(a) Before opening a bobcat hunting season pursuant to Section 4157, the department, in consultation with other relevant state agencies, local governments, federal agencies, nongovernmental organizations, landowners, and scientific entities, shall develop, upon appropriation by the Legislature, a bobcat management plan to inform and coordinate management decisions regarding bobcat populations. The bobcat management plan shall use credible science and utilize an ecosystem-based approach. The bobcat management plan shall be submitted by the department to the commission and the Legislature and shall include all of the following:
(1) A current statewide bobcat population estimate based on the best available science.
(2) An assessment of the overall health of the statewide bobcat population.
(3) A comprehensive strategy to manage bobcat populations and their habitat throughout the state, including, but not limited to, an assessment of the effects of climate change, such as from drought and wildfires; rodenticides; and human development on the state’s bobcats, the bobcats’ prey, and the bobcats’ habitats. The comprehensive strategy shall utilize the principles of adaptative management and incorporate recommendations for monitoring.
(4) An investigation of efficacious nonlethal solutions to prevent bobcat predation on livestock, primarily chickens or other domestic animals that the Department of Food and Agriculture deems needing widespread protections from bobcats.
(5) Recommendations for regulatory or statutory changes necessary to implement the bobcat management plan.
(b) A report to be submitted pursuant to this section shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
(Added by Stats. 2019, Ch. 766, Sec. 6. (AB 1254) Effective January 1, 2020.)