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Show Trespass law proposed Proposed legislation that has the backing of most farm, wildlife and sportsmen groups may finally solve the age-old dispute over Utah's private land trespass laws. Tom Bingham, vice president of public policy for the Utah Farm Bureau, Bu-reau, said language on a bill designed design-ed to solve the conflict over access to private land has been agreed upon by the Energy, Natural Resources and Agriculture Legislative Interim Committee. "This is not the first time the trespass issue has come before this legislature," Bingham said, "but it is the first time in nearly 20 years I have been involved with the legislature that the issue has come before legislators with a consensus among all the affected parties. When you consider the bloody battles that have been previously fought over trespass, this is something of a miracle," Bingham said. Efforts will now be made by all parties involved to push for passage of the bill in the 1991 legislative session. "The bill going to the legislature is the product of a great deal of compromise by all parties involved. This bill does not totally please any of the groups, but there is general agreement that this is a step in the right direction and one Board. In the case of repeat offenders, it makes revocation mandatory. It is the intent of this bill to get tough with repeat offenders. Fourth, the bill provides for special trespass enforcement in areas where a serious problem may exist. Fifth, the bill would direct the Division of Wildlife Resources to educate the sporting public about private property rights and sportsmen's sport-smen's rights and responsibilities. "We have had a good cross section sec-tion of interests involved in this effort including representatives from the Legislature, Rep. Mel Brown and Sen. Richard Tempest; The Division of Wildlife Resources; Wildlife organizations, including the Utah Wildlife Leadership Leader-ship Coalition and Utah Wildlife Federation; Law Enforcement; and Landowners, through Utah Farm Bureau," Bingham said. "It has taken nearly two years, but we have made considerable progress in finding a solution to this serious problem," he said. Bingham said all parties involved in this effort have come to the conclusion con-clusion that it is in the best interest of landowners, sportsmen, and the Division, that all concerned parties cooperate and find some middle ground in the trespass issue. we should make, together, Bingham said. Bingham says this language will finally solve what for many has been a major point of contention con-tention between landowners and those desiring to hunt big and upland game on private land. "This has been a long and slow, but beneficial process as we have labored to find some areas of agreement in how to modify the trespass law in Utah to make it enforceable en-forceable and practical," Bingham said, "In addition to giving the law enforceability, en-forceability, the major objective from the start was to begin to change the public mind set about trespass on private property without permission. Hopefully, we have the nucleus to begin that process." Bingham said the bill will be profiled pro-filed for the 1991 session, and contains con-tains a number of provisions which will significantly improve efforts to enforce illegal trespass laws, as well as take into account the desire of sportsmen to hunt, where possible, on private land. The bill first establishes written permission for trespass to take the landowner out of the enforcement loop and give law enforcement officers offi-cers the tools to write citations and get convictions on trespass. Second, the bill redefines the posting requirement for private lands. Some had hoped to remove the posting requirements entirely, but have found that some reasonable notice to would-be trespassers is essential under the constitution. It is believed that minimum requirements that could be upheld in court have been set. Third, the bill sets penalties for trespass at a class B misdemeanor, but also provides for license, tag or permit revocation by the Wildlife |