‘Crack' bear bill: Florida makes it legal to kill black bears under certain circumstances

Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed a controversial measure that will bolster self-defense arguments for people who kill bears on their property.

DeSantis’ office announced Friday night that he had signed 14 bills from this year’s legislative session and vetoed three (including one that would have prevented motorists from cruising in the left lanes of highways).

The bill about bears (HB 87) provides a sort of stand-your-ground defense for people who shoot bears to defend themselves or property. But with bear hunting long a controversial issue in Florida, opponents of the bill said it would lead to increased deaths of the once-threatened animals. Opponents said they will consider legal action to try to halt the law, which is scheduled to take effect July 1.

Under the bill, shooters will have to notify the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission within 24 hours of bears being killed. They also will be prohibited from possessing or selling bear carcasses.

Legal immunity will not be available to people who provoke or lure bears.

Under current law, people are prohibited from possessing, injuring or shooting bears but can use non-lethal means to scare away bears that may be on the people’s property or rifling through trash.

Similar bills were filed in past years but did not pass the Legislature. This year, however, the proposal sponsored by Rep. Jason Shoaf, R-Port St. Joe, and Sen. Corey Simon, R-Tallahassee, gained traction in September after Franklin County Sheriff A.J. Smith said his rural community was “being inundated and overrun by the bear population.”

Shoaf and Simon represent Franklin County as part of sprawling, largely rural districts.

The bill was dubbed “the cocaine bear bill” on social media after Shoaf said Floridians have the right to protect themselves against “the ones that are on crack.”

“They break your door down and they’re standing in your living room growling and tearing your house apart,” he said while introducing legislation at a committee meeting. “When you run into one of these crack bears, you should be able to shoot it. Period.”

Sierra Club Florida called that claim "a bold-faced lie," and argued the bill usurps the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s constitutional authority.

"With fewer than 40 bear-human incidents reported since 2006, and no fatal bear attacks in Florida’s recorded history, HB 87 proposes a dangerous solution to an imaginary problem, and does the exact opposite of keeping our communities safe," the group said.

The Senate voted 24-12 to approve the bill, while the House passed it in an 83-28 vote.

Rep. Allison Tant, D-Tallahassee, said bears threaten farmers’ livestock in her district, which includes rural Madison and Jefferson counties.

“We do have bear-proof garbage cans,” Tant said in March. “And you know what, oftentimes, after the garbage is picked up, the tops are not secured again. So, the bears come back and come back and come back.”

Still, animal-rights activists argued the bill will create an “open season” on bears.

“Increasing the killing of Florida’s iconic black bears under the guise of self-defense –– without requiring proof of actual danger --- poses serious public safety risks and undermines responsible wildlife management,” Kate MacFall, Florida state director at the Humane Society of the United States, said in a prepared statement.

MacFall said the bill conflicts with regulations of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which has the constitutional authority to manage wildlife. She added her organization “will continue to explore our options moving forward to ensure Florida’s bears are protected.”

As the state’s number of residents has grown, human-bear conflicts have increased. The commission euthanized an average of 38 bears annually between 2009 and 2018 because of public-safety risks, mostly as bears sought out unsecured garbage or other food.

Opponents of the bill said the state and communities should focus on securing garbage so bears will not be attracted to homes. The commission’s BearWise program outlines steps such as telling people not to feed bears, to clear grills, to make trash less accessible, to remove bird feeders when bears are active and to not leave pet food outside.