As pressure builds for the state to allow bear hunting for the first time in nearly a decade, Florida wildlife officials will receive an update on the management plan next week of the state’s black bear.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will receive information on the 2019 management plan at a meeting Wednesday in Lakeland. A memo to the commission from Melissa Tucker, director of habitat and species conservation, said the state has more than 4,000 bears and the agency receives more than 6,000 calls a year about bears.

“Staff focuses on mitigating human-bear conflicts by securing trash from bears, with studies showing that when bears do not have access to trash, residents have fewer interactions with bears overall ” Tucker wrote. “In situations where bears or the public could be in danger, staff will capture and remove bears. »

The presentation states that an average of 300 bears are killed by vehicles each year and that “despite our best efforts, on average, one person is injured by a bear each year in Florida.”

In June, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a law aimed at strengthening the self-defense arguments of people who kill bears on their property. The law requires shooters to notify the commission within 24 hours of the death of a bear. They are also prohibited from possessing or selling bear carcasses. Legal immunity is not granted to people who provoke or attract bears.

The measure, sponsored by Rep. Jason Shoaf, Republican of Port St. Joe, and Sen. Corey Simon, Republican of Tallahassee, gained support after Franklin County Sheriff AJ Smith said his rural community was “flooded and overrun by the bear population.” »

Opponents of the bill said it would lead to increased mortality of once-threatened animals.

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