ACCA hunting association: how it works, obligations and administration

An ACCA (Association Communale de Chasse Agreee, a municipal hunting association) is a 1901-law association, approved by the chairman of the departmental hunting federation, that brings together the hunting rights of a commune. A board of directors runs it, it holds at least one general assembly per year, and it funds its operations through its members’ membership fees.

Picture the first committee meeting of a newly elected board member. The membership register is a box of loose papers. The last general assembly was two years ago. Nobody knows whether the membership fee covers what the association owes the federation. In a small ACCA run by volunteers, things go wrong the day a member challenges a decision. A dispute that cannot be settled amicably ends up in court². This guide draws on the Code de l’environnement and federation guidelines. It sets out what the association must do and what depends only on your own bylaws.

What is an ACCA and how is one created?

An ACCA is an association formed under the law of 1 July 1901, approved by the chairman of the departmental hunting federation (article L422-3 of the Code de l’environnement)¹. Its purpose is to ensure sound technical organisation of hunting and to promote game and wild fauna, while respecting the agro-sylvo-cynegetique (agricultural-forestry-hunting) balance. It must also regulate animals that cause damage and ensure compliance with harvest plans (article L422-2)¹.

Three common mistakes to avoid, all contradicted by the legislation. An ACCA is not a public body: it is a private-law association. Its approval does not come from the prefect but from the federation chairman. Its creation does not go through a council vote. A survey, carried out under the federation chairman’s authority, determines which land is brought into the association by landowners or holders of hunting rights (article L422-8)¹. As for the mayor, articles L422-2 to L422-26 do not make them chairman of the association at any point¹.

The system does not cover the whole country. The minister responsible for hunting sets the list of departments where ACCAs must be created (article L422-6)¹: Meurthe-et-Moselle is one of them². Elsewhere, a commune has one only if the federation chairman places it on the list. The application requires the agreement of 60% of landowners representing 60% of the area, valid for at least five years (article L422-7)¹. There can be only one approved municipal association per commune (article L422-4)¹.

In the departments concerned, no existing hunting society or association may claim the ACCA designation without the federation chairman’s approval (article L422-5)¹. This is the difference from an ordinary hunting society. The ACCA holds hunting rights in place of the landowners, an exceptional prerogative that the law offsets by requiring the federation to approve the bylaws and regulations².

Who can join a municipal hunting association, and on what hunting ground?

Any holder of a validated hunting licence who meets one of the conditions in article L422-21 must be admitted¹. The list covers hunters domiciled in the commune, or who have a residence there that has been on the local tax roll for four years without interruption. It also includes landowners or holders of hunting rights who have contributed their rights, together with their spouses, ascendants and descendants. Tenants of rural land whose owner has contributed their hunting rights are also included¹. The bylaws provide for admitting a minimum percentage of hunters from outside these categories: the FDC 54 (Meurthe-et-Moselle federation) sets this at least 10% of the hunter membership².

A non-hunting landowner whose land is included in the hunting ground is, on request, a member free of charge, without being liable for any deficit of the association (article L422-21, III)¹. Membership confers the right to hunt on the entire hunting ground of the association, in accordance with its rules (article L422-22)¹.

An ACCA’s hunting ground does not cover all land in the commune. The table below brings together the key reference points.

Source: Legifrance, section 1 of chapter II of title II of book IV (articles L422-2 to L422-26)¹.

A landowner who opts out of hunting on grounds of personal conviction retains liability for damage caused by game from their land (article L422-10, 5)¹. Anyone exercising this opt-out must mark their land and ensure the destruction of animals likely to cause damage (article L422-15)¹.

Who runs an ACCA and what obligations must it meet?

An ACCA is run by a board of 3, 6 or 9 members, renewed in full every three years². It holds a general assembly at least once a year, convened by the chairman². The notice period, quorum and majorities are set in your bylaws. Follow your federation’s model, as the bylaws were amended by the law of 7 March 2012².

Three documents govern operations: the bylaws, the internal rules and the hunting rules. They must comply with articles L422-21, R422-63 and R422-64 of the Code de l’environnement and be approved by the federation chairman². Bylaws that do not conform to the law are overridden by it². The ACCA keeps an up-to-date list of its members and its plots, and these documents remain available for consultation at the registered office².

The board may sanction or expel a member according to the procedures set out in the bylaws². This power has a limit. In cases of damage to property or crops, serious breach of the bylaws, or serious and continuing malfunction, the prefect may suspend hunting on all or part of the hunting ground, after consulting the federation chairman. The prefect may also dissolve the board and replace it with a management committee for up to one year, while new elections are organised (article L422-25-1)¹.

These measures are not theoretical. The legislation gives the suspension power to the prefect. In Meurthe-et-Moselle, the “Presidential decisions” section of the FDC 54’s ACCA page publishes decisions by the federation chairman, citing the same article. It records two in 2022. Hunting was suspended at the ACCA de Petitmont on 17 October 2022, then the measure was lifted on 9 November 2022. For the ACCA de Fillieres, the suspension dates from 6 December 2022 and was lifted on 25 January 2023².

How do membership fees and the ACCA budget work?

An ACCA’s budget relies primarily on the annual membership fee, set according to the member’s category. Article 13 of the model bylaws lists the resources: annual membership fees and supplementary fees required by a potential deficit, property income, social fines imposed by the board, grants, compensation and damages, and any other resource not prohibited by law, excluding any entry fee³.

Source: Fédération nationale des chasseurs, “ACCA : attention aux recettes non statutaires”³.

The trap is unforeseen costs. To cover, say, the veterinary bills for hounds injured by wild boar, it is tempting to impose a compulsory contribution. The FNC says this is prohibited in two cases³. A contribution cannot become a condition for membership, as it would amount to an entry fee. Nor can it be made a condition for taking part in a type of hunt, such as a driven hunt. Membership confers the right to hunt on the entire hunting ground (article L422-22)^{1 3}.

The FNC draws a simple rule from this: estimate, at budget time, the compulsory or assembly-voted expenditure, then factor it into the annual membership card price³. A treasurer who prepares the ACCA budget before the assembly follows the same logic as the federation. No ad hoc levy mid-season; a card price that covers what is foreseeable.

An ACCA’s budget is also separate from the town council’s: the association is a private-law body, with its own resources and its own accounts. A grant remains one resource among others, listed in article 13 of the model bylaws³.

The inter-municipal ACCA: what changes, and what does the law say?

ACCAs may form, including by merger, one or more associations intercommunales de chasse agreees, or AICAs (inter-municipal hunting associations) (article L422-24)¹. With “may”, the Code de l’environnement presents the grouping as an option that neighbouring communes choose to simplify management². There is no rule in the ACCA section of the Code requiring the communes of an intercommunalite (inter-municipal authority) to merge their associations.

The merger of communes itself changes nothing automatically. It does not lead to the dissolution or merger of the ACCAs already established in the communes concerned, unless those associations decide otherwise (article L422-4)¹. For a board member, this has two consequences. There is no obligation to act urgently after a commune merger. A grouping takes preparation: compare the bylaws and hunting rules of each ACCA involved before committing.

The reserve of at least one tenth of the hunting ground also applies to inter-municipal associations (article L422-23)¹. An AICA has its own internal and hunting rules: the FDC 54 publishes a model for ACCAs and another for AICAs².

Day-to-day ACCA management: harvest plan, reserve and documents

The association ensures compliance with harvest plans, allocating the appropriate resources (article L422-2)¹. In practice, federations have moved procedures online: the FDC 54 offers big game harvest plan applications and harvest recording on its website². A harvest plan tracked throughout the season avoids discovering in February that a tag was never used.

Five checks before the next general assembly:

1. Compare your bylaws with your federation’s model, especially following the changes in the law of 7 March 2012².
2. Update the list of members and the list of plots, and keep them available at the registered office².
3. Check that the budget covers the federation contribution and the tags, without any additional levy³.
4. Inspect the reserve: at least one tenth of the hunting ground, signposted at every access point, excluding land within 150 metres of dwellings^{1 2}.
5. File the minutes and convocation notices in a dated register, page by page.

The reserve deserves particular attention. Its location may change on five-year anniversaries. The ACCA normally submits its request six months in advance, with a report explaining the reserve’s benefit for wildlife at that location and the measures to limit damage. The decision rests with the general assembly².

A volunteer handling memberships, invitations and attendance on their own burns out quickly: we discuss this in our article on how to retain your hunters. Paper hunt logbooks also have their limits, described in our overview of electronic signatures for hunt logbooks. Mes Chasses offers a members’ area to maintain the list of members and their roles. It serves as an information and tracking tool for the committee, without replacing any of the association’s obligations.

Conclusion

Running an ACCA comes down to a handful of clear points: bylaws that match the federation’s model, an annual general assembly, a budget that covers its expenses without ad hoc levies, a reserve of at least one tenth of the hunting ground, and up-to-date records. Read articles L422-2 to L422-26 of the Code de l’environnement and the FNC page on non-statutory income before setting the membership card price.

This week, do two things. Open your bylaws and compare them with your federation’s model. Then draw up the list of your members and your plots, and note the date of your next general assembly. If that list takes you more than an evening, try the Mes Chasses members’ area to centralise it.

References