Chronic Wasting Disease Laws in Illinois: What Hunters and Landowners Must Know

Chronic wasting disease has been spreading through Illinois deer herds for more than two decades, and the state’s legal framework for managing it has grown more complex with every new county detection. Whether you hunt, own land, raise captive cervids, or simply live in an area where deer are present, Illinois law places specific obligations on you — and the consequences of getting it wrong range from stiff fines to the loss of your hunting privileges.

This guide walks you through every major category of chronic wasting disease laws in Illinois, from affected zones and baiting restrictions to carcass transport, mandatory testing, captive deer farming rules, and how to report a sick animal. Regulations in this area change frequently, so always verify current requirements with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) before each season.

CWD Status and Affected Areas in Illinois

Chronic wasting disease, or CWD, is a fatal disease of the central nervous system in deer and elk. It can be transmitted between deer and is caused by misfolded proteins called a prion, which can damage brain and nerve tissue in deer, elk, moose, and other members of the cervid family. Once an animal is infected, there is no treatment or cure.

As of the Spring 2026 IDNR update, CWD was detected in three new counties — Effingham, Scott, and Stark. Effingham and Scott join Adams County as the first documented cases outside the leading edge of the northern Illinois CWD endemic region, resulting in 28 counties where the disease has been detected.

During the past seven years, Illinois saw a rapid increase in CWD prevalence rates — up to 9.2% in 2025 — and a continued spread southward into central Illinois. This geographic expansion has had direct consequences for how IDNR manages the disease.

These recent detections are clear indicators that the disease has expanded beyond IDNR’s capacity to manage it effectively through a long-term sharpshooting program. After a 23-year effort by biologists to control CWD in Illinois’ deer herd, IDNR announced it will suspend its targeted culling (sharpshooting).

The counties where CWD has been confirmed include Adams, Boone, Bureau, Carroll, DeKalb, Effingham, Ford, Grundy, Jo Daviess, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, LaSalle, Lee, Livingston, Marshall, McHenry, Ogle, Peoria, Putnam, Scott, Stark, Stephenson, Will, and Winnebago, among others. IDNR has implemented recent changes to the CWD management program — see the 2025-2029 CWD Pilot Project on the IDNR website for more information. If you hunt or own property in any of these counties, you are subject to the most stringent CWD-related rules in the state. You can also find a related overview of livestock disease reporting in Illinois for context on how the state handles animal disease notifications more broadly.

Baiting and Feeding Restrictions in Illinois

Illinois has one of the most sweeping baiting and feeding bans in the country. At least nine states ban deer baiting entirely on all land, and Illinois is among them. This is not a zone-specific rule — it applies everywhere in the state where wild deer are present.

Under Illinois law, “bait” means any material, whether liquid or solid, including food, salt, minerals, and other products that can be ingested, placed or scattered in such a manner as to attract or lure white-tailed deer. (520 ILCS 5/2.26.) Illinois defines “baiting” as the placement or scattering of bait to attract deer. This means that the placement of salt blocks to lure deer or other wildlife is illegal. Even the placement of a natural food, such as apples, would be considered illegal.

Illinois enacted the deer feeding ban in 2002 to mitigate the spread of CWD among its whitetail deer population. Dense concentration of deer in a single place, such as around a salt block or a mound of corn kernels, makes the disease more transmissible among the deer population.

The statewide ban covers food, salt, and mineral blocks. However, there are specific exemptions you should be aware of:

• Elevated bird and squirrel feeders providing seed, grain, fruit, worms, or suet located within 100 feet of a dwelling devoted to human occupancy
• Incidental feeding of wildlife within active livestock operations
• Standing crops planted and left standing as food plots for wildlife
• Grain or other feed scattered solely as a result of normal agricultural, gardening, or soil stabilization practices
• Grain distributed solely as the result of manipulation of an agricultural crop for purposes of dove hunting

The use of products designed for scent only and not capable of ingestion, placed or scattered in such a manner as to attract or lure deer, is permissible under the law. This means you may legally use products like deer urine and other similar scent attractants.

The same limitations on baiting deer are also applicable to baiting turkeys in Illinois. It is illegal to take wild turkeys by the use or aid of bait or baiting of any kind.

Carcass Transportation Rules in Illinois

Illinois restricts which parts of a deer or elk carcass may be brought into the state from another state or country. Since the suspected infective agent (prion) is concentrated in the brain, spinal cord, and lymph glands, the most common regulation is the prohibition of the importation of whole carcasses harvested from CWD areas.

Under 17 Ill. Adm. Code 635.30, Illinois prohibits the importation of hunter-harvested deer and elk carcasses into the state with the exception of deboned meat, antlers, antlers attached to skull caps, upper canine teeth, and finished taxidermist mounts.

Illinois has also limited the parts of deer, elk, and moose that hunters can bring into the state after harvesting the animal in another state — hunters are allowed to bring antlers on a cleaned skull cap, boned-out meat, and hides. Since the prion that causes CWD tends to concentrate in some of the inedible parts of deer that are discarded after butchering, this is one added precaution to prevent the spread of the disease from other states into Illinois.

There is one important exception to the full carcass ban: hunters may bring in deer and/or elk carcasses if they are brought to a licensed meat processor or licensed taxidermist within 72 hours of entering the state.

For deer harvested within Illinois, carcass tagging rules apply during transport:

• The harvest tag (leg tag) and confirmation number must remain attached to the deer until it is at the legal residence of the person who legally took or possessed the deer and final processing is completed.
• If the head and antlers are delivered to a taxidermist for processing, the confirmation number must be recorded on the “head tag” portion of the permit and both must remain with the deer while at the taxidermist.
• If the carcass is taken to a meat processor, the harvest tag (leg tag) with confirmation number must remain with the deer while it is processed and until it is at the legal residence of the person who legally took or possessed the deer.
• If quartered, all parts of the carcass (except the entrails removed during field dressing) must be transported together and evidence of sex must remain naturally attached to one quarter.

You can find additional context on how Illinois handles the movement and disposition of animal remains in the state’s roadkill laws in Illinois.

CWD Testing Requirements for Hunters in Illinois

Illinois operates a robust CWD surveillance program that relies heavily on hunter cooperation. Hunters are strongly encouraged to test their deer for free. While voluntary testing is the norm for most hunters, mandatory check-in requirements apply in CWD-positive counties during firearm season.

In the counties listed in IDNR’s firearm deer check station table, hunters shall take their whole or field-dressed deer to a designated firearm deer check station by 8 p.m. on the day the deer was killed. A permanent harvest tag will be attached to the leg of the deer upon registration at the check station.

If a hunter is not able to locate a harvested deer in sufficient time to report the harvest by 8 p.m., the hunter must take the deer to the appropriate check station upon its opening at 8 a.m. the following morning, or immediately upon retrieving it if that occurs later than the opening of the check station. If this situation occurs on a Sunday, the hunter must contact the appropriate regional IDNR Law Enforcement Office by 10 a.m.

An interactive map of sampling locations — with the ability to zoom and click on map icons for location details — is available on the IDNR website to find the nearest sampling location. Archery deer hunters can drop off heads of adult deer in CWD sample drop-off barrels or at a sampling vendor.

Testing for CWD is conducted by federally approved laboratories. There is no quick test that you or your meat processor can perform to ensure that your animal does not have CWD. Samples must be submitted to an approved lab for analysis.

The special CWD deer season — a 7-day season held in counties with confirmed CWD — provides additional hunting opportunity and serves as an important data-collection tool. No hunter, regardless of the quantity or type of permits in their possession, may harvest more than two antlered deer during a year, including the youth, archery, muzzleloader, and firearm seasons, except as allowed during the special chronic wasting disease (CWD) season.

Captive Cervid and Deer Farming Rules in Illinois

If you raise captive deer, elk, or other cervids in Illinois, you are subject to an entirely separate regulatory framework administered by the Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA). The Illinois Department of Agriculture oversees the Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) certification program within Illinois.

Any owner of CWD-susceptible species that will be selling these animals intrastate or interstate is required to be enrolled in the Certified Monitored CWD Herd Program. CWD-susceptible species include white-tailed deer, elk, red deer, sika, Japanese deer, spotted deer, mule deer, reindeer, wapiti, moose, and hybrids of these species.

This program provides the requirements for keeping and moving farm-raised cervids. This includes registration, recordkeeping, disease testing, movement, and permit requirements.

Key ongoing obligations for enrolled herd owners include:

• Immediate reporting of the death, harvest, slaughter, escape, or disappearance of any cervid 12 months of age or older
• Testing of any cervid 12 months of age or older that dies, is harvested, or is slaughtered
• Maintaining accurate herd records at all times
• Completing an annual herd inventory
• Sourcing herd additions only from other herds enrolled in the Certified Monitored CWD Herd Program

Any privately owned cervid, regardless of participation or status in the Certified Monitored CWD Herd Program, that dies from an unknown cause and has exhibited neurologic symptoms must be tested for CWD. This is accomplished by an accredited veterinarian removing the obex and medial retropharyngeal lymph nodes and submitting these samples for CWD testing to an approved laboratory.

The University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine Diagnostic Laboratory is the only approved laboratory within Illinois. However, an out-of-state lab may be used if the lab has obtained USDA approval for testing.

Any cervid exhibiting symptoms consistent with CWD must be separated and isolated from other members of the herd and will be quarantined until the animal is either destroyed or determined not to have CWD. Animals quarantined for CWD will be subject to periodic inspection by Illinois Department of Agriculture personnel.

At the federal level, no farmed or captive deer, elk, or moose may be moved interstate unless it meets the requirements listed in Part 81 of the Code of Federal Regulations, including certification in the Voluntary Herd Certification Program. Illinois herd owners moving animals across state lines must comply with both state and federal requirements simultaneously.

Both the IDOA and IDNR have authority over captive cervid matters. The Department of Agriculture processes and administers import applications and oversees the captive cervid CWD monitoring program, while the Department of Natural Resources administers the Captive Game Breeder licensing program. Both have authority over importation and possession.

Reporting Sick or Suspected Deer in Illinois

Identifying and reporting sick deer is one of the most important tools Illinois has for tracking CWD spread. CWD-infected deer can appear otherwise healthy for around two years before succumbing to the disease. The name of the disease can be a bit of a misnomer, since deer with CWD aren’t zombie-like in appearance until the late stages, when they may look emaciated and show erratic behavior.

Late-stage symptoms that should prompt a report include:

• Emaciation, abnormal behavior, loss of coordination, excessive salivation, loss of appetite, progressive weight loss, excessive thirst and urination, listlessness, teeth grinding, and holding the head in a lowered position
• Stumbling or appearing disoriented
• Lack of fear of humans
• Standing alone and separated from the herd

If you observe a deer displaying these symptoms, you should contact your nearest IDNR regional office or call the IDNR Wildlife Resources Division. Hunters who harvest a deer that appears diseased or spoiled due to previous injury should also be aware that permits will not be reissued in cases involving deer taken which are found to be diseased or spoiled due to previous injury. Legal disposal of unfit deer taken shall be the responsibility of the hunter.

Prions from decomposing infected carcasses and bodily waste may remain in certain soils for many years and cannot be eradicated easily by environmental factors, heat, or disinfection. This is why proper carcass disposal — and reporting of suspected cases — is treated so seriously under Illinois law.

For captive herd owners, reporting obligations are even more immediate. Any cervid exhibiting symptoms consistent with CWD must be separated and isolated from other members of the herd and will be quarantined until the animal is either destroyed or determined not to have CWD. Failure to report and isolate a symptomatic animal can expose you to regulatory penalties from the IDOA.

If you have questions about animal health reporting obligations in Illinois more broadly, the state’s livestock disease reporting requirements provide additional context on how state agencies coordinate disease surveillance. You may also find useful background in Illinois’ pet import laws, which address how animals entering the state are subject to disease screening.

Penalties for CWD Violations in Illinois

Illinois enforces its CWD regulations through a tiered penalty structure that distinguishes between different types of violations. The severity of the penalty depends on whether you violated a baiting or feeding restriction, transported a prohibited carcass, failed to comply with check-in requirements, or operated a captive herd outside program rules.

Baiting and feeding violations:

• Illinois law makes a distinction between simply baiting deer and hunting over bait. Illegal baiting is a petty offense that is punishable by a fine of up to $1,000. (17 Illinois Administrative Code Part 635.50.)
• Hunting over bait is a Class B misdemeanor punishable by up to 6 months in jail and/or a fine of up to $1,500, seizure of any items used for the hunt, and loss of hunting privileges. (520 ILCS 5/2.26.)

Carcass and importation violations:

Importing a prohibited deer or elk carcass or part into Illinois in violation of 17 Ill. Adm. Code 635.30 constitutes a violation of the Illinois Wildlife Code. Penalties can include fines, loss of hunting licenses, and potential criminal charges depending on the circumstances and intent involved.

Check station and tagging violations:

Failure to bring a harvested deer to a mandatory check station in a CWD county, or transporting a carcass without the required harvest tag attached, can result in permit revocation and fines. Hunters should check Hunt Illinois for site-specific regulations, as some public sites may have rules that are more restrictive than state or county regulations.

Captive cervid violations:

Captive herd owners who fail to test, report, or isolate animals as required by the IDOA’s Certified Monitored CWD Herd Program face administrative penalties including loss of program status, quarantine orders, and potential forced depopulation of the herd. Movement of non-compliant animals can also trigger federal penalties under USDA APHIS regulations.

Understanding CWD rules is part of a broader responsibility that comes with hunting, farming, and living alongside wildlife in Illinois. If you are also navigating other animal-related regulations in the state, resources like coyote hunting laws in Illinois and goat ownership laws in Illinois cover related topics that may apply to your property or activities. Landowners managing deer and other animals on agricultural land may also want to review backyard chicken laws and kennel zoning laws in Illinois for a fuller picture of how the state regulates animals on private property.

CWD is a disease that demands ongoing attention from everyone who interacts with Illinois deer — hunters, landowners, and cervid farmers alike. Staying current with IDNR and IDOA guidance is the single most effective step you can take to stay compliant and help slow the spread of this disease across the state.