Pennsylvania repeals ban on Sunday hunting
Pennsylvanians will now be able to hunt on more Sundays. Gov. Josh Shapiro signed House Bill 1431 into law on Wednesday, fully repealing the state's "outdated" ban on Sunday hunting.
Shapiro says the new law will give the Game Commission the freedom to set hunting seasons "that make sense for today's sportsman."
"At a time when folks in Pennsylvania and elsewhere are busier than ever before — so many hunters are working five, six days a week — this is a commonsense change that gives hunters more freedom to choose when they want to head into the woods," Shapiro said. "It also opens up more freedom for moms and dads and aunts and uncles and grandmas and grandpops to introduce younger generations to the tradition of hunting."
Game Commission applauds Sunday hunting
Pennsylvania Game Commission executive director Stephen Smith applauded lawmakers' decision to repeal the centuries-old ban on Sunday hunting. Smith said before the law was signed, there were 47 other states with more Sunday hunting opportunities than Pennsylvania.
"As a parent, I know what it's like to be on the sidelines of a ballfield in the fall Saturday after Saturday after Saturday watching the fall tick by, wondering how you're going to get out to hunt, let alone how you're going to have your children go out to hunt," Smith said. "But today, we're taking a huge step towards changing that."
The Pennsylvania Game Commission said its board of commissioners will postpone its next meeting to July 28. That will allow more time for public comment before the board reviews options to potentially add new Sunday opportunities to the upcoming fall hunting season.
Sunday hunting's path to law in Pennsylvania
, sponsored by state Rep. Mandy Steele of Fox Chapel, passed the state Senate on June 30 after passing the state House of Representatives on June 11.
The bill then went back to the state House for a final vote on concurrence before it reached Gov. Shapiro's desk.
Pennsylvania previously didn't allow any hunting on Sundays — except for foxes, coyotes and crows during open season. In 2020, then-Gov. Tom Wolf signed a bill into law that dedicated three Sundays to hunting deer and bear during archery and gun seasons.
Under the new law, the Pennsylvania Game Commission will implement the additional Sunday hunting opportunities.
