BCJ_FALL18 Digital Edition

OPINION
ALLOW SUNDAY HUNTING IN PENNSYLVANIA
BY BRANDON RAPP
MOST FOLKS THINK IT’S A FOOL’S ERRAND. The idea that
a relatively new group could repeal a rule that has been around for
more than 300 years seems absurd and hopeless. Anyone who’s
followed the history of attempts to repeal the ban on hunting on
Sundays in Pennsylvania might tend to agree. Time and again,
changes proposed in Harrisburg have withered and died. It’s such
a contentious and divisive issue that most elected officials simply
won’t risk the political laceration.
In case you’re unaware, Pennsylvania still enforces a few antiquated
“blue laws,” dating back to the Quaker colonial government
led by William Penn, which were meant to increase church
attendance by barring people from doing almost anything besides
sitting in pews on Sundays. Many states passed blue laws throughout
the 18 th , 19 th and early 20 th centuries, largely relating to alcohol
and gambling. Most have been altered or repealed but eight
states still have rules limiting hunting on Sundays, according to
the National Shooting Sports Foundation, with severe bans in
Maine, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. Several other states have
overturned or loosened bans in recent years.
Since 1937 it has been legal to fish on Sundays in Pennsylvania
and since 2016 it’s been legal to buy drinks at a casino 24/7 so,
since motivations no longer seem pious, why would hunting still
be a contested issue?
It’s a three-sided debate. First, there’s hunters who would like
to be able to hunt more. Then there’s Pennsylvanian farmers and
agrarian religious sects who stand against Sunday hunting, with
reasons ranging from sabbath observance to simply not wanting
to be bothered by hunters. Interestingly, it is legal to shoot foxes,
coyotes and crows on Sundays – animals most often killed in relation
to agriculture, livestock or poultry depredation. There are
also some non-hunting outdoor enthusiasts who feel entitled to
have the woods to themselves one day per week during hunting
season.
The Pennsylvania BHA Chapter joined in this long running
dispute and has already made an impression on the Pennsylvania
Game Commission. With their calm and educated conservation
rhetoric, the chapter could be the tipping point that finally gets
this outdated rule changed. The game commission openly supports
repealing the ban and has praised BHA’s efforts.
Pennsylvanian hunters have nothing against spending Sunday
in prayer. A majority of us would certainly appreciate the freedom
to choose our place of worship and whether to spend some or all
of our Sundays hunting, especially on public lands managed using
our license fees and excise taxes. Most people in Pennsylvania, like
the rest of America, work Monday through Friday. With only Saturday
to hunt, right out of the gate many hunters lose 50 percent
of their season. Family and social commitments often sap more
of that free time. This comes at the cost of hunter attrition in a
climate where participation is already plummeting. In a recent
survey of former Pennsylvanian hunters, 49 percent replied that
they would get back into the sport if they could hunt on Sundays.
As Pennsylvania chapter member and East Meets West Podcast
Host Beau Martonik said, “With kids going to school Monday
through Friday and sports on Saturdays, Sundays are all we have
left to introduce the future of hunting to the outdoors.”
This lost opportunity isn’t only someone’s opportunity to hunt
– it’s a loss of opportunity for families to hunt together. Lessons
taught, laughs shared, memories made. “Sunday hunting would
open up a lot more opportunities to pass down the fundamentals
of hunting to the younger generation,” said Jessica DeLorenzo,
chapter member and photographer for Sitka Gear. “I’d love to
take my daughter out more, but with school and her activities it
really limits time in the field. Sunday hunting would give us those
early mornings and afternoons together more often.”
But many Pennsylvanians don’t feel the same way. Possibly the
largest hurdle is the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, which opposes
legal, regulated hunting on Sunday. Concentrated mostly in Lancaster
County, large Amish and Mennonite communities are a
source of opposition as well. Elected officials representing those
districts say their constituents would not support repealing the
ban. These enclaves are sustained by selling handmade furniture,
textiles, agricultural and livestock products but do not sell their
wares on Sundays. Non-hunting outdoors enthusiasts, though
not especially organized, are resolute in the stance that they deserve
a day to themselves on public lands that are managed using
hunter dollars. There are also anti-hunting activists in this camp,
who may see an opportunity to ban hunting during the rest of the
week as well.
Both non-hunters and farmers have threatened a permanent
“No Trespassing” sign to all hunters if the ban is repealed.
While legislation stands a slim chance of moving forward this
year, the chapter supports S.B. 1202, a bill to permit Sunday
hunting sponsored by Sen. Daniel Laughlin of Erie County. To
help settle opposition from the farm bureau, the most powerful
lobby opposing a push for Sunday hunting, language was added
to the bill making trespassing a primary offense enforceable by
wildlife conservation officers along with other law enforcement,
to win the favor of private land owners.
Chapter members have taken to social media and engaged in
face to face conversations with residents and politicians. The leaders
encourage anyone interested in helping to reach out to their
local elected official via BHA’s website or personal communication
and voice their support. If you have any friends or family in
Pennsylvania, please tell them about what’s happening. Let them
know their voice needs to be heard in an issue that affects hunter’s
rights. You might find yourself wanting to hunt here someday and
we would love to have you – for the whole weekend.
Brandon lives in southeastern Pennsylvania with his wife and their
two dogs. He is a freelance outdoor writer and an active member of
the communications committee for the PA chapter.
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