.041 — Possession Of Firearms And Ammunition Restricted In Deer Zones.
Section 97B.045 — Transporting Firearms.
Section 97B.051 — Transporting Archery Bows.
Section 97B.055 — Discharging Firearms And Bows And Arrows.
Section 97B.063 — Hunter Satisfaction Survey.
Section 97B.065 — Hunting While Under Influence Of Alcohol Or Controlled Substance.
Section 97B.066 — Chemical Testing.
Section 97B.071 — Clothing Requirements; Blaze Orange Or Blaze Pink.
Section 97B.075 — Hunting Restricted Between Evening And Morning.
Section 97B.081 — Using Artificial Lights To Locate Animals.
Section 97B.085 — Using Radios To Take Animals.
Section 97B.086 — Possessing Night Vision Or Thermal Imaging Equipment.
Section 97B.091 — Using Motor Vehicles To Chase Wild Animals Prohibited.
Section 97B.095 — Disturbing And Taking From Burrows And Dens.
Section 97B.099 — Prohibited Hunting Methods.
Section 97B.101 — Hunting With Ferrets Prohibited.
Section 97B.105 — Hunting By Falconry.
Section 97B.1055 — Hunting By Persons With A Permanent Physical Or Developmental Disability.
Section 97B.106 — Crossbow Permits For Hunting And Fishing.
Section 97B.111 — Special Firearm Hunting Seasons For Physically Disabled.
Section 97B.112 — Special Hunts.
Section 97B.115 — Computer-assisted Remote Hunting Prohibited.
Section 97B.201 — No Open Season For Caribou Or Antelope.
Section 97B.205 — Using Dogs And Horses To Take Big Game Prohibited.
Section 97B.207 — Using Dogs To Locate Wounded Deer Or Bear.
Section 97B.211 — Hunting Big Game By Archery.
Section 97B.22 — Collecting Antler Sheds.
Section 97B.301 — Deer Licenses And Limits.
Section 97B.303 — Venison Donations.
Section 97B.305 — Commissioner May Limit Number Of Deer Hunters.
Section 97B.311 — Deer Seasons And Restrictions.
Section 97B.318 — Arms Use Areas And Restrictions; Regular Firearms Season.
Section 97B.321 — Snares, Traps, Set Guns, And Swivel Guns Prohibited.
Section 97B.325 — Deer Stand Restrictions.
Section 97B.326 — Stands And Blinds On Public Lands.
Section 97B.327 — Report; Deer Other Than White-tailed Or Mule.
Section 97B.328 — Baiting Prohibited.
Section 97B.401 — Bear License Required; Application.
Section 97B.405 — Commissioner May Limit Number Of Bear Hunters.
Section 97B.411 — Bear Season And Restrictions.
Section 97B.415 — Taking Bear To Protect Property.
Section 97B.421 — Permit Required To Snare Bears.
Section 97B.425 — Baiting Bears.
Section 97B.426 — Baiting Bear; Use Of Drum.
Section 97B.431 — Bear-hunting Outfitters.
Section 97B.501 — Moose License Required.
Section 97B.505 — Moose Season And Restrictions.
Section 97B.516 — Plan For Elk Management.
Section 97B.601 — Small-game Licenses.
Section 97B.603 — Taking Small Game By Party.
Section 97B.605 — Commissioner May Restrict Taking Small Game Animals.
Section 97B.641 — Cougar, Lynx, And Wolverine.
Section 97B.646 — Wolf Management.
Section 97B.647 — Taking Wolves.
Section 97B.648 — Wolves; Unlawful Taking; Penalty.
Section 97B.651 — Unprotected Mammals And Birds.
Section 97B.655 — Taking Animals Causing Damage.
Section 97B.657 — Taking Wild Animals To Protect Public Safety.
Section 97B.661 — Removing Beaver From State Lands.
Section 97B.665 — Beaver Dams; Threats To Safety Or Property.
Section 97B.668 — Game Birds Causing Damage.
Section 97B.671 — Predator-control Program.
Section 97B.701 — Protected Birds.
Section 97B.705 — Restrictions On Trapping Birds.
Section 97B.716 — Prairie Chickens.
Section 97B.721 — License Required To Take Turkey; Tagging And Registration Requirements.
Section 97B.722 — Possessing Firearms; Hunting Turkey.
Section 97B.723 — Commissioner May Limit Number Of Turkey Hunters.
Section 97B.725 — Guiding Hunters.
Section 97B.731 — Migratory Birds.
Section 97B.801 — Minnesota Migratory-waterfowl Stamp Required.
Section 97B.802 — Special Canada-goose Season; License Required.
Section 97B.805 — Restrictions On Method Of Taking Waterfowl On Water.
Section 97B.811 — Decoys And Blinds On Public Lands And Waters.
Section 97B.901 — Registration And Tagging Fur-bearing Animals.
Section 97B.903 — Use Of Body-gripping Traps.
Section 97B.905 — Fur Dealer's Licenses.
Section 97B.9251 — Beaver Season.
Section 97B.926 — Pine Marten And Fisher Zone.
Section 97B.928 — Identifying Traps And Snares.
Section 97B.931 — Tending Traps.
Section 97B.941 — Tampering With Traps.
Section 97B.945 — Setting Traps Near Water Restricted.
Section 97B.951 — Use Of Snares To Take Unprotected Mammals.