Fish and Wildlife Commission to hold special-called meeting May 18

​FRANKFORT, Ky. (May 14, 2026) — The Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Commission has scheduled a special-called live-video teleconference meeting at 1:30 p.m. (ET) on Monday, May 18, 2026.

The meeting will take place in the Schaaf Room at the Salato Wildlife Education Center on the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources campus in Frankfort, and it is open to the public. Members of the commission will participate in the meeting either in person or via live video teleconference.

The meeting will be livestreamed and archived on the department’​s YouTube channel at Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources - YouTube. A link to the livestream will be posted to the top of the department’s homepage at fw.ky.gov before the start of the meeting.

District commission members will be provided with informational updates on the 2026 legislative session and actions affecting the department for the commission to promulgate or amend regulations to comply with new laws enacted by legislators in the 2026 legislative session.

Among the Information Items on the meeting agenda that the commission will hear are:

• 2026 Kentucky legislative session highlights.
• Purpose of the special called commission meeting.
• To comply with 26RS HB 10E, amend 301 KAR 4:001 – Selection of fish and wildlife resources commission nominees to comply with commission nomination meetings amendments made to KRS 150.022 and KRS 150.061.
  • Revise provisions regarding public notification for and scheduling of nomination meetings;
  • Update requirements for nominees to serve including affidavit from nominees prior to nomination meeting;
  • Volunteers serving amended to “commission members” in KRS;
  • Recodify the regulation to 301 KAR - Chapter 11 – Administrative;
  • Clean up any other regulations as necessary for conformity.

• To comply with 26RS SB 39E, amend 301 KAR 6:001 – Definitions for 301 KAR Chapter 6 - Water Patrol.
  • Amend definitions related to wakeboat, wakesports and hydrofoil;
  • Conform to amendments made to KRS 235.280;
    
  • Clean up any other regulations as necessary for conformity.

• To comply with 26RS SB 39E, amend 301 KAR 1:001 – Definitions for 301 KAR Chapter 1 - Fish to comply with amendments to KRS 150.170 and KRS 150.180.
  • Define “private waters” as any water body that is not a public water or a “private lake or pond,”
  • Define “private lake or pond” as any waterbody that is:
    • On private land;
    • Not connected by surface water to any public waters;
    • Not accessible to fish from other public bodies of water; and
    • Not located within the one-hundred-year floodplain;​
      
  • Amend 301 KAR 1:201 – Taking of fish by traditional methods and 301 KAR 1:410 – Taking of fish by nontraditional methods;
  • Create a section that exempts the following individuals from statewide daily limits, size limits or method of take on “private lakes or ponds;”
    • A bona fide owner of private land who is also a Kentucky resident on their “private lakes or ponds;”
    • An individual extended the same privileges in written or electronic form;
  • Amend 301 KAR 1:125 – Transportation of Fish;
    • Create a provision to clarify that a license holder who transports fish from a “private lake or pond” requires written or electronic permission from the resident bona fide landowner;
  • Clean up any other regulations as necessary for conformity.

• To conform with 26RS HB 142E, amend 301 KAR 5:210- Special agency fundraising permits to modify the Special Agency Fundraising Permit application instructions.
  • An individual may request to be entered into the standard big game combination permit drawing if they:
    • Successfully harvest four or more female antlerless deer in an overpopulated area;
    • Submit a time-stamped photo of each to the department via the telecheck process;
    • Submits a request to the department to be entered into the standard big game combination permit drawing;
    • The standard combination big game permit includes a bonus deer, bear and spring turkey permit;
  • Clean up any other regulations as necessary for conformity.

• To comply with 26RS HB 142E regarding wildlife causing damage and landowner designee process, amend 301 KAR 2:176 – Deer control tags, deer destruction permits, and landowner designees.
  • Allow an individual who takes wildlife using KRS 150.170 to contact the department to report the take;
  • Allow an individual who takes wildlife using KRS150.170 to contact the department for a carcass tag to remove the carcass from the property and utilize the same;
  • Issue five destruction tags per year to a landowner or approved designee to take antlerless deer, valid for two years each;
  • Clarify that wildlife taken with control tags are to be telechecked;
  • Allow electronic processing of the Wildlife Damage Designee Form and the Out-of-Season Wildlife Destruction Reporting Form;
  • Amend the following forms:

• Wildlife Damage Designee Form;
• Out-of-Season Wildlife Destruction Reporting Form;
• Conform to amendments made to KRS 150.170 and KRS 150.390;
• Clean up any other regulations as necessary for conformity.​

Among the Discussion Items on the meeting agenda that the commission will consider are:

• To comply with 26RS HB 142E regarding deer hunting season expansion, amend 301 KAR 2:172 – Deer hunting seasons, zones, and requirements.
  • Add a 4-day antlerless-only firearms season on the last Friday in September in Deer Zone 1 counties;
  • Add a 3-day antlerless-only firearms season on the last three days of Kentucky’s deer season, on Martin Luther King, Jr. (MLK) weekend, in Deer Zones 1-3;
  • Define “overpopulated areas” as any county that has a Deer Zone 1 designation;
  • Clean up any other regulations as necessary for conformity.

• Amend 301 KAR 2:178 – Deer hunting on public properties to modify public lands deer hunting seasons on Zone 1 Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs).
  • Open the following WMAs for the 4-day antlerless deer firearm season that starts on the last weekend of September and the 3-day MLK antlerless deer firearms hunt: Yatesville, Grayson, L.B. Davidson, Harris Dickerson, Clear Creek, Yellowbank, Blackford Oaks, Lee Nelson, Gabbard Branch, Rough River, Marrowbone, Green River State Forest, Nolin River, Rolling Fork, Stephens Creek, Big Rivers, Obion Creek, Kentucky Lake, Ferguson Creek, Kaler Bottoms, Beechy Creek, Jones-Keeney, Higginson-Henry, Peabody and Sloughs;
  • Open the following WMAs for the 4-day antlerless deer firearm season that starts on the last weekend of September (due to WMA closure for waterfowl refuge status):Lake Barkley, Doug Travis and Ohio River Islands;
  • Clean up any other regulations as necessary for conformity.

• To comply with 26RS SB 39E amend 301 KAR 2:251 – Hunting and trapping seasons and limits for furbearers to add night hunting of beavers based on amendments to KRS 150.360.
  • Allow the take of beavers at night from December 1 through the last day of February;
  • Prohibit in a county or area where a deer or elk firearm season is open;
  • Allow the use of any artificial light or other means (night vision, thermal and infrared technologies) designed to make wildlife visible at night during this period;
  • Any artificial light or other means designed to make wildlife visible at night shall not be connected to or cast from a mechanized vehicle;
  • Prohibit the use of firearms except for any rimfire caliber or shotguns using shot shells;
  • Clean up any other regulations as necessary for conformity.

• To comply with 26RS SB 39E, amend 301 KAR 2:251 – Hunting and trapping seasons and limits for furbearers to add night hunting of bobcats based on amendments to KRS 150.360.
  • Allow the take of bobcats at night from December 1 through the last day of February;
  • Bag limit of one bobcat at night (three are allowed to be harvested with a firearm);
  • Prohibit in a county or area when a deer or elk firearm season is open;
  • Allow the use of any artificial light or other means (night vision, thermal and infrared technologies) designed to make wildlife visible at night during this period;
  • Any artificial light or other means designed to make wildlife visible at night shall not be connected to or cast from a mechanized vehicle;
  • On public land, a person shall not use any equipment other than a bow, crossbow, or shotgun of 12 gauge or less and shall not use a shotgun shell with a single-projectile;
  • On private land, a person shall not use any equipment other than a bow, crossbow, or shotgun of 12 gauge or less, muzzleloader of .54 caliber or less, or any modern centerfire firearm;
  • Harvested bobcats must still be telechecked;
  • Clean up any other regulations as necessary for conformity.

Action Items on the meeting agenda that the commission will consider are:

• Approval of the minutes of the March 20, 2026 quarterly commission meeting.

• Election of officers for the Chair, Vice Chair and Secretary positions of the commission to comply with 26RS SB 39E and maintain consistent terms for all officers.

The May 18 meeting agenda can be found on the department’s Commission Meeting Dates webpage online at fw.ky.gov or search “Commission meeting dates” on the homepage.

The public may provide in-person comments for up to three minutes about New Business Items and Discussion Items on the meeting agenda during the Public Comments portion of the meeting, time permitting and at the discretion of the commission chair. The public may also provide comments by sending an email to FW.PublicAffairs@ky.gov by 10 a.m. (ET) on Monday, May 18, 2026. Along with their comments, commenters should include “commission meeting” in the subject line and provide their first name and last name, county and state of residence, and organization represented with position held in the organization, if applicable. Emailed comments or a summary thereof may also be read during the Public Comments portion of the meeting. More information about submitting public comments is available on the department’s Commission Meeting Format webpage.

The commission is a nine-member board, comprised of volunteers who serve four-year terms. Commission members are nominated by active hunters and anglers at public meetings, appointed by the governor, and confirmed by the Kentucky Senate. The commission recommends hunting, fishing and boating regulations to conserve fish and wildlife and support related outdoor recreation opportunities in the commonwealth.

The next regular quarterly commission meeting date is scheduled for Friday, June 12, 2026, in Frankfort, Ky. An agenda and meeting location will be posted on the Commission Meeting Dates webpage on the department’s website at fw.ky.gov when available.

The Salato Wildlife Education Center is located on the Kentucky Fish and Wildlife main campus at 1 Sportsman's Lane (formerly 1 Game Farm Road) in Frankfort, and the center is a one-story building located at the end of the drive. The main entrance is located off U.S. 60, approximately 1½ miles west of U.S. 127.​