(a) Except as otherwise permitted in this chapter, without having the appropriate license, tag, or permit in actual possession, a person may not engage in

(1) sport fishing, including the taking of razor clams;

(2) hunting or trapping;

(3) the farming of fish, fur, or game;

(4) taxidermy or fur dealing; or

(5) control of nuisance wild birds and nuisance wild small mammals for compensation.

(b) When obtaining the appropriate license or tag in (a) of this section, an applicant who asserts residency in the state shall provide the license vendor with the proof of residence that the department requires by regulation.

(c) The Board of Fisheries and the Board of Game may adopt regulations providing for the issuance and expiration of subsistence permits for areas, villages, communities, groups, or individuals as needed for authorizing, regulating, and monitoring the subsistence harvest of fish and game. The boards shall adopt these regulations when the subsistence preference requires a reduction in the harvest of a fish stock or game population by nonsubsistence users.

(d) A person may not receive a sport fishing, hunting, or trapping license or other permit or tag issued under AS 16.05.330 - 16.05.430, if the person's right to obtain, or exercise the privileges granted by, a sport fishing, hunting, or trapping license is suspended or revoked in another state. A person who applies for a sport fishing, hunting, or trapping license or other permit or tag issued under AS 16.05.330 - 16.05.430 shall sign a statement that the person's right to obtain, or exercise the privileges granted by, a sport fishing, hunting, or trapping license is not suspended or revoked in another state.

(e) [Repealed, § 2 ch 39 SLA 2001.]

(f) A person charged with violating (a)(1) or (2) of this section for failure to have a license in actual possession may not be convicted if the person provides, not later than 30 days after the issuance of the citation, evidence satisfactory to the arresting or citing agency of a license previously issued to the person that was valid at the time of the offense.

(g) A license in actual possession may be in paper or electronic form.

(h) A peace officer presented with an electronic device under (g) of this section is immune from any liability resulting from damage to the device, except that a peace officer may be liable for civil damages that are the result of the peace officer's intentional misconduct.