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House Bill 5226 would allow individuals with bear permits to hunt outside of the open season if it's at a farm where the farmer has a bear crop damage permit.

(Courtesy Michigan DNR)

LANSING — Bear hunters could hunt outside of the normal season under a proposal aimed at helping farmers protect their crops from damage.

"Bears can do a tremendous amount of damage to a corn field," said Rep. Ed McBroom, an Upper Peninsula dairy farmer who grows corn to feed his cows. He said bears cause trouble in his fields every year.

The animals can damage several acres of corn when they roll it up into a big pile and lay on it, staying for days while eating the corn before moving on to another spot in the field.

McBroom, R-Vulcan, estimates that one acre of corn is worth hundreds of dollars and is enough to feed three to four cows for the entire year. And he said there are very little good options to stop the bears from damaging his crop.

That's why he introduced a bill that would allow individuals with bear permits to hunt outside of the open season if they take a bear that's causing damage to crops or animal feed. Farmers would first need to get a crop damage permit from the state, and then they'd either have to get their own regular bear hunting license or find a licensed hunter to do it.

The plan differs from the way the state handles crop damage by deer. The state actually provides extra permits to kill those deer; under the bear plan, no extra hunting permits would be issued.

Michigan's bear hunting season starts sometime in September and can run through part of October, depending on the location. McBroom's bill would allow certain license holders to hunt at designated farms starting in the summer when more crops are susceptible to damage.

The state limits bear hunting licenses and uses a lottery system to issue permits, with wait lists several years long in some areas. Deer are not hunted on a quota basis, except for antlerless deer.

There were more than 52,000 applicants for 7,906 bear licenses last season. About 1,400 bears were killed.

About 15,000 to 19,000 black bears live in Michigan, mostly in the Upper Peninsula. Officials aren't sure of the extent of the bear crop damage problem since some farmers might not bother reporting it.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources agrees with the proposal in concept, noting that if it gets to the point of having to shoot a bear, it makes sense to use a hunter.

But DNR officials said they don't know of any cases where they had to euthanize a bear for crop damage. Instead, they'll scare away the animals with dogs, rubber buckshot or other non-lethal techniques. They also relocate the bears.

Fences can be used, but they need to be electric to effectively keep bears out. They're costly and not practical for large farms, said DNR bear specialist Adam Bump.

Relocating bears may just give them an opportunity to damage someone else's farm, noted Michigan Farm Bureau's Andrew Vermeesch.

The Michigan United Conservation Clubs doesn't want the hunting tactic to become widespread.

"The biggest thing that we are worried about is that this will become a first resort for farmers instead of what we believe should be a last resort," said Matt Evans, the group's legislative affairs manager.

He's also concerned that it would increase the number of bears killed, which could lead to fewer licenses available in future years and longer wait times for recreational hunters.

Lawmakers discussed the bill but took no action on it during the House Agriculture Committee hearing on Wednesday. The committee also took testimony on a bill that changes regulations on wild game sausage. The measure was sent to the full House for consideration.

Email Melissa Anders at manders@mlive.com. Follow her on Google+ and Twitter: @MelissaDAnders. Download the MLive app for iPhone and Android.