Pennsylvania: Sunday Hunting Legislation Gathering Momentum After Senate Committee He

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Pennsylvania: Sunday Hunting Legislation Gathering Momentum After Senate Committee Hearing


This will be more appropriate and of more interest if I post this here than in the legal section. Right now Pennsylvania bans hunting on Sundays due to old blue laws that date back many years.

Pending legislation contained in Senate Bill 1070 and House Bill 1374 would repeal the 'No Hunting on Sunday' blue laws.

Since this is an NRA-ILA article, the entire article can be reproduced here for non commercial purposes as stated in their copyright notice below.

© 2016 National Rifle Association of America, Institute for Legislative Action. This may be reproduced.This may not be reproduced for commercial purposes. 11250 Waples Mill Rd. Fairfax, VA 22030 1-800-392-8683(VOTE)




https://www.nraila.org/articles/201...ering-momentum-after-senate-committee-hearing


"Yesterday, May 18, the Senate Game and Fisheries Committee held a hearing to discuss legislation that would repeal the ban on Sunday hunting. The groups that were invited to testify consisted of two panels - in support and in opposition to the proposal. Testifying in support of the measure were the National Rifle Association, Pennsylvania Game Commission, Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs, Unified Sportsmen of Pennsylvania and the National Shooting Sports Foundation.

While the overall feedback from members of the Senate Game and Fisheries Committee was promising, a decision was not made during the hearing. We ask that you continue to contact members of the Game and Fisheries Committees and urge them to support repealing the ban on Sunday hunting. Please click the “Take Action” button below to contact members of the Senate and House Game and Fisheries Committees and urge them to support Senate Bill 1070 and House Bill 1374.

The prohibition on Sunday hunting is an old blue law left on the books in just a handful of states. Although Pennsylvania does allow limited opportunities to varmint hunt on Sundays, a large sector of the hunting population continues to be ignored.

This concept of expanding hunting on Sundays is not a novel idea. Current law gives a select group of private landowners, whose property is enrolled as a noncommercial regulated hunting ground, the privilege to hunt all game in season on Sundays. This law amounts to tens of thousands of acres being hunted on Sundays by landowners who can afford to own and enroll their 100+ acre plots as a noncommercial regulated hunting ground. This exemption, which became law more than a decade ago, only allows those who own large tracts of land the pleasure of hunting on Sundays, while continuing to deny the majority of Pennsylvania hunters the same freedom.

Because of the current general prohibition, many hunters are prevented from introducing their children or friends to hunting because they are competing with organized sports and other activities on Saturday, which is currently their only opportunity to hunt outside of the work week. Countless hunters stop hunting because of the lack of opportunity, time restrictions and accessible land. The addition of an extra day in the field, especially on the weekend, increases the opportunity for those individuals to experience hunting. SB 1070 and HB 1374 would allow the Pennsylvania Game Commission to regulate hunting opportunities on designated Sundays as they do for every other day of the week. This legislation would undoubtedly invigorate essential hunter recruitment and retention efforts—key factors in preserving Pennsylvania’s hunting heritage for future generations to come.

Once again, please click on the “Take Action” button above to contact members of the Senate and House Game and Fisheries Committees and politely urge them to support SB 1070 and HB 1374."

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Can't believe that took this long. We did it last year and we are in the center of the he Bible belt.
 
Finger crossed that this passes. Now we just have to get semi-auto hunting passed as well. I really like living in PA but there are a lot of archaic laws.
 
Going through a similar thing here in Delaware. i don't hunt so I'm not sure where it is in our Assembly.
 
It is amazing how much of that silly crap remains. Now let's hope they will let me shoot turkeys with a rifle in Kansas.
 
I'm in PA and I would love to hunt on Sundays. I work all week, sometimes on Saturday. Sunday hunting would be awesome. I wouldn't mind semi-auto guns being allowed for varmint/predator hunting. My pump and lever rifles are plenty fast enough for deer hunting.
 
Ohio changed years ago, thank goodness. I remember it well. So many people now work Saturdays. Sometimes seasons have to be tweaked for it since it greatly increases days in the field for many.

I lived in PA from 88-90 and found some of their hunting laws more bizarre than the ones in CA where I lived before that. The semi-auto one always got me. All the fears of semi-autos in PA have been so disproven by all the other states for so long that I'm still amazed it has stuck.

The other one was flintlock only for primitive weapons. I had a percussion cap Hawkens at the time. I could understand no modern inlines, but geez....

I hope you guys are successful in getting it.
 
Hey Tim, I agree with yuo about the primitive muzzle-loader season. I have a Pedesoli Pennsylvania rifle, .45 caliber, I would love to use during primitive muzzle-loader season. But its not a flintlock. I can use it during the regular muzzle-loader season but that is only like 2 weeks long. I also with they would incorporate a handgun season during archery season. Something like iron sighted revolvers and autos. Maybe .40 caliber minimum or set a foot-pound requirement. I'd love to take a couple does or trophy buck with my .44 Super Blackhawk.
 
This has needed to have been changed a long time ago. I just hope it happens. The same applies to the restriction on semi-auto handguns and rifles from hunting.
 
Governor Wolf is just lickin his chops over this, "You guys want something that bad, huh?" "Well you got to give up something in return."

I for one will not give up anything he wants to get Sunday hunting.
 
I wouldn't either in terms of gun rights. Folks in PA are pretty used to the restriction. I don't live there anymore.
 
I would love to use during primitive muzzle-loader season. But its not a flintlock. I can use it during the regular muzzle-loader season but that is only like 2 weeks long.

It is not like you can only use it for that two weeks. You can use it during regular deer season if you wish. Get a flint gun and you can hunt all of it.
 
if they pass sunday hunting i fear alot of farm and mountin land will be posted no hunting at all by the amish-dutch in the area i live in. they post no sunday fishing right now on their farms and streams. eastbank.
 
if they pass sunday hunting i fear alot of farm and mountin land will be posted no hunting at all by the amish-dutch in the area i live in. they post no sunday fishing right now on their farms and streams. eastbank.

In Ohio, they typically posted their land to outsiders before Sunday hunting was ever legal, so nothing changed here.
 
not here, it real easy to hunt their land. a simple stop and ask and respect their land. eastbank.
 
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