ORGANIZATIONS THAT SUPPORT SUNDAY HUNTING

Pennsylvania BHA Statement on Sunday Hunting March 8, 2018

PA QDMA on Sunday Hunting March 9, 2018

PA Game Commission April 24, 2018

Delta Waterfowl May 2, 2018

Safari Club International May 7, 2018 

National Rifle Association - NRA June 2018

The United Bowhunters of Pennsylvania

National Shooting Sports Foundation - Sunday Hunting Coalition

Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation

WE ALL DESERVE MORE TIME TO MAKE MEMORIES

Katie and Harold posing for a photo after enjoying an ATV ride.

When I left the Vet’s office today, the song on the radio was “She Ain’t In It” by Jon Pardi. As the song ends the lyrics go “my life won’t be the same, as long as she ain’t in it”. Katie isn’t here now, physically. But I’m at peace with the decision. She had declined a lot over the past few months. Couldn’t stand without help. Couldn’t go up or down steps without help. When we detected earlier this week that she was very uncomfortable, I knew the right, kind, loving, caring thing to do was to help her one last time. She earned that much at least.

Today I had to say goodbye to my Katie. After 15 wonderful years that had stolen her body. Please don’t be sad. Yes, I am grieving over the loss of a very beloved family member, but she is at peace now. I believe she is running pain-free with her hunting buddy Cooper.  The beagle that taught her to hunt.

“Just Perfect.”  That’s how my best buddy Bob described my Katie. And I have to agree, she has always been perfect in every way.

Katie a black lab pup came to us through tragedy. Our six-month-old lab Remington had died suddenly and my only course of action was to immediately get another puppy.

I remember going to Lancaster, Pa during a rainstorm to get her.  Megan, my daughter and I fought over Katie's name and never did reach an agreement.  My daughter wanted to name her after Remington since he died at six months, she felt it a good tribute.  I just was not so sure.

I awoke that first morning after adopting the ‘new Remmie’ recalling a dream.  In the dream, I called her Katie. It was June 8, 2003, at 5 am, I was outside listening to the turkeys gobble, the pup by my side.  I walked a bit up the yard and when I turned around, I called out “Katie come”, and she did.

From that moment on she was Katie Daub;  another member of our family.

A day or so later, Kathryn my mother-in-law stopped in. Kathryn asked me what the new addition’s name was.  I will never forget the look on her face when I said, Katie. She backed away a few steps and sat down on a chair. She looked at me and asked, “why Katie?” She knew Megan and I had argued over the pups name and Katie was not on the list. I explained the dream and the name change. Tears immediately welled in her eyes.  Asking Kathryn what was wrong? She replied;  “I have prayed for help. For my deceased brother Bill to watch over us and help us. He always called me ‘Katie’.”  It was as if her prayers had come true as she sat there with tears in her eyes sharing this very personal moment with us.  Maybe Bill did have something to do with it, we will never know.

Katie was “Just Perfect.”

In 15 years, the only time I remember being upset about anything she did was a few rolls in poop. She learned to rabbit hunt from my beagle Cooper. I’d laugh watching her put her paws on a brush pile and bounce, watching for a rabbit to flush.

After Cooper passed we began pheasant hunting, she loved it. Katie was a great scent trailer, I guess earning a degree from beagle school helped with that.

Besides hunting, I think Katie’s favorite thing in life, if not licking the bacon tray after breakfast had to be riding on things. If I was cutting grass, Katie was on the tractor. If I was riding ATV, Katie was on the back. And she never fell off! My hat would blow off, but “Katie would just surf” says Bob, “she was just perfect.”

We all love you and will miss you terribly.  Thanks for helping us through that tough situation that brought us together 15+ years ago.

I will always treasure our time afield. If only we had more.

Your beloved owner, Harold Daub

Watch - Katie Doing What She Loved - Riding & Surfing

HUNTERS ARE CONSERVATIONISTS

Conservation's Latest Problem? Not Enough Hunters

NPR Production

Skunk Bear

Published on May 15, 2018

HOW DOES SUNDAY HUNTING MAKE THINGS BETTER

Executive Director Harold Daub receives a lot of questions regarding Sunday hunting and why a change in the law is needed. 

Here is a recent response to a concerned hunter and conservation group. 

Don and others, I can’t tell you it will get better for you or I personally, it sounds like we get enough opportunity to hunt. But the fact is that surveys of Pennsylvanians who are interested in hunting but aren’t hunting show the number one reason is: TIME.  

For those who work 6 days a week, those who have kids in sports, those with kids in split parent homes....Sunday will make a huge improvement in their hunting.

For all Pennsylvanians, having the strongest possible hunting community has a lot of benefits. Pennsylvania wildlife management responsibility falls on the PA Game Commission. There are 480 species the PGC is charged with management responsibility for, as stipulated in our Commonwealth constitution and Title 34 Game Law. This management system is referred to as the North American Model of Wildlife Management. The basis of that model is: hunters pay to hunt, that license revenue provides the funding needed to promote and protect healthy wildlife populations and habitats.

Another funding source comes from the Wildlife Restoration Act, have you ever heard of Pittman-Robertson (P-R) Funding? This is money collected from an excise tax on firearms and ammunition. A tax that was ASKED for by conservationists about 80 years ago. That funding is reimbursed back to states using a calculation that considers two things: a state’s land mass and the number of licenses sold.

With PA now surrounded by states offering 7 day hunting opportunity, and only 2 other states (Maine and Massachusetts) being more restrictive than PA, the risk is real that PA will see the continued decline in the number of active hunters.

Less hunters = less funding. Funding needed to control things like CWD, EHD, study declines in populations like grouse and bats, reintroduction efforts like the Bald Eagle, and ensuring healthy habitats on our 1.5 million acres of state game lands.  

You see guys, it’s much more than your personal experience. If you’re able to hunt enough today, you are lucky. Many can not.

Hunters United for Sunday Hunting

Executive Director, Harold Daub

AS A FATHER OF TWO

Provide by Pa Outdoor News - Letter to the Editor

From Jeffrey

As a father of two, I understand and strongly support, the push to remove the prohibition of Sunday hunting and to transfer full regulatory control of Sunday hunting to the PA Game Commission. But, as an American citizen, I can’t help but to ask myself, how and why have we allowed some of these outdated Blue Laws to be in existence for as long as we have. The Blue Laws, or laws that were imposed BEFORE William Penn established a government in what would become Pennsylvania, regulated industry, shopping, and other behaviors on Sundays and were supposed to force the citizenry to observe the Lord’s day quietly, at home. Believe it or not, there was a time when we could not play organized sports such as football or baseball, make a sale of any kind, go fishing, attend a movie, shoot pool, or buy a beer on Sunday. A large percentage of the Blue Laws have been considered unenforceable by court decree and many of them have been revoked, amended, or ignored. Let’s face it, like it or not, a lot has changed since colonial times. It’s time we take a stand as free Americans and allow hunting, like many of the other activities that were once not allowed, on Sundays too. For the life of me, I will never understand the logic that allows us to play soccer, football and baseball, drink alcohol, gamble, and partake in other pastimes, but not take our sons and daughters into the woods hunting with us on Sundays. 

EXPLAIN TO HIM HOW THAT'S FAIR

From John, My girlfriend has split custody of her ten-year-old son that she takes hunting. His father is not a hunter and will not take him out. So really he gets one day of rifle deer season. Explain to him how this is fair being that he's only with his mother every other weekend.

I HAVE 2 KIDS OF MY OWN AND MENTOR ANOTHER

From Dean,  I have 2 kids of my own and mentor another. Not counting my nieces and nephews. It’s hard keeping them interested in hunting. They are in sports so Saturday hunting is limited if they have a game. Sundays would open up another day to hunt for them. What I’m not understanding is the thinking if you include all the species that can be hunted it creates 16 more days to hunt a year. To the kids, that’s a lot. The only 2 Sunday’s that is going to make a huge amount of people in the woods would be the 2 weeks of rifle. As for the landowners or those that want to hike. We hunt a lot of tourist areas we see hikers, bikers, ATV and motorcycles almost every day we hunt. Those people just wear a color that doesn’t have brown or white in it. As for landowners just talk to those hunting your land and tell them they can’t hunt there on Sundays. We have farms that only let us hunt archery or shotgun. If those people you let hunt your land respect you as a landowner they will follow any laws or demands you have. I really think the only way to keep kids and other hunters interested is letting them hunt Sundays. We have guys we hunt with that only get a few hours (1-2) after work to hunt and their job requires overtime on Saturdays. They love the sport of hunting but every year they are asking if buying a license is worth it. They sit home Sundays looking for something to do or hunt other states. The fact that hunting is allowed on Sundays already for predators gives the ones against it no leg to stand on because if they are in the woods there are already hunters there on Sundays. Education is the key to Sunday hunting if the people against it would understand it already exists and anytime someone goes into the woods they wear bright colors ( any color other then brown, black or white ) will work they will be fine. If a hunter can’t see the difference between a person and an animal they shouldn’t have a gun. Think of the kids and future generations of hunters that can’t hunt because of school. I have to explain all the time to my kids why we can fish and do anything else on Sunday except hunt food.

GAME COMMISSION BOARD PLEDGES SUPPORT FOR SUNDAY HUNTING

GAME COMMISSION BOARD PLEDGES SUPPORT FOR SUNDAY HUNTING

The Pennsylvania Board of Game Commissioners today reaffirmed its support of legislative action that would allow for expanded Sunday hunting opportunities.

The resolution adopted by the board is in response to a direct request from the nonprofit group Hunters United for Sunday Hunting, a representative of which testified to the board on Monday.

The resolution is at least the third the Board of Game Commissioners has adopted over the years in support of expanded Sunday hunting. The board’s support has remained consistent through the regular turnover of commissioners due to terms expiring and replacements being appointed.

The resolution adopted today is as follows:

“WHEREAS, The Commonwealth has experienced consistent declines in hunting participation by both resident and non-resident hunters over the past several decades, with both the number of licenses sold and revenues generated experiencing steady declines; and

“WHEREAS, Youth participation is vital to maintaining the long-standing tradition of hunting in the Commonwealth; and

“WHEREAS, Sunday hunting can be an effective means of recruiting new hunters and retaining current hunters by increasing the value of the hunting license through offering additional opportunities to spend time in the field; and

“WHEREAS, The Commission recognizes that it can effectively double the number of hunting days for youths during the school year by offering Sunday hunting; and

“WHEREAS, Many residents of this Commonwealth seek hunting opportunities and hunting leases in neighboring states that offer Sunday hunting; and

“WHEREAS, The Commission recognizes that Sunday hunting will help keep Pennsylvania hunters in Pennsylvania; and

“WHEREAS, The Commonwealth has a long-standing tradition of hunting camps and clubs; and

“WHEREAS, Sunday hunting can effectively double the number of hunting days for camp owners and club members; and

“WHEREAS, Sunday hunting has the potential to generate a substantial increase in nonresident license sales and the accompanying revenue for the Pennsylvania Game Commission; and

“WHEREAS, hunting license sales and their associated federal matching funds are the primary revenue source for the Pennsylvania Game Commission in carrying out its mission, including maintaining 1.5 million acres of state game lands and acquisition of additional public lands, research and management of wildlife and providing information and education to the public; and

“WHEREASs, Sunday hunting has the potential to provide substantial economic benefits to rural areas and businesses by increasing money spent by hunters on lodging, food, gas and other incidental items; and

“WHEREAS, Sunday hunting could effectively generate $629 million in additional spending and create 5,300 new jobs, resulting in $18 million in additional sales and income tax; and

“WHEREAS, The mission of the Pennsylvania Game Commission is to manage wildlife and its habitat for current and future generations; and

“WHEREAS, Sunday hunting, which is currently permitted to control a growing population of coyotes, will provide the biologists of the Pennsylvania Game Commission a new tool to manage wildlife populations; and

“WHEREAS, The 47 states that currently permit Sunday hunting, have not experienced any discernable impact on the health or vibrancy of game populations; and

“WHEREAS, The Board of Commissioners recognizes that the authority to permit Sunday hunting lies entirely with the General Assembly of Pennsylvania; and

“WHEREAS, If the General Assembly repeals the restrictions on Sunday hunting, thus giving the authority to regulate Sunday hunting to the Board of Commissioners, the Board recognizes the many stakeholder groups that any actions on Sunday hunting will affect and will endeavor to engage these stakeholders before passing any new regulations in regard to Sunday hunting.

“NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board of Commissioners of the Pennsylvania Game Commission does hereby urge the General Assembly of Pennsylvania to repeal the prohibition on Sunday hunting in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

“Given under the hand and seal of the Board of Commissioners of the Pennsylvania Game Commission on this 24th day of April, 2018.”

http://www.media.pa.gov/Pages/Game-Commission-Details.aspx?newsid=209

Hunters United for Sunday Hunting address to Pa. Game Commission public meeting April 23, 2018

Good morning gentlemen.  Thanks for having me.  My name is Kevin Askew, I am the Communications Director for Hunters United for Sunday Hunting.  I am here today with Harold Daub, Executive Director of our organization.

Since our first grassroots meeting on March 11, 2018, Hunters United for Sunday Hunting has organized into 8 regions and all 67 Pa. counties.  We have over 17,000 members to include a Farm/Ag Liaison team and chapter.  We also have established an out-of-state hunters chapter for all non-Pa residents.  We have been able to attract and gain nearly 3,000 members weekly in this short time.

The Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs, National Wild Turkey Federation, United Bowhunters of Pennsylvania, Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, PA Quality Deer Management Association, Unified Sportsmen of PA, Pheasants Forever, Allegheny County Sportsmen and other private clubs have joined in support of Sunday hunting.

The purpose of my address is to ask you as the commissioners and Pa. Game Commission agency representatives to issue a statement or press release demonstrating the agencies support for Sunday hunting and emphasis your ability to manage wildlife regardless of the day in a week.

As you are aware, 52 percent of hunters support Sunday hunting.

Studies show TIME is the biggest factor for people when it comes to hunting.

Our research indicates that there is overwhelming support to allow Sunday Hunting in Pa.  Both in the farm and Ag community as well as the general hunting population.

Hunters United for Sunday Hunting mission is to remove the prohibition of Sunday hunting in Pa Title 34 Game law, through education and influence the legislatures to change the law accordingly.

A fresh statement from the game commission will help support this education effort.

The legislature and the Governor have proven their willingness to update PA Title 34 Game Law as recent as March 13, 2018, with Senate Bill 135 by updating and allowing hunters to use leashed dogs to track big game animals that have been harvested.

We understand the Pa Game Commission are the subject matter experts for the management and conservation of Pa’s wildlife.  You have the biologists, wildlife experts, scientific studies, etc. to determine what is right, what is wrong; what needs to be corrected and what doesn’t. Legislators have no experience in this area.  The transfer of full regulatory control to Pa. Game Commission only makes senses. This is the best solution for game management in Pa.  Cherry picking species, days and seasons only waste time, energy and money for all involved year-after-year, season-after-season.

The biggest perception is that Pa. Farm Bureau does not support Sunday hunting or a change in the law.  The facts show different.  For example in the recent Senate Bill 135 to allow leashed tracking dogs, the Farm Bureau did not oppose, therefore supporting a law change to allow the use of tracking dogs.

A more recent example is Senate Bill 123, Allowing Falconry on Sundays currently in the Game and Fisheries Committee.  The Pa. Farm Bureau does not oppose this bill either.  Again, demonstrating they support Sunday hunting.

As you consider drafting the requested statement it is important that you know the facts.  There are not as many roadblocks as you may think.

We all are erecting the same puzzle, we all hold a piece for the future of conservation in Pa.  Our organization, Pa. Game Commission, and Pa. Farm Bureau.  We can all work on this together for the benefit of all the 480 Pa. wildlife species, or not.  If we don’t then the result will be lost effort, energy, time, on all our parts.  Resulting in stagnation and no forward movement on management and conservation efforts here in Pa.

I recently read a quote by author Matthew Scully that fits this situation well.  He wrote - “Sometimes tradition and habit are just that, comfortable excuses to leave things be, even when they are unjust and unworthy.”

Again, I ask that Pa. Game Commission as an agency to issue a statement in support of Sunday hunting, not for the sole reason we are asking for one, but because it is the right thing to do for the agency, hunters and the future of conservation in Pennsylvania.

I thank you for your time.

https://www.facebook.com/HuntersUnitedForSundayHunting/