Here's a "from the horse's mouth" account of how the permits work now. I wrote this for the last WSB magazine issue with the help of Delores Noyes, WDFW ADA Coordinator.
I have received several calls about the utilization of
crossbows during archery season by hunters with
disabilities issued a Crossbow Special Use Permit.
Questions stem from the omission of language in the
regulations regarding crossbows, and others from
reports allowing sighting devices back on the crossbow.
To make certain I was answering these questions
correctly, I contacted the WDFW ADA Program
Manager for a run-down on current regulation status.
The short version is YES, crossbows are still permitted
to those hunters with upper extremity impairments
issued a Special Use Permit, and factory installed
sighting devices are now being allowed to remain on
the crossbow. Language requiring hunters to modify
their newly purchased crossbows by removing factory
installed scopes or red dot sights were eliminated.
The ADA Program is currently updating the Special Use
Permit (SUP) application process to reflect these new
regulations. Abbreviated information about obtaining
WDFW Disability Status can be found on page 92 of the Big
Game Hunting Season and Regulations booklet or online at:
http://wdfw.wa.gov/accessibility/ The new ADA Program
RCW and WAC regulations can be found online at: http://
wdfw.wa.gov/accessibility/rcw_wacs.html
Hunters having a permanent non-operable physical
impairment rendering them unable to safely draw, hold,
or operate a traditional archery device may be granted
a Special Use Permit (SUP) to use a crossbow. Each SUP
is customized to that individual’s needs. I was given
an example to show how they are attempting to apply
common sense to the permits: for instance, a hunter
with a physical muscular impairment who is incapable
of making a 40 pound draw on a traditional recurve
bow might be accommodated with a crossbow having a
cocking-assist device or C02 assist.
Each SUP issued to a hunter with a disability will state
these restrictions or limitations out clearly to assist
enforcement officers in making sure that the person
they just made contact with in the field who has a
crossbow is definitely allowed to hunt with one and
is following the restrictions of their SUP permit. The
goal of the program is to make certain those hunters
who need the permits are able to get what they require
to be able to continue hunting as well as to make sure
that the applicant for the permit actually needs the
accommodation.
My hope is that these changes to the ADA Program will
help weed out those with permits who probably should
not have been given them in the past; this would go a
long way toward bettering the image of bow hunting
in the public’s eye. Nobody should be denied the right
to bow hunt because of a disability, and, conversely, I
don’t want to see people in the field who have taken
advantage of the system through misrepresentation of
a permanent non-operative disability. That is a crime
punishable under RCW 77.15.650(1)(a) and WDFW
now has the tools in place to prosecute. I think WDFW
is taking steps in the right direction by designing a
program which looks at all ADA accommodations on
a case-by-case basis instead of trying to use a cookie
cutter approach.
If you need assistance with your hunting activity, give
Dolores Noyés, ADA Program Manager a call at 360-
902-2349. She is a wealth of information. You can also
go online and read about the Program by logging onto:
http://wdfw.wa.gov/accessibility/