The
Pennsylvania Game Commission today offered testimony to legislators on an issue
important to the state’s hunters and trappers. Game Commission Deputy Executive
Director Bryan J. Burhans testified before the Senate Game and Fisheries
Committee about the potential expansion of Sunday hunting. The
testimony is provided in full below:
“Thank you Chairman Scavello, Chairman Brewster,
and members of the Senate Game & Fisheries Committee for the opportunity to
come before you today in regards to the expansion of Sunday hunting in
Pennsylvania. I am Bryan Burhans, Deputy
Executive Director for the Pennsylvania Game Commission.”
To be clear,
we are in fact talking about the expansion of Sunday hunting opportunities in
Pennsylvania. Currently hunting on
Sundays is permitted on a very limited basis in terms of species, but it is
legal every Sunday throughout the year, not just the typical hunting
season. I believe that point bears
repeating – every Sunday throughout the year. We have one of the most
restrictive laws for Sunday hunting, and it is important to note that only four
states currently prohibit Sunday hunting altogether – Maine, Massachusetts,
Connecticut, and Delaware.
Contrary to
some rhetoric that is floating around out there, the No. 1 reason that people
stop hunting is lack of time. The
overwhelming majority of hunting takes place on Saturdays; people work during
the week, don’t get a lot of time off, have other commitments, etc. For a lot of hunters the only option is
Saturday. By expanding Sunday hunting, we would be able to increase
recreational opportunities for hunters.
Sunday hunting is an effective means of recruiting new hunters and
retaining current hunters by increasing the value of the hunting license
through offering additional opportunities to spend time in the field.
In a recent
survey of lapsed hunters – those who at one time bought a license – 49 percent
stated that having the opportunity to hunt on Sunday would encourage them to
buy a license again. Without having the
ability to schedule seasons to include one of the days when individuals have
the most amount of time available, the PGC is limited regarding what it can do
to recruit and retain hunters.
Unfortunately,
we know of many cases where Pennsylvania residents, particularly near the state
lines, don’t even purchase a Pennsylvania hunting license. Instead, they opt to drive an hour or so to
hunt in Ohio or New York because they are able maximize the time they have
available by hunting both Saturday and Sunday.
Likewise, we
miss out on license sales to non-resident hunters because they don’t want to
come to Pennsylvania to only be allowed to hunt on Saturday. Youth
participation is vital to maintaining the long-standing tradition of hunting in
Pennsylvania. Over the past decade, we
have worked to increase hunting opportunities for the youth; mentored youth
hunting, early rifle season for deer, additional junior hunting privileges,
early opening day for spring gobbler, junior pheasant hunts, junior waterfowl
hunts, etc.
With a
plethora of other activities vying for their time, especially during the week,
and more and more activities taking place on Saturdays, it is difficult for
young hunters to get out. Even to assume
that they have Saturday free, many hunters don’t want to drive a few hours to camp
just for one day to hunt. We can effectively double the number of hunting days
for youths during the school year by offering Sunday hunting.
Suppose you
couldn’t golf on Sundays, or ski resorts were required to close on
Sundays. Would that be enough to drive
the number of participants down? Maybe a
better question would be, to what degree would that drive participation
down? If you think about it, on a nice
Sunday during the summer, just about any golf course is going to be booked with
tee times from sun-up to well into the evening. The PGC
recognizes that other recreational user groups are paying close attention to
this issue as they have been for years – groups like the hikers, bikers, and
horseback riders, among others. These
groups advocate for just one day per week that they can recreate as they choose
without the fear of a hunting related incident or accident.
The truth of
the matter is that these groups recreate 365 days per year, including Saturdays
and Sundays during hunting seasons. They
recreate on State Game Lands, State Forests, at State Parks, and in the
Allegheny National Forest; all lands where hunting is permitted. It is
important to note that despite the inaccurate portrayal by these groups,
hunting is an inherently safe sport. In
fact, over the past decade, hunting related shooting incidents have decreased
by half. In 2015, the total number of
hunting related shooting incidents was 23.
Out of nearly 935,000 hunters, 23 incidents represents less than one
one-thousandth of 1 percent.
We have
heard from many people on both sides of the issue, hunters and non-hunters. I can tell you that a majority of those that
we hear from support Sunday hunting.
Where the difference is lies with what season they want Sunday hunting
implemented. Rest assured, that if given
the authority to further regulate Sunday hunting, the PGC would be looking for
input from a wide variety of stakeholder groups and will endeavor to engage
these stakeholders before passing any new regulations in regard to Sunday
hunting. Additionally, Sunday hunting will provide substantial economic
benefits to rural areas and businesses by increasing money spent by hunters on
lodging, food, gas and other incidental items.
According to
the 2010 report by Southwick Associates, prepared for the Pennsylvania Legislative
Budget & Finance Committee: In 2010, if Sunday hunting were permitted,
considering spending and economic multipliers... “Spending by all hunters would likely have
increased by $460.0 million. The multiplier effects of that spending would have
produced $803.6 million of total output in the Pennsylvania economy and
supported 7,439 jobs with $247.4 million of salary and wage income. The
increased activity would have generated $56.8 million in tax revenue to state
and local governments and $60.7 million in federal tax revenues.”
By nature,
Sunday hunting is what is commonly referred to as a blue law. Blue laws are antiquated, religious-based
laws that were originally designed to restrict or ban some or all Sunday
activities in order to encourage a day of worship or rest. To date, all but two blue laws in
Pennsylvania have been repealed: the complete ability to hunt on Sundays, and
the option to purchase a vehicle.
In 1937, the
Legislature repealed the blue law that made it illegal to fish on Sundays. The law was changed so that fishermen were
permitted to openly fish any public waters, and allowed to fish private waters
with the permission of the landowner.
According to
the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission’s historical records, “The Bureau
of Law Enforcement reports that relatively few landowners take action to
restrict fishing on Sundays, but anglers should respect "Sunday Fishing
Prohibited" signs where they are posted. A person who violates a Sunday
fishing restriction commits a summary offense of the third degree.” The PGC is
willing to work with landowners who choose to not allow Sunday hunting on their
land, even going as far as providing the corresponding signage at no cost to
those landowners enrolled in our public access programs. We are also willing enforce a Sunday hunting
restriction for landowners, much like PFBC agreed to when their blue law was
repealed.
Today, with
the exception of hunters, every single person in Pennsylvania has the ability
to recreate as they choose every day of the week. In 1937, it was determined that fishermen
should be allowed to recreate as they choose any day of the week. It wasn’t mandated that you had to fish on
Sundays, but you had the option. Almost 80
years later, we are asking for the same consideration. A considerable majority of hunters want the
ability to recreate as they choose to on Sunday. If an individual chooses not to, that is
absolutely fine as well. The time has
come and hunters deserve the option. Thank you again for your consideration. I would be happy to take any questions you
may have.”
Release
#39-16
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 18, 2016
For
Information Contact:
Travis Lau
717-705-6541
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