A conservation group has withdrawn an administrative challenge to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s plan to hold a bear hunt in December, after the commission argued that such disputes cannot be resolved at the state Division of Administrative Hearings.
Administrative Law Judge Joshua Pratt issued an order Friday granting the group Bear Warrior United’s request to withdraw the challenge to a proposed rule about the hunt.
Commission cites constitutional authority
The request came after the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said in a filing Thursday that such rule challenges may only be filed in circuit court, not as administrative cases.
While challenges to agency rules generally go through the Division of Administrative Hearings, the commission said it is different from many state agencies because it is created in the Florida Constitution.
The commission said in the filing that its regulatory powers related to wildlife are derived from the Constitution and are not subject to administrative rule challenges.
The commission last week approved holding a 23-day bear hunt in December that could lead to 187 bears being killed. It would be the first such hunt since 2015.
