A view of Michigan state Rep. Ken Borton’s backyard feeder, where he has been ticketed for feeding deer. Legislation he sponsored would legalize feeding deer in the Lower Peninsula with some possible limitations. (Courtesy of state Rep. Ken Borton)

A bill that would allow Michiganders to feed deer in their backyards is sitting on Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s desk, but, even if she signs it, the state may still prohibit some people from feeding.

Deer feeding is currently banned in the Lower Peninsula to prevent the spread of diseases such as bovine tuberculosis and chronic wasting disease. House Bill 4350, which passed the Legislature with broad bipartisan support, would allow the practice but says any feeding must align with US Department of Agriculture standards and any agreements between the state and the federal government to control the spread of infectious diseases.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources currently has memorandums of understanding with the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development and the USDA related to surveilling bovine tuberculosis, a respiratory disease found in animals such as deer and cattle that can spread to humans.

Even if Whitmer signs the law, “some areas of the state will be able to feed and others will not,” said DNR spokesperson Ed Golder.

“The MOU does not define a particular zone to which we’ve committed to maintaining a baiting and feeding ban, but at the time the current MOU was developed, baiting and feeding were banned throughout the Lower Peninsula,” the DNR’s deer specialist, Brent Rudolph, said. “The MOU does commit us more generally to maintaining and enforcing bans to prevent transmission of (bovine tuberculosis) between deer and cattle.”

Baiting and feeding deer is allowed in the Upper Peninsula but in 2018 Michigan prohibited the practices in the Lower Peninsula to help limit disease spread. Hunters with disabilities can bait deer under certain circumstances. It’s OK if deer eat from a field, but in the Lower Peninsula it’s currently illegal to feed deer in a backyard, even if it’s not for hunting purposes.

“Any time you do any feeding, whether it’s a bird feeder or you’re broadcasting some seeds on the ground, and a deer shows up, at that point, you’re committing a crime,” said state Rep. Ken Borton, R-Gaylord, lead sponsor of the bill to allow feeding.

Borton, who now chairs the state House budget committee for the DNR, was motivated to become a lawmaker after he was ticketed by the DNR for feeding deer in his Gaylord backyard. He has a “Snowman Cam” livestream pointed on his birdfeeder that occasionally shows deer eating out of it. He fought the charges and they were eventually dropped.

Borton’s legislation, if signed, would allow people to feed wildlife with up to two gallons of food within 300 feet of a residence. That could be done for wildlife viewing or sustenance purposes but baiting for hunting would not be allowed.