Sunday Hunting Restrictions Upheld in North Carolina

Why It Matters: In just a handful of states, Sunday hunting restrictions remain as remnants of puritanical blue laws originally enacted to encourage church attendance. Now, Sunday hunting restrictions limit the ability of sportsmen and women (the primary funders of conservation through the “user pays – public benefits” structure of the American System of Conservation Funding) to enjoy the very time-honored traditions which provide conservation value to all wildlife, habitats, and people of the state.  

Highlights:

• In 2015, The Outdoor Heritage Act became law making it legal in North Carolina to hunt with a firearm on Sundays on private property, with several exceptions.
• In 2017, The Outdoor Heritage Enhanced Act was passed, allowing the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) to open Sunday hunting on Game Lands, lifting the prohibitions against hunting within 500 yards of a residence and hunting in counties with populations greater than 700,000, and removing the statutory ban against migratory bird hunting on Sundays.
• In 2021, through the rulemaking process, the NCWRC opened Sunday hunting on 51 Game Lands and four National Forests for the first time in North Carolina’s history.
• On April 16, the North Carolina Court of Appeals unanimously upheld Sunday hunting restrictions in the Old North State.

Thanks to years of dedicated work from the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF), the NCWRC, the North Carolina Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus (Caucus), and many partners, North Carolina has secured several big victories on the Sunday hunting front. However, there is still work to be done as several key Sunday hunting restrictions are still in place in North Carolina, which include:

• 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 an additional 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.

A three-judge Court of Appeals panel recently took up a plaintiff’s challenge of the constitutionality of North Carolina’s Sunday hunting laws. The lawsuit took the stance that specific Sunday hunting restrictions are unconstitutional, citing the constitutional right to hunt and fish enshrined in North Carolina’s state constitution, which guarantees the right of the people to hunt, fish, and harvest wildlife including by the use of traditional methods. The constitutional right to hunt and fish still allows the NCWRC to regulate hunting and fishing in accordance with the law to promote wildlife conservation and management and preserve the future of hunting and fishing.

When addressing the restriction on migratory bird hunting on Sundays, the panel cited protecting lands and waters for both “hunters and non-hunters” and “enabling non-hunters to enjoy scenic game lands without disturbance” when justifying Sunday hunting restrictions. Additionally, regarding the statutory 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. private and public land Sunday hunting prohibition with a firearm, the court again referenced the non-hunting public stating that the current prohibition was “a valid exercise of the State’s police power” given the benefit to non-hunters, who will have a guaranteed window of time during which they will not be disturbed by hunting, and the extended hunting season in North Carolina.

While CSF supports diverse uses of public lands for multiple user groups, funding generated through the “user pays – public benefits” structure of the American System of Conservation Funding primarily pays for the acquisition and management of Game Lands in North Carolina. Thus, use of public lands should be managed with the needs of the consumptive user – hunters and anglers – at the forefront.

Furthermore, the court referenced compensatory hunting days that North Carolina receives to justify the prohibition on migratory bird hunting on Sundays. While it is true that the state would lose its compensatory days if Sunday hunting for migratory birds was allowed, the total number of hunting days would remain the same.

CSF will continue to work towards removing these existing antiquated Sunday hunting laws in North Carolina and other states with restrictions still in place.

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