General Treaty Exercise Information

Tribal ID: Members must carry their tribal ID at all times while exercising treaty harvest activities.

Non-Member Assistance: 

• Only a member's spouse, parents, grandparents, children, grandchildren, or siblings may assist a member in treaty harvest activities.
• Non-member assistance is limited to operation of the boat during spearing; placing or lifting a net; placing or lifting a setline, or set or bank pole (in WI only); setting or lifting lines during ice fishing; all hunting activities except the actual use of a firearm, bow and arrow, or crossbow; while night hunting deer (WI only) acting as a spotter and shining the established safe zone of fire; all trapping activities except the setting or placement of traps and snares; all wild rice harvesting activities; all miscellaneous forest plant harvesting activities except the actual uprooting of the plant or the removal of plants parts; all activities except the actual use of a device to kill an animal when harvesting clams (in WI), crayfish, turtles, frogs (in MN), mussels (in MN) and unprotected species.

Hunter Safety Education Requirements:

• Harvesters born on or after January 1, 1977 (WI) or January 1, 1980 (MN), must successfully complete a hunter education and firearm safety course before being issued any hunting permit.
• Qualifying courses are offered by tribes and states or provinces of Canada which provide courses substantially similar to the Tribe's hunter safety course; basic training in the U.S. Armed Forces substitutes for hunter safety course.
• Members who do not have hunter safety education and want to try hunting, may participate in a mentored hunting program. Under the mentored hunting program, members without a hunter's safety education card (age 10+ years old), may hunt with a mentor as long as both the mentor and mentee possess a valid permit, the mentor meets the requirements for acting as a mentor and remains within arms-length of the mentee-hunter at all times while acting as a mentor, and only one gun is possessed between them. 

Tribal Youth Hunts (WI only):

• When a Tribal Youth Hunt is established, members aged 10-15 may participate when in possession of a valid permit.
• The parent, guardian or adult member may accompany no more than two youth members at the same time if at least one youth member is 12 years or older and has completed a hunter education course; otherwise, the adult member may accompany only one youth member.
• The adult member must satisfy the hunter safety education requirements above, they may not hunt while participating in the Tribal Youth Hunt, and they must remain in arm's reach of the youth.
• Only one firearm, bow or crossbow may be possessed between the adult and the youth member.

Vehicle Access:

• Members may use a GLIFWC Vehicle Hang Tag as proof of fee waiver at day use sites and parking locations in the Ceded Territory National Forests and at Wisconsin state vehicle admission areas.
• Hang Tags may obtained from GLIFWC.
• The GLIFWC Hang Tag must display the member's unique NAGFA ID number and must be hung on the rear-view mirror of the vehicle with the ID number facing outward.

Religious or Ceremonial Harvest:

• A Tribe may issue a special permit to a member for religious or ceremonial harvest, that may not be otherwise permitted through an established season.
• Ceremonial harvest permits must be obtained directly from the tribal conservation department, and the tribe must take into account the biological impact of the harvest prior to issuing the permit.
• Members must comply with all terms and conditions of a ceremonial harvest permit.

Sharing of Permits or Tags:

• Except where specifically authorized (i.e. group deer hunting, group elk hunting, group bear hunting, group netting, or group gathering), no member may lend, share, give, sell, barter or trade, or offer to lend, share, give, sell, barter or trade a permit or tag to another person.

Shining: 

• Shining while in possession of a weapon is generally prohibited, except when lawfully night hunting deer, lawfully hunting raccoon, fox, and unprotected small game species, or lawfully spearing.
• Night hunting regulations for deer can be found on the Waawaashkeshi harvest page. Shining regulations for hunting raccoon, fox and unprotected species can be found on the Awesiinyensag harvest page. 

Tree Stands & Ground Structures (WI only):

• Members may use tree stands or ground structures while hunting on land (including state and county lands) in the Wisconsin Ceded Territories subject to the following restrictions:
  • Unoccupied tree stands or blinds must be legibly marked with the member's name and address or the member's NAGFA ID# clearly visible from the entrance of the structure.
  • Members may not unreasonably cause damage to the tree when placing stands.
  • Members may not relocate or prohibit another's use of a lawfully placed stand or blind, except that a member may remove or relocate their own stand at any time.
  • On private land open to tribal harvest (MFL-Open or Forest Croplands), members may not leave a stand or blind unoccupied overnight unless authorization from the landowner has been obtained.
  • On WDNR managed lands, stands or blinds may not be placed more than 7 days prior to the tribal season and must be removed within 7 days following the season's closure. On WDNR managed lands, stands and blinds must be marked with a highly visible color material, such as blaze orange, during the middle deer season and the State's October youth hunt.
  • Additional regulations may apply on county lands, check with the land manager for additional rules.