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Public Hearings

Public hearings are held by the Fisheries & Wildlife Board for the purpose of obtaining public comments on proposed regulatory changes. These hearings are open to anyone to attend and comment either orally or in writing. The date, time and location of hearings are posted in this area along with information. Plain language summaries and the actual proposed language being considered by the Board is also posted here.

Public Comment Period

The Fisheries and Wildlife Board will accept written comment on the proposals at any time prior to the public hearings, and will accept either written or oral comment at public hearings. Unless otherwise noted, the Board typically extends the comment period on regulations for an additional two weeks following the public hearing, and vote on the proposal at their next regularly scheduled meeting. Comments (both oral and written) must focus on the proposed changes to the regulation.

Send written comments to:

Chairman, Fisheries and Wildlife Board
c/o Wayne MacCallum
MassWildlife
1 Rabbit Hill Road
Westborough MA 01581

Comments by e-mail may be sent to Mass.wildlife@state.ma.us Attn: Fisheries & Wildlife Board

2011 Public Hearing Notices

  • September 28 -- Public Hearing, Westborough -- At 3 PM, Wednesday September 28, 2011, the Fisheries and Wildlife Board will be holding a Public Hearing at the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, Karl Weiss Education and Conference Center, 100 North Drive, Room 102, Westborough, MA, regarding proposed revisions to the Division’s Massachusetts Endangered Species Act (MESA) regulations. Directions. The draft regulatory revisions amend the list of species protected under MESA and clarify the timing of updates to priority habitat maps. Click here for more details and the proposed regulation changes.

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  • August 25--Public Hearing, Newbury -- At 3:00 PM, Thursday, August 25, 2011, the Fisheries and Wildlife Board will be holding a Public Hearing at the Newbury Fire Fighters Memorial Hall, 3 Morgan Avenue to establish rules and regulations relative to the 2011-2012 migratory game bird seasons and methods of take. NOTE: Immediately following the hearing, the Fisheries & Wildlife Board will vote on the proposal in order to meet the filing date as set by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Those seasons (such as the early goose season) which open in September will be set by emergency regulation. The meeting facility is handicapped accessible.
  • Directions: Take I-495 North through Lowell and Lawrence. Take the Rte 110 Exit in Salisbury, and go east on Rte 110 to the exit to Rt. 95 (stay in right lane about 14/12 mile). Take Route 95 South, take exit 57 and head east on Story Avenue. Story Ave. in Newburyport turns into High St, then in Newbury becomes High St. then becomes High Road. Continue into the center of Newbury and turn left on Morgan Street. The Newbury Town Hall is on corner of High Road and Morgan. The Fire Fighters Memorial Hall is in the back.

Fisheries and Wildlife Board Action: On August 25, 2011, the Fisheries and Wildlife Board voted to approve the proposed regulations on migratory game bird seasons and methods of take. The abstract of regulations is posted on the DFW Migratory Game Bird web page.

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  • June 10 --Public Hearing, Westborough -- At 3 PM, Friday, June 10, the Fisheries and Wildlife Board will be holding a Public Hearing at the DFW Field Headquarters, 1 Rabbit Hill Road (off North Drive) to consider proposed regulation changes regarding youth turkey hunting permits. The proposed change would allow the Division to issue licensed youths ages 12-14 years-old a permit with 2 tags that can be used through the duration of the spring turkey season. The building is handicapped accessible. Directions.

Hearing: The existing regulation sets forth seasons, dates, bag limits, zones, methods of take, tagging and checking procedures, permit requirements, prohibitions, and other aspects of the wild turkey hunting seasons in Massachusetts. The Hunting of Wild Turkey regulation revisions propose allowing the DFW to issue turkey permits to youth turkey hunters that can be used through the duration of the spring turkey hunting season. PDF icon

Fisheries and Wildlife Board Action: On July 28, 2011, the Fisheries and Wildlife Board voted unanimously to approve the regulation change on Youth Turkey Permits. The regulation change will be official when published in the Massachusetts Register and the Code of Massachusetts Regulations (CMR). A notice will be posted at this location and an announcement made in the MassWildlife Newsletter when the regulation is posted.

 

  • March 22, 2011-- Public Hearing, Westborough. A Public Hearing will be held on Tuesday, March 22, 2011 beginning at 3 PM at the DFW Field Headquarters, 1 Rabbit Hill Rd (off North Drive) in Westborough, regarding proposed revisions to the Hunting and Tagging of Deer at 321 CMR 3.02(4) administered by the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife.

This facility is handicapped accessible. Directions.

Hearing: The existing regulation sets forth seasons, dates, bag limits, zones, methods of take, tagging and checking procedures, permit requirements, prohibitions, and other aspects of the white-tailed deer hunting seasons in Massachusetts. The Hunting and Tagging of Deer regulation revisions propose the allowance of the use of break-open breech muzzleloaders which have become widely available and popular. PDF icon

Fisheries and Wildlife Board Action: On April 21, 2011 the Fisheries and Wildlife Board unanimously voted to allow the use of hinge (break-open) action muzzleloaders during the muzzleloader season for deer. The regulation change was made official when published in the Massachusetts Register and the Code of Massachusetts Regulations (CMR) in the summer of 2011.

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