On January 31, the Pennsylvania Game Commission voted unanimously to approve the use of modern sporting rifles for hunting.
The authorizing legislation (HB 263) was sponsored by Pennsylvania Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus Member Representative Matt Gabler, and was signed into law by Vice-Chair of the Governors Sportsmen’s Caucus, Governor Tom Wolf. HB 263 authorizes the use of semi-automatic rifles for hunting and granted the Game Commission the authority to promulgate rules regarding their use.
This unanimous vote expanded implementation to include large game such as deer, elk, and bear.
The proposed regulations will be brought up for final approval when the Board of the Game Commission meets in late March.
CSF would also like to thank Executive Director Matt Hough from the Pennsylvania Game Commission for his leadership and dedication to the Pennsylvania Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus and sportsmen’s community as a whole. Hough announced that he will retire on March 26 after nearly 35 years with the PGC.
Studies conducted at both the state and federal level have found that the number of hunters and trappers have been on a generally declining trend over the past several decades. To increase recruitment, retention, and reactivation (R3) of hunters and trappers, which initiative do you think would have the greatest impact?
