Pennsylvania Act 1915-77 — FORESTRY, FISH AND GAME LAWS

Act text

FORESTRY, FISH AND GAME LAWS
                  Act of Apr. 21, 1915, P.L. 156, No. 77              Cl. 32
                                  AN ACT

     Extending the powers and duties of foresters, forest rangers,
        game protectors, deputy game protectors, special deputy game
        protectors, fish-wardens, and deputy fish-wardens of this
        Commonwealth.

        Section 1.  Be it enacted, &c., That from and after the
     approval of this act, it shall be the duty of each forester and
     forest ranger in this Commonwealth to enforce all the laws
     relating to forestry, fish, and game; it shall be the duty of
     every game-protector, deputy game-protector, or special deputy
     game-protector, commissioned in this Commonwealth, to enforce
     all the laws relating to fish, game, and forestry; it shall be
     the duty of every fish-warden or deputy fish-warden,
     commissioned in this Commonwealth, to enforce all the laws
     relating to game, fish, and forestry, under the direction of
     that department or commission into whose special care the
     interests of these several subjects have been entrusted, namely:
     All prosecutions for violation of laws relating to forestry
     shall be brought under the direction of the Department of
     Forestry; all prosecutions for violation of the fish laws shall
     be brought under the direction of the Department of Fisheries;
     and all prosecutions for violations of the game laws shall be
     brought under the direction of the Board of Game Commissioners;
     and, to that end, the powers of all the officers aforesaid are
     hereby extended in such a way as to give them full authority to
     carry out the purposes of this act. It shall be the further duty
     of every such forester, forest ranger, game-protector, deputy
     game-protector, special deputy game-protector, fish-warden, and
     deputy fish-warden, whenever such official may have knowledge of
     the violation of any of the aforesaid laws, forthwith to make a
     full and complete report thereof to that department under which
     such official may be commissioned; which department, in case
     said law relates to a subject whose special care is entrusted to
     another department, shall at once forward such report to the
     appropriate department charged with the enforcement of said law.
        Every person connected with either the Department of
     Forestry, or with the Department of Fisheries, or with the Game
     Commission, and under pay of the Commonwealth, who shall refuse
     or neglect to safeguard, in a reasonable way, the interests of
     the Commonwealth relating to either forestry, or fish, or game
     and wild birds, as provided for and intended by this act, or
     who, without prejudice to the work of that department to which
     he may specially belong, shall refuse or neglect to investigate
     to a reasonable conclusion any violation of the laws of this
     Commonwealth relating to either of the other departments named
     in this act that may be reported to him, or who may refuse or
     neglect to make the reports required by this act, shall be
     guilty of a misdemeanor, and for the first offense shall be
     liable to penalty of twenty-five dollars, or in lieu thereof to
     an imprisonment of one day for each dollar of penalty imposed,
     and for the second offense to double the penalty imposed for the
     first offense, and for the third offense shall be discharged
     from the service of the State; and it shall be the duty of the
     heads of the several departments mentioned in this act to notify
     the various employes of the State Government that may be under
     their control, and that are under the pay of the State, of the
     requirements of this act.
        (1 amended May 29, 1917, P.L.309, No.172)
        Section 2.  All acts or parts of acts inconsistent with this
     act, in so far as they relate to the various subjects and
     conditions considered by this act, and specifically changed by
     its provisions, are hereby repealed.