QUALITY DEER MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION P.O. Box 160 • 170 Whitetail Way • Bogart, GA 30622 PHONE: 800.209.3337 • FAX: 706.353.0223 • www.QDMA.com Date: 7 February 2019
To: Senate Game and Fisheries Committee From: Kip Adams, Director of Conservation Re: Senate Bill 147
On behalf of the Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA) I am writing to support Senate Bill 147 and Sunday hunting in Pennsylvania. The QDMA is a national nonprofit wildlife conservation organization dedicated to ensuring the future of white-tailed deer, wildlife habitat and our hunting heritage. The QDMA has over 60,000 members nationwide, and our membership includes hunters, landowners and natural resource professionals. The QDMA advocates the legalization of Sunday hunting in Pennsylvania for the following reasons: • Sunday hunting could provide additional recreational opportunity for Pennsylvania hunters • Sunday hunting could provide additional opportunity for hunters to help manage deer and other wildlife populations • Sunday hunting could increase hunter participation and recruitment rates • Sunday hunting could help rural economies Hunters play an important role in Pennsylvania’s societal and economic wellbeing. Hunters provide a free ecological service to society by managing deer and other wildlife populations and provide over $1 billion annually to Pennsylvania’s economy. Unfortunately, the number of hunters in Pennsylvania is decreasing. One suggested reason for this decline is the lack of available time for hunting. The opportunity for Sunday hunting could provide additional time for afield and help slow this negative trend. Many hunters are limited in their hunting activity to weekends due to long work weeks and conflicts with other social activities. Essentially, the addition of Sunday hunting would effectively double the number of available days for this segment of the hunting population. Similarly, it would provide ample opportunity for youth to hunt without conflicting with school or team sports (which typically occur on Saturdays), and therefore help hunter recruitment rates. For the reasons stated above, the QDMA supports Senate Bill 147 and Sunday hunting in Pennsylvania. Thank you for your time and your commitment to Pennsylvania’s natural resources.
Respectfully, Kip Adams Director of Conservation
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