Why It Matters: From the mountains to the coast, North Carolina offers abundant hunting and fishing opportunities for all to enjoy. The North Carolina Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus has been hard at work year after year to ensure our time-honored traditions are sustained for generations to come. However, the ball doesn’t stop on the floor of the General Assembly when it comes to passing legislation; working with a pro-sportsmen Governor is a necessity when it comes to protecting our outdoor passions.
Highlights:
- On June 3, Governor Josh Stein became the 29th active member of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation’s (CSF) Governors Sportsmen’s Caucus (GSC).
- Members of the GSC work in concert with their respective state legislative sportsmen’s caucuses under the National Assembly of Sportsmen’s Caucuses (NASC) to protect and advance our time-honored traditions.
The bipartisan GSC was established in 2009 and has worked to shape policies that benefit scientific wildlife management efforts and ensure continued access and opportunities for sportsmen and women across the country. Now with 29 of the 50 governors across the country, the GSC extends its reach and further unifies the network of pro-sportsmen elected officials who advocate for the interests of their sportsmen and women constituents, our fish and wildlife resources, and their habitats.
There is no shortage of issues impacting North Carolina’s sportsmen and women to be addressed in the years to come. For example, North Carolina remains among a handful of states still left with antiquated blue laws that prohibit some hunting on Sundays. Currently, the following Sunday hunting restrictions exist in the Old North State:
- A statutory ban on hunting with a firearm between 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., using a firearm to hunt deer with the use of dogs, and hunting within 500 yards of a place of worship;
- Sunday hunting with a firearm is still not permitted on 42 Game Lands;
- Sunday hunting is not permitted for migratory birds; and
- Bear hunting on Game Lands on Sundays in the Coastal Bear Management Unit is prohibited.
While several advancements on the Sunday hunting front have been made over the last decade in North Carolina, there is still plenty of work to be done and CSF will continue to work towards providing equal access to our public trust resources, which includes the ability to hunt on Sundays like nearly every other state in the country.
Governor Stein follows a history of GSC membership in North Carolina, which most recently includes former Governor Roy Cooper. CSF is excited to continue working alongside Governor Stein’s office and the North Carolina Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus to continue to advocate for the hunting, fishing, and trapping opportunities that the Old North State provides.