Hunters are celebrating after Pennsylvania and Connecticut voted to remove long-standing restrictions on Sunday hunting. The joint repeals come after 15 years of legislative engagement by conservationists and pro-hunting groups like Delta Waterfowl and Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation.
Governor Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania signed a bill repealing Sunday hunting on Wednesday, July 9. “The full repeal of this archaic restriction is finally coming to fruition thanks to the bipartisan support of the General Assembly,” said Dan Laughlin, who sponsored the State Senate’s version of the bill. “Pennsylvania hunters, young and old, will now have the chance to fully participate in a cherished outdoor tradition while also continuously building family bonds and enjoying our Commonwealth’s great outdoors.”
Pennsylvania’s Sunday hunting ban was what is commonly referred to as a “blue law.” It was instituted in colonial times for religious reasons to prevent things like work, recreation, and alcohol consumption on the Sabbath. Conservation groups have been working to strip similar Sunday hunting bans for years, which they say limit access needlessly.
“Most people work or go to school Monday through Friday, and many have other activities on Saturdays, so Sundays are the only free day they have,” explained Delta Waterfowl Senior Director of Government Affairs Cyrus Baird in a press release. “Opening up Sundays to hunt doubles the weekend hunting opportunities. It’s especially important for young people and new waterfowl hunters who only have weekends to hunt.”
Several years ago, Pennsylvania instituted incremental change by allowing hunting on three Sundays each year. The full repeal takes effect on September 7. As written, it will authorize Sunday hunting for five years. After that, it will need to be renewed.
“It’s been a long time coming, but this change is going to give hunters more opportunity to get out,” said Pennsylvania Board of Game Commissioners president Stanley Knick Jr. “I don’t think there will be a problem with conflicts between hunters and other people either. We’ve already had a few Sundays, and we haven’t seen any problems.”
Connecticut's Sunday hunting repeal came via House Bill 7231. It marks the fist time in over a century that most hunting opportunities will be available on Sundays in the Constitution State, according to the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation—though Sunday hunting for migratory birds and deer with firearms on property with fewer than 10 acres will remain prohibited.
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“The back-to-back wins in both Connecticut and Pennsylvania open the door for new Sunday hunting opportunities on nearly 30 million acres,” said Brent Miller, Vice President of Policy for the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation. “These recent victories add to an unquestionable record of success on this issue between CSF and the state legislative sportsmen’s caucuses we support – a record which now includes more than 20 pro-Sunday hunting bills being enacted in 9 states over the last 11 years. Moving forward, we will continue the fight in the increasingly fewer states that still have these draconian restrictions in place until all remaining Sunday hunting bans are a thing of the past.”
