Idaho State Statutes - Idaho Attorney Directory

CONTROL OF DAMAGE BY ANTELOPE, ELK, DEER OR MOOSE --
COMPENSATION FOR DAMAGES. (a) Prevention of depredation shall be a priority
management objective of the department, and it is the obligation of landowners
to take all reasonable steps to prevent property loss from wildlife or to
mitigate damages by wildlife. When any antelope, elk, deer or moose is doing
damage to or is destroying any property or is about to do so, the owner or
lessee thereof may make complaint and report the facts to the director or his
designee who shall, within seventy-two (72) hours, investigate the conditions
complained of. If it appears that the complaint is well founded and the
property of the complainant is being or is likely to be damaged or destroyed
by such antelope, elk, deer or moose, the director may:
1. Send a representative onto the premises to control, trap, and/or
remove such animals as will stop the damage to said property. Any animals
so taken shall remain the property of the state and shall be turned over
to the director.
2. Grant properly safeguarded permission to the complainant to control,
trap and/or remove such animals. Any animals so taken shall remain the
property of the state and shall be turned over to the director.
3. Make an agreement with the owner or lessee to allow continued use of
lands by the animals where damage by them has occurred to stored, growing
or matured crops on private property whether owned or leased. This
agreement may be transacted only after department attempts to resolve the
problem by other means have proven unsuccessful. The agreement made under
the provisions of this subsection may provide for financial compensation
to the owner or lessee. If made, financial compensation under the
provisions of this subsection shall be governed by the provisions of
section 36-115, Idaho Code, and shall not be in addition to any payments
for the same crop losses from any other source. Compensation for damages
under the provisions of this subsection shall be available for damages
done to private lands, whether owned or leased, if the owner or lessee
allowed hunters reasonable access to the property or through the property
to public lands for hunting purposes during the preceding hunting season.
This provision shall not negate the provisions of section 36-1602, Idaho
Code, relating to the necessity of obtaining permission to enter private
land. If necessary, the arbitration panel provided for in subsection (b)
of this section shall determine the reasonableness of access allowed.
(b) 1. In order to establish eligibility for submission of claims for
damages, persons suffering crop damages on privately owned or leased land
caused by antelope, elk, deer or moose must:
(A) Notify the department within seventy-two (72) hours of discovery
of damage.
(B) Follow up verbal notification with a written notice within ten
(10) days of the discovery of damages.
(C) The department shall not be held liable or accountable for any
damages occurring more than ten (10) days prior to the initial
notification of damage. However, the department may extend the period
up to thirty (30) days under exceptional circumstances.
The owner or lessee must have allowed hunters reasonable access to the
property or through the property to public lands for hunting purposes
during the preceding hunting season, provided such access does not impact
on their operations, or the claim for damages shall be disallowed.
Compensation for crop damages claims shall not be in addition to any
payments for the same crop losses from any other source and shall not
include fence or other types of property damage. While fences and
irrigation equipment are not subject to claim for payment, the department
is allowed to provide support and assistance, including provision of
materials to design, construct, and maintain fences for control of
depredation. The notice of damages caused must be in written form, shall
be in the form of a claim for damages substantially the same as required
by section 6-907, Idaho Code, shall be attested to by the claimant under
oath, and the claim shall be at least one thousand dollars ($1,000). The
claim shall not be amended after it is filed, provided however, that a
claimant may file an additional claim in the event additional damage
occurs subsequent to filing the initial claim. The department shall
prepare and make available suitable forms for notice and claim for
damages. Claims may be submitted only for the fiscal year (July 1 through
June 30) in which they occurred. Any person submitting a fraudulent claim
shall be prosecuted for a felony as provided in section 18-2706, Idaho
Code. For purposes of this subsection, crop damages shall mean damage to
plants grown or stored for profit and exclude ornamental plants.
2. Upon receipt by the department, the department shall review the claim,
and if approved, pay it as provided in section 36-115, Idaho Code, or
order it paid as provided in section 36-115, Idaho Code. Failure on the
part of the owner or lessee to allow on-site access for inspection and
investigation of alleged losses shall void the claim for damages.
3. In the event the owner or lessee and the department fail to agree on
the amount of damages within fifteen (15) business days of the written
claim, either party may elect to retain the services of an independent
certified insurance adjuster licensed in the state of Idaho to view the
affected property and determine the amount of damages. In the event the
owner or lessee and the department fail to agree on the amount of damages
and neither party elects to retain the services of an independent
certified insurance adjuster, provisions of subsection (b)4. of this
section shall apply. The independent certified adjuster shall complete his
review and determination within twenty (20) days from the date he is
retained, and will report his determination in writing by certified mail
to the department and to the owner or lessee. Neither the owner or lessee,
nor the department, shall disturb the affected property prior to review
and determination by the independent insurance adjuster. Costs associated
with the services of the independent insurance adjuster shall be divided
equally between the owner or lessee and the department, subject to
reapportionment of the costs by an arbitration panel pursuant to the
provisions of subsection (b)4. of this section. If the department, or the
owner or lessee rejects the determination of the adjuster, they shall
notify the other party in writing of the rejection within five (5)
business days of receipt of the adjuster's determination. In the event
that either party rejects the adjuster's determination, the provisions of
subsection (b)4. of this section shall apply.
4. Within five (5) business days of a rejection of an adjuster's
determination of damages or failure of the owner or lessee and the
department to agree on damages when a certified insurance adjuster is not
used, the director must convene an arbitration panel. To convene an
arbitration panel, the director must, within five (5) business days,
appoint the department's representative and notify the landholder of the
appointment. The landholder(s) shall, within the next five (5) business
days following such notice from the department, appoint his representative
and notify the department of the appointment. Within the next five (5)
business days, the department representative and the landholder must
mutually appoint the third arbitrator. The arbitration panel shall consist
of three (3) members, as follows:
(A) The director of the department of fish and game or his designee;
(B) The owner or his designee, or the lessee or his designee;
(C) One (1) member selected by the two (2) members above.
The panel shall convene within thirty (30) days of the selection of the
third arbitrator, and render its decision within fourteen (14) days after
the hearing. When convened, the arbitration panel shall have the same
authority to make on-site inspections as the department. The owner or
lessee shall be responsible for payment of the expenses of his appointee;
the director shall pay the expenses of his appointee from the expendable
big game depredation fund; and the expenses of the third member shall be a
joint responsibility of the owner or lessee, and the department. Provided
however, the panel is authorized to review the costs associated with
retaining the independent insurance adjuster and to determine whether
those costs should instead be borne solely by the owner or lessee, solely
by the department, or be apportioned between the owner or lessee and the
department. In cases where an independent insurance adjuster was used,
the party electing to use the adjuster shall assume the insurance
adjuster's determination of damage as their estimate of damage. The panel
shall consider the claim submitted by the owner or lessee, and the
estimate of damages submitted by the department, and shall select one (1)
amount or the other as being the closest to the actual damages sustained
by the claimant. The arbitration panel shall report its decision in
writing to both the owner or lessee and to the department within ten (10)
days of the decision, and the decision of the panel shall be binding on
the owner or lessee and the department. The fish and game advisory
committee shall develop guidelines to govern arbitration procedures in
accordance with chapter 52, title 67, Idaho Code.
(c) Any claim received by the department under the provisions of
subsection (b) of this section must be processed by the department within
sixty (60) calendar days of receipt. If the claim is approved for payment,
payment must be made within forty-five (45) calendar days of such approval.
Any damage claim determination by an independent insurance adjuster pursuant
to subsection (b)3. of this section, accepted by the parties, must be paid by
the department within forty-five (45) calendar days of the determination. If
the claim is arbitrated, the arbitration must be completed within one hundred
eighty (180) calendar days of filing the claim for such damages.

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