16 U.S.C. § 3114
Section 3114 · Preference for subsistence uses
Amended 2 times on record
Applied in 19 court decisions — leading case McDowell v. State (1989)
Most recently applied in Alaska Department of Fish and Game v. Federal Subsistence Board (June 2025)
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this Act and other Federal laws, the taking on public lands of fish and wildlife for nonwasteful subsistence uses shall be accorded priority over the taking on such lands of fish and wildlife for other purposes. Whenever it is necessary to restrict the taking of populations of fish and wildlife on such lands for subsistence uses in order to protect the continued viability of such populations, or to continue such uses, such priority shall be implemented through appropriate limitations based on the application of the following criteria:
(1) customary and direct dependence upon the populations as the mainstay of livelihood;
(2) local residency; and
(3) the availability of alternative resources.
(b) The priority granted by this section is for a reasonable opportunity to take fish and wildlife. For the purposes of this subsection, the term “reasonable opportunity” means an opportunity, consistent with customary and traditional uses (as defined in section 3113(3) of this title), to participate in a subsistence hunt or fishery with a reasonable expectation of success, and does not mean a guarantee that fish and wildlife will be taken.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Amendment of Section
For repeal of amendment by section 316(d) of Pub. L. 105–83, see Effective and Termination Dates of 1997 Amendment note below.
References in Text
This Act, referred to in subsec. (a), is Pub. L. 96–487, Dec. 2, 1980, 94 Stat. 2371, as amended, known as the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 3101 of this title and Tables.
Amendments
1997—Pub. L. 105–83 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a) and added subsec. (b).
Effective and Termination Dates of 1997 Amendment
Until laws are adopted in Alaska which provide for definition, preference, and participation specified in sections 3113 to 3115 of this title, amendment by Pub. L. 105–83 effective only for purpose of determining whether State's laws provide for such definition, preference, and participation, and such amendment repealed on Dec. 1, 1998, if Secretary has not certified that such laws have been adopted in Alaska by such date, see section 316(d) of Pub. L. 105–83 set out as a note under section 3102 of this title.