Assembly BillVetoedFish and Game
AB 1722: California Endangered Species Act: take prohibition: self-defense.
What AB 1722 does, verified September 20, 2026
<p>The California Endangered Species Act prohibits harming endangered or threatened species, with exceptions. Assembly Bill 1722 proposes adding an exception where individuals can use necessary and reasonable force to protect themselves, their family, or others from immediate bodily harm caused by listed animals without facing civil, administrative, or criminal penalties.</p> <p>The bill also mandates that anyone who takes or attempts to take a protected species under these circumstances must notify the Department of Fish and Wildlife within 24 hours. Violating this notification requirement would be considered a crime.</p>
Bill journey
✓IntroducedComplete
✓In CommitteeComplete
✓First Chamber FloorComplete
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5GovernorCurrent
6ChapteredPending
Last action: Vetoed by Governor. (2026-09-18)Alert me
Author and sponsors
Full contact details, staff, and committees with Connect, $16/moUnlockRecent actions26 total · showing 5
| Sep. 18, 2026 | Vetoed by Governor. |
| Aug. 27, 2026 | Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4 p.m. |
| Aug. 20, 2026 | Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 61. Noes 1. Page 6316.). |
| Aug. 19, 2026 | In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending. |
| Aug. 19, 2026 | Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 34. Noes 1.). |
Latest bill textEnrolled version, August 24, 2026 · 821 words
| Enrolled August 24, 2026 |
| Passed IN Senate August 19, 2026 |
| Passed IN Assembly August 20, 2026 |
| Amended IN Senate June 25, 2026 |
| Amended IN Assembly April 16, 2026 |
| Amended IN Assembly April 06, 2026 |
| Amended IN Assembly March 19, 2026 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION
Assembly Bill
No. 1722
| Introduced by Assembly Member Hadwick (Coauthor: Assembly Member Gallagher) (Coauthors: Senators Dahle and Grove) |
February 05, 2026 |
An act to add Section 2080.8 to the Fish and Game Code, relating to fish and wildlife.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1722, Hadwick. California Endangered Species Act: take prohibition: self-defense.
The California Endangered Species Act requires the Fish and Game Commission to establish a list of endangered species and a list of threatened species and to add or remove species from either list if it finds, upon the receipt of sufficient scientific information, as specified, that the action is warranted. The act prohibits the taking of an endangered or threatened species, except under certain circumstances. The violation of the act is a crime.
This bill would prohibit the imposition of a civil, administrative, or criminal penalty for a violation of the take prohibition if the defendant used necessary and reasonable force to protect themselves, a member of their family, or any other individual from immediate bodily harm from a species listed pursuant to the act. The bill would require a person who committed a take, or an attempted take, of a species listed pursuant to the act under these circumstances to notify the Department of Fish and Wildlife within 24 hours after the take. Because a violation of this requirement would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
(a) The Legislature finds and declares that the federal Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. Sec. 1531 et seq.) establishes a defense against the imposition of civil penalties, and a defense to prosecution, for the take of an animal listed pursuant to the federal act if the defendant committed the act based on a good faith belief that they were acting to protect themselves, a member of their family, or any other individual from that animal (16 U.S.C. Sec. 1540).(b) It is the intent of the Legislature to establish similar defenses against the imposition of civil and criminal penalties for the take of an animal listed pursuant to the California Endangered Species Act (Chapter 1.5 (commencing with Section 2050) of Division 3 of the Fish and Game Code) for when that take is necessary and reasonable to the threat an animal listed under the California Endangered Species Act may pose to a human.
SEC. 2.
Section 2080.8 is added to the Fish and Game Code, to read:2080.8.
(a) A civil or administrative penalty shall not be imposed for a violation of Section 2080 or 2085, or both, if it can be shown by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant used necessary and reasonable force to protect themselves, a member of their family, or any other individual from immediate bodily harm from any endangered, threatened, or candidate species.(b) It shall be a defense to prosecution for a violation of Section 2080 or 2085, or both, if the defendant used necessary and reasonable force to protect themselves, a member of their family, or any other individual from immediate bodily harm from any endangered, threatened, or candidate species.
(c) A person who committed a take, or an attempted take, described in this section shall notify the department within 24 hours after the take.
(d) (1) On or before July 1, 2032, the department shall prepare a report that includes, but is not limited to, compiled data, including the species, date, and approximate location, regarding a take of an animal reported pursuant to subdivision (c) between January 1, 2027, through December 31, 2031.
(2) The report prepared pursuant to this subdivision shall be submitted to the relevant legislative policy and budget committees in both houses of the Legislature and be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
SEC. 3.
No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.Text of AB 1722 as enrolled, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions