Sunday Hunting Bans

I have always thought bans on Sunday hunting were wrong and should be repealed, so when a local reporter contacted me for my views on the ban on Sunday hunting here in Va, I was only too happy to oblige. The reporter, Spencer Dennis, had found my name on the Facebook group Legalize Virginia Sunday Hunting For All. We had a long conversation and I was looking forward to reading his piece in the News Leader; Sunday hunting may be coming, like it or not.

The excuses for banning hunting on Sundays don’t wash with me. It is discriminatory. Why should only one group of outdoor users be prevented from enjoying their sport on Sunday? You can hike, bike, climb, fish, canoe, ride, or birdwatch on public land on Sunday. But not hunt.

The ban also impacts conservation.

Anyone who reads this blog knows my conservation mantra; conservation creates recreational opportunity that drives economic activity. Having more people hunt, more people buying licenses, that’s what contributes to the conservation of game and wildlife in Virginia, is what I told Dennis. If we put up barriers to participation in hunting that can only have an adverse impact on license sale and excise tax contributions. When those revenues are down, conservation suffers, local businesses suffer and other outdoor users suffer.

Is Sunday hunting going to fix everything? Nope. There are too many factors bearing on participation, but allowing hunters another day afield is certainly one way to help.

Blogger River Mud does an excellent and comprehensive job of looking at the pro’s and con’s of Sunday hunting bans. Give these a read.

What’s the Sunday Hunting Ban Really About? (Part I).

Will Sunday Hunting Make it Unsafe to Go Outside?.

What’s the Sunday Hunting Ban Really About? (Part II – Supporters of the Ban).

If you live in Va. and want to contact your elected representative you can go to the National Shooting Sports Foundation web site and send an email.