[EL] Voting and Hunting

Fri Nov 2 10:13:17 PDT 2018

I saw that ad and thought it was a little odd.

I am both a lawyer and a hunter, and the ad seemed obviously calculated to
try to discourage hunters from voting. However, I'm doubtful that it will
have much effect. Maybe it will even backfire.

Perhaps I'm wrong, but it seems to me that most hunters understand in-state
/ resident hunting licenses and tags vs. out-of-state very well. As you
mention, it is common for states to offer out-of-state hunting licenses; in
fact, I'd presume every state does this. Of course, out-of-state hunting
licenses and tags cost considerably more than resident licenses and tags.
(Thanks to an interesting exception to the dormant commerce clause.) And
sometimes it is very difficult or even impossible to even get an
out-of-state tag, regardless of the cost. Here in Nevada for example,
mountain goat tags are only available to residents.

Thus it is not uncommon for some people to claim residency in a state to get
the less expensive resident license / tag, or to have the ability to draw a
tag there. Of course, depending on how a state defines "resident," I
suspect, but I have not researched the issue, that it is possible for a
person to legitimately and legally claim residency in one state for purposes
of getting a residential hunting license, while claiming residency somewhere
else for purposes of voting. It would depend on the particular definitions
in both states. But that would likely be the exception, not the rule.

So the only people even potentially affected would be those who are, for
example, *falsely* claiming to be Montana residents to get a *residential*
Montana hunting license / big game tag. Arguably it's possible that those
people might lose their Montana *resident* hunting license, but at you point
out, obviously it would have no effect whatsoever on out-of-state licenses.

I think the vast majority of hunters don't engage in such shenanigans
anyway, and I'd further suspect that hunters will see this as the dumb ploy
that it is, and that is why it has a possibility to backfire.

But who knows, maybe I'm too Pollyanna and maybe they did some research and
found that a ton of people actually are less-than-legitimately claiming to
be residents of other states for hunting license purposes. That would be
pretty interesting if so.

Best,
Kevin

Kevin Benson, Esq.
Benson Law Nevada
123 W. Nye Lane #487
Carson City, NV 89706
(775) 884-0838
kevin at bensonlawnv.com

-----Original Message-----
From: Law-election [mailto:law-election-bounces at department-lists.uci.edu] On
Behalf Of Paul Gronke
Sent: Friday, November 2, 2018 9:34 AM
To: edu law-election at uci. edu law-election at uci. <law-election at uci.edu>
Subject: [EL] Voting and Hunting

Hey list-ers, I’ve received a query from a PolitiFact reporter and I figured
I would throw it out to the group. Many of us are receiving the same
questions we receive every election, but this is a new one.

I have included the email and my response below. Am I wrong to state that
this claim by the North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party is pretty obviously
wrong?

---

One more fact-check for PolitiFact about voting in North Dakota! I'm
fact-checking an ad that the North Dakota Dems are running on Facebook. It
says, "Attention hunters: Voting in North Dakota could cost you your
out-of-state hunting licenses." It leads people to this page:
https://demnpl.com/by-voting-in-north-dakota-you-could-forfeit-your-hunting-licenses/

Is that true? And is that a common occurrence? This is the evidence their
office provided. Wondering if it is accurate and if you could provide any
further context.. Also wondering if this could be seen as voter suppression?

To vote in North Dakota, a person must have a valid North Dakota ID. To have
a valid North Dakota ID, a person must establish proof of ND residency.

States require people to have a license to hunt or fish. In many states, the
government offers different licenses to residents and nonresidents. In some
states, if a person buys a resident license and then establishes residency
in another state, the resident hunting license is void. For example, in
Kentucky, “A person who does not meet the definition of a Kentucky resident
is considered a nonresident and must purchase nonresident licenses and
permits.” (This can be confirmed with the Kentucky Department of Fish and
Wildlife Resources – 1-800-858-1549)

Thus, if someone gets a resident hunting license in Kentucky or another
state with similar laws and regulations, they will lose their resident
license by showing proof of ND residency required to cast a vote in ND.

Heitkamp made a similar claim:
https://freebeacon.com/politics/heitkamp-appears-discourage-voting-hunters-really-important-people-understand-consequences-voting/

—
Here is my reply:

This is a new one for me! I am cc’ing a few experts who may know better. I
am not a lawyer or a hunter (though I do have a shellfish license in
Oregon!) so take my advice in that light.

First, there is a distinction between “residence” and “domicile” in some
states. In Oregon, this came up recently when a mayor of Portland had not
been paying Oregon taxes for a period of time because his RESIDENCE was in
Washington, yet he said his DOMICILE (the place where he intended to return
and remain) was Oregon (and he ran and was elected Mayor). I’m not sure this
makes a difference on this issue, but here is link to the NCSL page:
http://www.ncsl.org/Documents/Elections/The_Canvass_May_2016.pdf

Ok now to hunting licenses. I looked only at two neighboring states, South
Dakota and Montana. In both cases, there is a provision for an out of state
license:

https://gfp.sd.gov/hunt-fish-license/
https://www.hunter-ed.com/montana/hunting-license.html

In both cases, you establish “residence” by living in a state for 90 days
and then can get the residency license. Or you pay for an out of state
license.

Frankly, I don’t understand the claim about losing out of state licenses. An
out of state license costs a bit more if you are an out of state resident. I
don’t see how you’d “lose” that license unless you claimed residency in
another state, and if you did, you shouldn’t be voting in North Dakota.

---
Paul Gronke
Professor, Reed College
Director, Early Voting Information Center http://earlyvoting.net