| (a) Permit Required; Subpermittees.
(1) Except as provided in this subchapter or §65.49(g)
of this title (relating to Alligators), no person may take, kill,
transport, sell, or release a nuisance alligator, or offer to take,
kill, transport, sell, or release a nuisance alligator unless that
person possesses a valid nuisance alligator control permit issued
by the department.
(2) A permittee may utilize a subpermittee or subpermittees
to assist in the performance of nuisance alligator control activities.
(A) A subpermittee must be approved by the department
prior to engaging in any activities under this section. The department
will not authorize any person to act as a subpermittee if:
(i) the person has been convicted of, pleaded nolo
contendere to, or received deferred adjudication for an offense listed
in subsection (g)(1) - (4) of this section; or
(ii) the department determines the person is incapable,
unqualified, or otherwise unfit to act as a subpermittee.
(B) To register a subpermittee, the permittee must
complete and submit an application on a form provided by the department
for that purpose. Upon approval, the department will send a written
authorization for the subpermittee to the permittee.
(C) A permittee utilizing a subpermittee must be in
direct supervision of the subpermittee at all times that the subpermittee
is engaging in permitted activities.
(D) The written authorization provided for in subparagraph
(B) of this paragraph must be in the physical possession of the permittee
at all times that permitted activities are being performed by the
subpermittee.
(b) Permit Application and Issuance.
(1) The department may issue a nuisance alligator control
permit to a person who has:
(A) submitted a completed application on a form supplied
by the department;
(B) completed a department-administered course on nuisance
alligator control;
(C) taken a department-administered examination and
obtained a minimum passing score as determined by the department;
and
(D) paid the nonrefundable fee prescribed by Chapter
53, Subchapter A of this title (relating to Fees).
(2) In addition to the provisions of Chapter 56 of
this title (relating to Agency Decision to Refuse License or Permit
Issuance or Renewal and Agency Decision to Suspend or Revoke Affected
License or Permit), the department may refuse to issue a permit to
any person who, in the department's determination, lacks the skill,
experience, or aptitude to adequately perform the activities typically
involved in nuisance alligator control.
(c) Period of Validity. A nuisance alligator control
permit is valid from the date of issuance through August 31 of the
following year.
(d) Permit Privileges and Restrictions.
(1) A permittee under this section may:
(A) contract directly with a landowner or landowner's
authorized agent (including a political subdivision, governmental
entity, or property owner's association, as defined by Property Code, §204.004),
for a fee or other compensation to be determined by the parties involved,
for the removal of a nuisance alligator or alligators;
(B) capture or kill a nuisance alligator at any time
of day;
(C) retain and sell nuisance alligators, alive or dead,
taken under a nuisance alligator control permit as provided under §65.357
of this title (relating to Purchase and Sale of Alligators); and
(D) release nuisance alligators in areas of suitable
habitat with the prior written approval of the department and the
owner (or the owner's authorized agent) of the property where the
release occurs.
(2) A permittee or subpermittee may not:
(A) capture or kill an alligator without being in physical
possession of a complaint number issued by a department Law Enforcement
Division Communication Center that corresponds to the date and place
the permittee captures or kills, or attempts to capture or kill an
alligator;
(B) capture or kill more than one alligator per complaint
number issued by the department;
(C) use any means, method, or procedure not approved
by the department for the capture, immobilization, transport, or dispatch
of a nuisance alligator; or
(D) capture or kill an alligator over 10 feet in length
without prior written authorization from the department's Alligator
Program in addition to a complaint number issued by the department
as prescribed in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph.
(e) Tagging Requirements. All provisions of this subchapter
applicable to the tagging of alligators apply to alligators taken
under a nuisance alligator control permit.
(f) Reporting, Notification, and Recordkeeping Requirements.
(1) Landowner authorization. No permittee may engage
in nuisance alligator control activities unless the written authorization
of the landowner, the landowner's authorized agent, or a government
official acting within the scope of official duty has been obtained.
The authorization shall contain, at a minimum, the date, the name,
address, phone number, and Texas Department of Public Safety driver's
license or identification card number (or, if the person is not a
Texas resident, similar documentation from the person's state of residence)
of the person with whom the permittee has contracted for nuisance
alligator control; and shall be signed by the landowner, agent, or
official. The permittee shall physically possess the authorization
required by this paragraph:
(A) at all times that the permittee is engaged in or
conducts nuisance alligator control activities; and
(B) subsequent to the capture of a nuisance alligator,
at all times the permittee is in possession of the alligator, dead
or alive, until the alligator is sold, transferred to another person
legally permitted to possess the alligator, or released.
(2) Daily Log. A permittee shall continuously maintain
and possess upon their person while engaged in any activity governed
by this subchapter a completed daily log on a form prescribed by the
department, indicating:
(A) the date, location, and department-assigned case
number for each nuisance alligator complaint responded to by the permittee;
(B) the date and location of each nuisance alligator
captured by the permittee;
(C) the sex and length of each alligator captured;
and
(D) the disposition of each alligator captured, to
include:
(i) the means of dispatch, if lethal control is employed;
and
(ii) if the alligator is lawfully sold or lawfully
transferred to another person, the name and applicable permit number
of the person to whom the nuisance alligator is sold or transferred.
(3) Record of Sale or Transfer. A permittee shall retain
an invoice or sales receipt for each alligator sold or transferred
to another person.
(4) Record Retention. All records and documents required
by this section shall be retained and kept available for inspection
upon request of a department employee acting within the official scope
of duty for a two-year period immediately following the expiration
of the period of validity of the permit under which they are required
to be kept.
(5) Reporting.
(A) A permittee shall complete a Nuisance Alligator
Hide Tag Report (PWD-305) immediately upon the take of a nuisance
alligator and shall submit the report to the department within seven
days.
(B) A permittee shall submit completed quarterly reports
to the department by March 15, June 15, September 15, and December
15. The reports must be on a form supplied or approved by the department
and must be submitted even if no nuisance alligators were taken by
the permittee.
(C) The department may refuse to issue an initial or
subsequent permit to any person who is not in compliance with the
provisions of this paragraph.
(g) Prohibited Acts. It is an offense for a permittee
to:
(1) violate a provision of this subchapter;
(2) violate a condition of a permit issued under this
subchapter; or
(3) treat or allow the treatment of an alligator in
a cruel manner as defined in Penal Code, §42.092.
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