Yes.
1) The spouse and children of Indiana OR NON-Indiana residents who own farmland may hunt, trap, fish on that land without a license.
2) Indiana-resident lessees and spouse and children may do the same. That being said, to my knowledge, it is the OWNER'S right to declare those person or persons eligible to do so, because some landowners have a farmland lease that they do NOT extend as permission to deer hunt...
In short: Legal without a license does NOT = Landowner Permission.
Title 14, Article 22, Chapter 11, Section 1, Subsection (b), Nos. 1, 2, and 3 are of interest to you:
https://law.justia.com/codes/indiana/2013/title-14/article-22/chapter-11/
-Nate
So if I leased some of the family farmground, I could get by without a license(s)?
Leasing is not considered OWNING. You have to be a land OWNER to use the landowner exemption.
No, see post #2. However, I think that if you lease farmland, you must ACTUALLY FARM the leased land in order to qualify for the leesee exemption. A land owner can get by with saying that they are "farming" trees. However, I doubt that would work for a leesee.
You don't have to "get by" with anything. For a landowner as long as you are not classified commercial or residential or some similar specification. There's no provision that says you actually have to farm or grow anything.
Yes, there is. According to the DNR, simply owning farmland is NOT GOOD ENOUGH for a landowner exemption. You have to FARM the land. If you have enough trees on your farmland, a landowner CAN "get by" with saying that they are farming trees.
If you meet the following exemptions, then you do not need a license to hunt your own property. Exemptions: Landowners or lessees of farmland who farm that land and are residents of Indiana are not required to obtain a permit while hunting, fishing, or trapping on the land they own or lease.
DNR: Indiana DNR Customer Service Center - IN.gov
Punctuation is VERY IMPORTANT in the above DNR statement. IF there were a comma after "Landowners", then it would infer that by SIMPLY BEING A LANDOWNER you would be exempt. However, since there in NO comma after "Landowners", then it indicates "Landowners" AND lessees who FARM the land are exempt. This would imply that landowners ALSO have to farm their land for the exemption.
Hmmm, working the cattle as needed probably would not be considered farming. Leasing a cow (and ground) would drive the costs higher than the license. Just irks me that the government controls such use of personal ground. So much for "smaller government" by the republicans. Sigh.
Good lord.
Just read the legal code. It's clear, and regardless of how DNR words it in any of their pamphlets, the CODE is what counts.
It really IS the easiest and most fool-proof way to know a law.
-Nate
Good lord.
Just read the legal code. It's clear, and regardless of how DNR words it in any of their pamphlets, the CODE is what counts.
It really IS the easiest and most fool-proof way to know a law.
-Nate