Freedom, farming, and free-time factor into latest Sunday hunting debate in Pa.

Yahoo

18-03-2025

A hunter walks across a field. (Getty Images)
The topic of Sunday hunting is not new in Pennsylvania.
For years, advocates, including the Pennsylvania Game Commission, have argued the state's 'blue laws' prohibiting hunting on Sundays stunt the growth of the sport. But, groups representing hikers and horseback riders have said they believe it's important to have one day a week to enjoy the outdoors without the sound of gunfire in the fields and woods.
One thing that has shifted during the most recent debate are the faces and arguments surrounding Sunday hunting. While legislators behind the latest proposals say they believe this could be the year it becomes law, here's a look at the key voices in the discussion.
The duo leading the charge to repeal Pennsylvania's Sunday hunting prohibition
Earlier this month, a Republican state senator representing northwestern Pennsylvania and a state House Democrat representing parts of Allegheny County re-introduced separate pieces of similar legislation that could fully repeal Pennsylvania's Sunday hunting ban.
Sen. Dan Laughlin (R-Erie), who has been spearheading the issue since being elected in 2016, introduced Senate Bill 67, while Rep. Mandy Steele (D-Allegheny), first elected three years ago, introduced House Bill 851.
For Laughlin, the issue boils down to freedom.
'Currently in Pennsylvania, you can stop at a liquor store and buy some whiskey, buy some medical-use cannabis, and then head to the casino and do that all on a Sunday, but you can't take a 12-year-old-kid out squirrel hunting right now,' Laughlin told the Capital-Star. His legislation would have Pennsylvania join 39 states that have no limits on Sunday hunting.
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Steele said her bill this time around is very similar to the one introduced in the previous session and was constructed with the input of the Game Commission, Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, and other advocacy groups that 'meets everyone's needs well.'
She described hunting as a 'great American tradition.'
'It is incredibly grounding for children. It's a way to get them connected to the land, understand their place in the ecosystem,' Steele said. 'It's healthy. It's wholesome. It's time outdoors.'
Her legislation would remove the prohibition from state law and allow the Game Commission to continue to decide which Sundays would be added for hunting. Her proposal would also require at least one member of the commission to have a background in agriculture.
In 2019, Gov. Tom Wolf signed a bill that ended the complete ban to allow hunting on three Sundays, one during archery deer season, one during rifle deer season, and one selected by the Game Commission. Laughlin, who was a first term Senator, also sponsored that legislation.
'It's something obviously I feel pretty passionate about and, you know, I'm going to get this done,' Laughlin said about the latest effort. 'I believe that it will be this session, hopefully even this year.'
The Pennsylvania Farm Bureau was one of the biggest obstacles in years past, but after tweaks to the proposal, the group has come out in favor of the bill.
Laughlin and Steele are on opposite sides of the aisle and serving in different chambers, but they said they have worked together to get specifics worked out and are aiming to achieve the same goal.
Laughlin also believes passing this bill would provide economic benefits and create 'thousands of jobs' in the state, specifically rural economies.
'It gets people to their camps,' Laughlin said. 'I know there's been some discussion around the Saturday opener, whether that has helped or hurt small businesses in Pennsylvania, and having this availability for people to come in and hunt an entire weekend will bring people in from out of state to spend money in these rural areas.'
Steele also cited free-time as one of the driving forces behind crafting the legislation.
'People are working sometimes six days a week, and if they can't get out on Sundays, in many cases, that means they can't hunt,' Steele said.
Why hasn't it passed in previous sessions?
Laughlin, who was reelected to a third term in 2024 in a purple region of the state, thinks that 'some politics may have been playing in on it.'
'You can't really separate politics out of Harrisburg too much,' Laughlin said. 'But you know, I'm not up for re-election for another four years, won by a fairly wide margin up here. I don't think anyone is going to hold up Sunday hunting at this point, over Dan Laughlin being the senator in Erie County.'
Steele said last session they 'were a little bit rushed' as one of the reasons it didn't get across the finish line and expects it to be voted on in committee soon.
Last June, the House passed Steele's proposal to repeal Pennsylvania's Sunday hunting ban by a 129-73 vote, but it did not make it through the Senate. She cited the amount of bipartisan support as a reason she's optimistic it will become law this session.
'When you talk about hunting within the framework of A: incredible economic opportunity for Pennsylvania and B: This… (would) be really important for the health of Pennsylvania forest,' Steele said. 'We're hearing from wildlife biologists. We're hearing from the forest ecologist that the Pennsylvania herd is too large and that we need to get more people hunting in the woods. The way to do that is with Sunday hunting.'
'When you understand that, people get on board,' she added.
Farmers for Sunday hunting
The Pennsylvania Farm Bureau has historically opposed legislation aimed at repealing the ban, in part due to the long standing tradition. However, Mitchell Kurek, state and local affairs specialist with the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, told the Capital-Star a shift in attitude has taken place in recent years as a result of crop damage.
'The impact is devastating,' Kurek said. 'Tens of thousands of dollars could be the difference between if that farm can survive or not.'
'At this point, we're looking for any solutions, any tools that could be added to the farmers arsenal and Sunday hunting is one of those tools,' Kurek said.
He emphasized that proposals that could fully end the Sunday hunting prohibition is 'not a mandate.'
'This isn't forcing anybody to open up their property on Sunday,' Kurek said. 'At the end of the day, what we're looking to do is reduce this herd size as quickly as we can…to the end of mitigating some of the damage.'
For lawmakers to earn the support of the Farm Bureau, their organization asked for multiple components to be included that would provide agricultural benefits. Kurek says among them are stronger trespassing laws, agricultural representation on the Game Commission, streamlining the process of deer removal for crop damage, and connecting farmers to reliable hunters via a hunter access program.
Like both sponsors of the legislation, Kurek says his group is 'extremely hopeful and optimistic' that the legislation gets across the finish line this session.
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Hikers concerns remain
While the politics over Sunday hunting have shifted for the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, the Keystone Trails Association (KTA), which advocates for hikers in the state, remains firm in its opposition.
'KTA continues to be concerned that Sunday hunting has the potential to impact the hiking experience and to present a safety threat to hikers on public lands on Sundays,' said Brook Lenker, the organization's executive director.
He said a lot of unknowns remain about the measures, including how many Sundays will ultimately be approved for hunting. Lenker also views keeping the public informed about which additional Sundays will be open for hunters as a challenge.
'It just underscores our concern for hiker safety and the hiking experience, because nobody likes to be out in the woods and hearing loud gunshots, and certainly doesn't want to be in harm's way,' Lenker said. 'And it really does disrupt …let's face it… for hikers to experience the serenity of the forest or wild spaces.'
However, Lenker said even if he doesn't fully agree with repealing the Sunday hunting ban, he understands some of the arguments that allow more hunters in the woods and provide young people another day to hunt.
'But I also would argue that Sundays, as they are now, are available for the very sort of safe and wholesome enjoyment of trails for youth and their families,' Lenker said. 'And I feel like this erodes that, because some of the seasons are at a time of year that's sublime for hiking, so it creates a conflict at some of the best times of year for hiking.'
Lenker has described the matter of Sunday hunting to be a 'complicated issue' and added he hopes if the proposal becomes law, it is rolled out with caution.
'We also are realists and understand that if this does pass, that…we're not going to be yelling and screaming at the Game Commission,' Lenker said. 'But we are going to say, 'Okay, now that you know you've had your wishes granted, how can you do this really carefully?''
The Pennsylvania Equine Council has also historically been opposed to the legislation, but has not commented on the latest proposals.
Farmers are concerned about crop damage. Is Sunday hunting the remedy?
Mark Lichtenwalner's family has owned a farm for more than 90 years in Lehigh County. He told the Capital-Star deer damaging crops is a big issue.
'This deer thing is such a frustrating issue for us,' Lichtenwalner said. 'I think I can speak for a lot of other farmers. We feel helpless.'
At this point in his life, Lichtenwalner said he does not have to depend on the farm for income as much in the past and most of his 200 acres is rented to a relative to grow corn and soybeans. In his plot, he tries to focus on growing vegetables and has a retail farm market in the summertime. But deer damaging crops is detrimental to his business.
'You know, we're probably losing on my little farm $10,000 a year of potential business we could have had,' he said.
'I've been working with donating some vegetables to a local food pantry the last couple years, and I'd like to do more for them,' he added. 'I can't, because the deer.'
He said crop damage has gotten so bad for farmers that he's talked to some who have pretty much given up on some land because of it.
But, Lichtenwalner describes himself as 'kind of on the fence' about Sunday hunting legislation, saying he sees both the pros and cons of it. In the end, he doesn't think it will have a meaningful impact for farmers.
'We have a 365 day problem,' he said. 'One day doesn't mean anything.'