Lawmakers Approve Measure Allowing Hunters To Pick Up Roadkill
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CBS) -- Hunting license holders may now take dead animals from the side of the road, thanks to an override of Gov. Pat Quinn's veto by the Illinois General Assembly.
As WBBM Newsradio's Alex Degman reports, state Rep. Noreen Hammond (R-Macomb) sponsored the legislation, which allows drivers to pick up roadkill as long as the animal is in season.
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Quinn vetoed the measure this summer, saying it was unsafe to stop along busy roads to make the pickup.
But Hammond said that might be the case in Chicago, but not most rural areas downstate.
"I didn't see a lot of raccoons on Lake Shore Drive. However, we do have a lot of that type of animal in the rural areas, so we have confidence in the citizens of the State of Illinois that they are going to use good common sense," Hammond said.
Hammond adds that the state does not have the money to pick up all the animals that are killed in the road, so why not let law-abiding citizens do it?
"The state – neither through the Department of Transportation or Natural Resources – neither one has the revenue to pick up these animals," she said.
Hammond says the bill caught a lot of ribbing because of its subject matter. But she says the dead animals most likely will not be for eating.
She says the fur from the animals can now be legally sold to fur traders.
