PA FARM BUREAU SUNDAY HUNTING STANCE - RELIGIOUS OPPRESSION

Josh First, Jewish Faith, Saturday is a day of worship

Letter sent to Mr. Luke Brubaker, Chair of Lancaster County Farm Bureau’s Local Affairs Committee

From: Josh First

June 20, 2019

Mr. Luke Brubaker, District 8

PA Farm Bureau

680 Musser Rd

Mount Joy PA 17552

Dear Mr. Brubaker,

It is difficult to express the full amount of frustration my son and I feel due to the PA Farm Bureau's position against Sunday hunting. Like you we are religious people, but we observe Saturday as our day of rest, which prohibits us from hunting, driving cars, using phones or computers or doing much else other than attending services, Bible study, and relaxing with friends and family. That leaves us Sunday as our one weekend day to hunt, and as Isaac has gotten older we are seeing the end of his youthful outdoor opportunities before he goes off to college and moves out of our home. Maryland has Sunday hunting, so last November we went to Maryland, over three hours from our home, so Isaac could hunt deer without missing school. So it was on a Sunday morning in Maryland that my son killed his first deer, not in Pennsylvania, where he was born and has lived his entire fifteen years. Not at his family's hunting camp, where he has grown up shooting off the porch. Instead it was in Maryland, a serious inconvenience and a disconnect from what is an important rite of passage.

We own active crop land in Dauphin County and a tree farm in Lycoming County, and we would like to hunt on Sundays on our own land. We do not ask anyone for permission to hunt on their land, we are just fine with what we have. Our Dauphin County land is open to hunters we have approved. The PA Farm Bureau's opposition is the only reason Pennsylvania has not adopted Sunday hunting like the rest of the states surrounding us, and at this point, we believe the PA Farm Bureau is stealing our family's private property rights and persecuting us for our religion. I dislike saying these things, but the PA Farm Bureau's actions have put us in this position. You need to hear about the consequences of your actions.

How would you feel if you were in our shoes? I can answer for you.

You would feel terrible. You would feel like your fellow Pennsylvanians were oppressing you out of close-minded zeal, instead of making room for everyone to live happily here according to their conscience and free choices, as our state was originally founded. If you believe that the role of religion is to oppress, coerce, and deprive people, then you can guess why I eldered out of the Quaker faith decades ago. As I experienced then and now, too many Christians believe it is their duty to force others to live a certain way, instead of  demonstrating the correctness of their values and beliefs through their simple, gentle deeds and good living. That coercive behavior drives people away instead of bringing them closer, and the behavior of the PA Farm Bureau is driving me and many others far, far away from what you say your represent. If you are against other people enjoying Sunday hunting out of your own religious conviction about what is right for you, then you are shooting yourself in the foot, because you are setting a bad example by proving you believe in force, not love. Sorry to say. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,                                                            

Josh First

**As of publication. Josh has not received a response to his letter**

HUSH EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR MESSAGE TO PA. GAME COMMISSION - SB147

Hunters United for Sunday Hunting, Executive Director, Kevin Askew addresses Pa. Game Commission, Board of Commissioners at the July 22, 2019 public meeting regarding Senate Bill 147.

July 22, 2019 President Layton, Commissioners, Executive Director Burhans, and Deputy Executive Director Grohol and Palmer,

Good morning gentlemen.  My name is Kevin Askew, I am the Executive Director for Hunters United for Sunday Hunting.  Let me first say that my organization is undeterred in our mission to remove the prohibition of Sunday hunting in PA Title 34 Game Law through education, and influence legislatures to change the law accordingly.

I am here today to thank you, the Board of Commissioners for the work you have and are about to put in regarding Senate Bill 147.

Unfortunately, legislators have not provided full regulatory authority to the Pa. Game Commission.  The anchoring and dictating by the law of two Sunday’s in SB147 is not based on any science as you know.  Please be aware that no Pa. based sportsmen or conservation organization was at the table when this deal was made. 

You must accept and realize the Pa. Farm Bureau is still opposed to SB147.  So what!  This opposition should not deter you in the least.  Why? Page 23, 2019 Pa. Farm Bureau Policy Book, Wildlife Management Section, Line 6, “We recommend sound science be used to manage wildlife populations.”  The Pa. Farm Bureau just wants to posture and stand in the way of wildlife conservation progress in this state for no real reason.  The Pa. Farm Bureau knows full well that they are getting stronger hunting trespass laws that benefit both farmers and landowners.  All the while providing additional hunting opportunities to farmers and others.

SB147 still has a few more hurdles to go through before it becomes law.  The best-case scenario is that SB147 gets through the Pa. House in September and onto the governor's desk for signature opening up the possibility for Sunday hunting opportunity this fall.  The other scenario is it gets held up in the legislative process and does not reach the governor's desk until late November or December effectively eliminating any Sunday opportunity for the 2019-2020 hunting season.

What you as commissioners and an agency do, and how you handle the progress and implementation of SB147 is extremely critical in both short term and long term.  Once SB147 becomes law, all eyes are on the Pa. Game Commission.  Some want you to succeed. Others want you to fail.  So what do you do?

You all know what Hunters United for Sunday Hunting team has done to get to this point today.  My recommendation is that you follow the same template.  Be completely transparent, educate and keep people informed on what is going on.  Tell people what, why and how you can and are implementing these three Sundays.  If SB147 gets held up for some reason don’t be afraid to say why and place blame where it belongs. 

This is a great educational opportunity for both politicians and the public.  If done right the agency can very well reap the benefits.  If done wrong you have just given the opposition the club to beat us with in this conservation battle for hunting on Sunday.  There is no better evidence of this than the ridicule of Joel Rotz, Pa. Farm Bureau, “hunters who can't go out on Sundays already have an economic impact, such as by going to sports events or eating and drinking at bars and restaurants in their communities.” 

Hunters United for Sunday Hunting welcomes the additional hunting opportunity in SB147 and understands the task and decisions ahead of you as commissioners.  Thanks for the work that you do and the resources that you protect. 

Sincerely; 

Kevin B. Askew

Executive Director, Hunters United for Sunday Hunting

**Of note, Joel Rotz, Pa. Farm Bureau was in attendance.  He did not address the commissioners.**

NO DAMPER ON ENJOYMENT OF OUTDOORS

Submitted, not printed in response to: York Dispatch, May 31, 2019 OP-ED: Sunday hunting wouldn't be the economic boon proponents suggest

Mr. Wayne Campbell, Pennsylvania State Grange,

Thank you for the economic information involving outdoor activities nationwide.  These statistics are extremely telling of how all users of the outdoors interact through the money they spend on the sport they enjoy.  There is a definite financial benefit that can’t be denied. All across the nation, in all 50 states, people are enjoying their time outside.   If they weren’t they would not be spending this type of money. 

It is refreshing to see and know that boaters, fishermen, fisherwomen, campers, hikers, bikers, hunters, wildlife watchers, outdoor outfitters, the trail sports of motorcyclists, ATV riders, horseback riders, and all others are all coexisting all days of the week in the pursuit of what they enjoy and spending money doing it.  This for some reason is something that people do not understand. 

But, these verifiable economic figures proves just that. There is no damper on the enjoyment of the outdoors.  Regardless of the activity people are willingly spending money and are taking to the outdoors without fear, concern or regard to what others are doing while sharing the great resource of nature our country provides. 

Thanks for making these figures available and clearing showing the $30.8 billion seven day-a-week monetary benefit of everyone recreating as they wish.  One can only hope that the Pa. Legislature will fast track lifting the Sunday hunting blue law with the national financial information provided by the Pennsylvania State Grange all the while knowing that 47 other states don’t discriminate when it comes to outdoor users.

Again, thanks Wayne Campbell and Pa. State Grange for your contribution in this effort to get this archaic law lifted. 

Kevin Askew, Executive Director, Hunters United for Sunday Hunting 

SUNDAY HUNTING BAN UNDER FIRE - ARTICLE

Article by: Melinda Rizzo

Hunters United for Sunday Hunting contributor – Carl Machamer, Research Analyst

“We’re interest in protecting and preserving hunting family time, and passed-down traditions,” said Carl Machamer, a spokesman for Hunters United for Sunday Hunting, or HUSH, grassroots, pro-hunting organization based in Harrisburg. He said weekend hunting is popular among families, and the Keystone State is losing revenue to neighbor’s, including West Virginia, New York and Ohio, that allow Sunday hunting.   They’re all benefiting from Pennsylvania

He said hunters were important to conservation efforts and they play a vital role in population control, as well as preservation and protection of outdoor areas.

Read Full Article:
Sunday Hunting Ban Under Fire

PA FARM BUREAUS OPPOSITION COST STATE $500 MILLION IN TAX REVENUE

Joel Rotz, Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, Government Affairs and Communications spokesman, in comments made to the York Dispatch, encouraged [Pa.] hunters to maximize their economic contributions on Sundays by ‘eating and drinking at bars and restaurants in their communities.’ 

This suggestion is truly offensive to sportsmen and sportswomen across the commonwealth and it makes a person wonder if Mr. Rotz and the Pa. Farm Bureau is in touch with the modern-day hunter and conservationist.  Instead of degrading hunters, wouldn’t it be better for the PFB to understand current hunting culture and stand with countless passionate hunters and conservationists disinterested in spending our Sundays in bars? 

The residents of Pennsylvania deserve to understand the loss to the economy, tax revenue, and wages that the PFB has continued to perpetuate in the state of Pennsylvania year-after-year.

A 2010 study commissioned by the Pennsylvania Legislative Budget and Finance Committee and completed by Southwick Associates, looked at the potential impact of Sunday hunting on our state [Pa.] and local economies. The study forecast a 27 percent increase in overall hunting activity along with a net increase in retail sales of associated merchandise of over $460 million dollars per year if Sunday hunting were allowed. Considering multiplier effects, the total output to the economy would be over $800 million dollars per year. This equated to over $56 million in state and local tax revenue that has not been realized by local communities because of the PFB current stance on Sunday hunting.

Interestingly this study was calculated using hunting license numbers for the fiscal year 2009-2010, which happened to be in the top three for lowest hunting license sales since 1990, according to the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Another study completed by John Dunham and Associates in 2018 for The National Shooting Sports Foundation lists total economic output at over $972 million. This would have put state [Pa.] and local tax opportunity at $68 million per year.

This data begs the following: What would the total economic impact have been if Pa. allowed Sunday hunting years ago? What would our participation numbers currently look like had we not limited hunters from enjoying their recreation? The results of these missed opportunities are staggering with over $500 million in state and local tax revenues forgone in the last nine years alone. Should this trend continue we will quickly reach $1 billion in lost tax revenue from increased hunting opportunities.

These numbers are far too large to be ignored by the Pennsylvania legislature.  Pa. House of Representatives, Pa. Senators and specifically both Appropriations Committees need to take a hard look at the data and get on with removing this 337-year-old archaic and discriminatory law that continues to cost Pa. hunters and the commonwealth as a whole.

The time has come for the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau to view hunters as partners in conservation and wildlife management and to stop their discriminatory policy recommendations, which are detrimental to conservation and our economy.

Written by: Carl Machamer, Research Analyst, Hunters United for Sunday Hunting

Southwick Study:

http://sundayhunting.org/PDF/PASundayHuntingSouthwickRpt.pdf

NSSF Study: https://d3aya7xwz8momx.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Sunday-Hunting-PA.pdf

SATURDAY IS OUR DAY OF WORSHIP. SUNDAY WE COULD HUNT.

Daniel Bowers and his son share a day making memories while hunting. 

Story submitted from/by Daniel Bowers, Seventh Day Adventist; Saturday is a day of worship.

The ability to enjoy outdoor recreation is something everyone should have access to.  Fisherman, boaters, and hikers have the opportunity to choose from any of the seven days a week without regard to their religious affiliation.  For some reason, hunters are limited to only six days and not allowed to hunt on Sundays. 

As a Seventh Day Adventist Christian, my family observes Saturday as our day of worship.  This means we do not hunt Saturday and are left with only Monday through Friday.  The outdoor lifestyle is a large part of our recreation.  From the time hunting seasons end, we are busy preparing for the next year.  This includes land improvement, habitat management and planting crops.  All of this we can do during the five days of the regular work week (evenings of course...have to pay the bills and attend school) and Sunday but still observe our Saturday religious beliefs.  In order for us to hunt together, we maximize our time afield with short evenings or arranging work and school schedules to take the day off because we cannot hunt on Sunday.

Having Sunday hunting would be a game changer for us...we could hunt together without worrying about work or school schedules.  It would also allow us to further enjoy time in the outdoors that we work so hard on to prep for the hunting seasons.

I think this is also true for anyone that doesn't observe the same faith as our family.  Families can hunt full weekends at their camps instead of just one day.  As an avid outdoorsman for 30+ years, being involved with coaching archery for 25+yrs and having teenage hunters of my own, I can see NO downside to allowing Sunday hunting.

Story submitted from/by Daniel Bowers, Seventh Day Adventist; Saturday is a day of worship

THE REWARD OF A SUNDAY HUNT IN MARYLAND

The reward of a successful Sunday hunt in Maryland.  Fresh backed apple pie and 2 quarts of cherries. 

Story from Thomas Redfern, Legislative Team, Hunters United for Sunday Hunting

Going to try to make a long story short. So this past SUNDAY I drive to Maryland to help an orchard farmer with crop damage.  I end up shooting two doe.  The owner of the orchard is so pleased he pays with two quarts of the absolute sweetest cherries I have ever eaten and a freshly baked apple pie.  This is how farmers and hunters should help each other not whatever the hell the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau is doing to hunting conservation here in Pa. 

The cool thing is the venison stayed at the orchard and is feeding the farmers migrant workers  They are Mexican and I had a great time with them after the hunt as I speak Spanish being that I lived in Mexico for five years. 

This relationship started simply by me looking for a place to hunt on Sunday.  Needless to say, I will be going back...for the pie of course.

Thomas Redfern