NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY
1975 SESSION

CHAPTER 620
HOUSE BILL 389

AN ACT TO AMEND ARTICLE 4 CHAPTER 113 OF THE GENERAL STATUTES RELATING TO THE PROTECTION AND DEVELOPMENT OF FORESTS AND FIRE CONTROL, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

Section 1.  G.S. 113-54, as the same appears in the 1974 Cumulative Supplement to Volume 3A of the General Statutes, is amended by striking the words "shall make arrests for violation of forest laws", appearing in lines 3-4 thereof.
Sec 2.  G.S. 113-55 is rewritten in its entirety to read as follows:
"§ 113-55.  Powers of forest rangers to prevent and extinguish fire. — Forest rangers shall prevent and extinguish forest fires and shall have control and direction of all persons and equipment while engaged in the extinguishing o forest fires. During a season of drought, the Secretary of the Department of Natural and Economic Resources or his designate may establish a fire patrol in any district, and in case of fire in or threatening any forest or woodland, the forest ranger shall attend forthwith and use all necessary means to confine and extinguish such fire. The forest ranger or deputy forest ranger may summon any resident between the ages of 18 and 45 years, inclusive, to assist in extinguishing fires and may require the use of crawler tractors and other property needed for such purposes; any person so summoned and who is physically able who refuses or neglects to assist or to allow the use of equipment and such other property required shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be subject to a fine of not less than fifty dollars ($50.00) nor more than one hundred dollars ($100.00). No action for trespass shall lie against any forest ranger, deputy forest ranger, or person summoned by him for crossing lands, backfiring, burning out or performing his duties as a forest ranger or deputy forest ranger."
Sec. 3.  Article 4 of Chapter 113 of the General Statutes is amended by inserting a new section to be designated G. S. 113-55.1.
"§ 113-55.1.  Powers of forest law enforcement officers. — The Secretary of the Department of Natural and Economic Resources is authorized to appoint as many forest law enforcement officers as he deems necessary to carry out the forest law enforcement responsibilities of the Department of Natural and Economic Resources. Forest law enforcement officers shall have all the powers and the duties of a forest ranger enumerated in G.S. 113-54 and G.S. 113-55. Forest law enforcement officers shall, in addition to their other duties enforce all statutes of this State now in force or that hereafter may be enacted for the protection of forests and woodlands from fire, insects, or disease and for -the obstructing of streams and drainage ditches in forests or woodlands and shall make arrests for violation of forest laws and for violation of G.S. 77-13 and G.S. 77-14 occurring in forests or woodlands. Any forest law enforcement officer may arrest, without warrant, any person or persons committing any crime in his presence or whom such officer has probable cause for believing has committed a crime in his presence and bring such person or persons forthwith before a district court or other officer having jurisdiction. Forest law enforcement officers shall also have authority to obtain and serve warrants including warrants for violation of any duly promulgated regulation of the Department of Natural and Economic Resources."
Sec 4.  G.S. 113-92, as the same appears in the 1974 Cumulative Supplements Volume 3A of the General Statutes, is rewritten in its entirety to read as follows:
"§ 113-92.  Officers constituted deputy game protectors. — All sheriffs, deputy sheriffs police officers, forest law enforcement officers, park patrolmen and all other peace officers are hereby made deputy game protectors, and it shall be their duty to aid in the enforcement of this law."
Sec 5.  It is the intent and purpose of this act to exclude from the provisions of Chapter 17A of the General Statutes and any rules or regulations adopted by the North Carolina Criminal Justice Training and Standards Council, all forest rangers of the Department of Natural and Economic Resources except those forest rangers and deputy forest rangers designated in writing by the Secretary of the Department of Natural and Economic Resources as forest law enforcement officers to the North Carolina Criminal Justice Training and Standards Council.
Sec. 6.  This act shall become effective upon ratification.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified, this the 16th day of June, 1975.