Why It Matters: Pennsylvania is the second largest state in hunting license sales in the country, yet it still widely restricts Sunday hunting opportunities for the sportsmen and women. Currently, there are only three (3) Sundays in which you may hunt game and there are very limited species that can be targeted. Senate Bill 67 (SB 67), sponsored by Sen. Daniel Laughlin (previous Pennsylvania Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus Co-Chair and current Caucus Member), sought to remove the legislative prohibition on Sunday hunting and grant the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) the authority to regulate Sunday hunting as they deem appropriate.
Highlights:
- In 2020, then Pennsylvania Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus Co-Chair, Sen. Daniel Laughlin championed Senate Bill 147 (SB 147) which was signed into law by former Governor Sportsmen’s Caucus Co-Chair, Governor Tom Wolf.
- Building off his previous success, Sen. Laughlin introduced SB 67 which would have removed the longstanding legislative prohibition, giving full authority to the Pennsylvania Board of Game Commissioners to set hunting seasons (including Sundays if they so choose) and bag limits.
- The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) coordinated a joint letter of support as a final attempt to move SB 67 through the remaining legislative process. However, SB 67 failed to progress out of the House Appropriations Committee or receive a 3rd and final hearing on the House Floor before the final adjournment date of the 2023-2024 Legislative Session (November 13th, 2024).
As previously reported, SB 67 passed out of the House Game & Fisheries Committee on a 15-to-10 vote on October 1st. Following its second reading on the House Floor, it was amended to reflect concerns over Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) with the use of urine-based attractants and was sent to the House Appropriations Committee. Unfortunately, SB 67 was never taken up for a vote in Appropriations, resulting in the legislation “dying” due to its inability to make it through the legislative process prior to final adjournment of the 2023-2024 legislative session.
The two most beneficial pieces of SB 67 to hunters were the provisions which would have authorized the PGC to establish Sunday hunting within the confines of the regulated hunting seasons and the ability access private lands through the agricultural access permit. Sunday hunting bans are one of the last remaining examples of the puritanical blue laws that were initially designed to encourage church attendance. At the time when blue law restrictions were first put in place, other activities that were illegal on a Sunday included opening a store for business, drinking alcoholic beverages, and tilling your fields. Access is a major limiting factor hindering participation in hunting, and restrictions on Sunday hunting create a temporal access barrier for youth and others that work or attend school throughout the week and are often involved in extra-curricular activities on Saturdays.
The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation is disappointed that the legislature did not move SB 67 through the process in due time, but remains committed to continuing our work with the Pennsylvania Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus to advance similar legislation in the upcoming legislative session.
