National Coalition Testifies in Support of Bill to Allow Sunday Hunting

RICHMOND, Va., Jan. 31, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Executives from America's leading conservation, sportsmen's and hunting organizations testified earlier today in the Virginia Senate Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Committee in support of legislation to allow Sunday hunting in the Old Dominion. Senate Bill 850 was introduced by State Senator J. Chapman Peterson and has the support of Gov. Bob McDonnell (R).

"By allowing Virginia hunters to go afield on Sundays, we will be continuing a larger effort that involves improving access and opportunity for sportsmen living in the commonwealth," said National Shooting Sports Foundation Senior Vice President and General Counsel Lawrence G. Keane. "Let's not forget, the vast majority of hunters take to the field on weekends. By removing barriers to Sunday hunting, states like Virginia will effectively be doubling the value of each hunter's license."

The benefits of Virginia Sunday hunting, however, would not be limited to the sportsmen's community. An economic impact report released by the coalition has found that allowing Sunday hunting would result in the creation of an estimated 4,000 new Virginia jobs. The report also notes that these jobs would pay more than $105 million in wages and contribute approximately $300 million in additional economic activity to the commonwealth.  

"Through our Virginia legislative sportsmen's caucus, part of our National Assembly of Sportsmen's Caucuses (NASC), we will be working to repeal the Old Dominion's ban on Sunday hunting," said Jeff Crane, President of the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation. "One of the biggest obstacles to recruiting new hunters is lack of access and opportunity, and by restricting hunting on Sunday, Virginia is limiting opportunities for current hunters and making it more difficult to recruit new ones."

Fewer hunters mean that game populations, already surpassing sustainable levels in much of Virginia, could continue to grow to even greater numbers. It also means that the Virginia agencies in charge of managing wildlife will be severely limited in their resources since the vast majority of the funds necessary to run the agencies are generated through the excise tax on hunter's sporting equipment.

Hunting and associated industries represent the largest financial supporters of wildlife conservation in Virginia, having contributed over $4.5 million to habitat conservation and wildlife management through the Pittman Robertson excise tax fund in 2009, the most recent year for which information is available. Allowing Sunday hunting, which would effectively double the hunting season, would inevitably result in increased Pittman Robertson excise tax collections and license receipts, thereby generating more revenue for the state fish and wildlife agency.

"The Virginia ban on Sunday hunting has had a devastating impact on hunter recruitment and retention in the commonwealth," said NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox.  "Yet there is no biological justification for the prohibition. Most families with youth sports and other family obligations on Saturdays are deprived of their only hunting opportunity.  This leads to the failed recruitment of new Virginia hunters vitally needed to maintain healthy wildlife populations and preserve the Old Dominion's rich hunting heritage."

The leading opponents of Sunday hunting in Virginia are anti-hunting and animal rights groups such as the Humane Society of the United States and the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), whose spokesperson said the decline in hunting in Virginia is "a step in the right direction…"

Addressing the opposition, NSSF's Keane declared, "This much is clear. Those who oppose this legislation stand with the likes of PETA and the Humane Society of the United States, not Virginia's sportsmen."

The Sunday hunting coalition includes the National Shooting Sports Foundation, National Rifle Association, Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation, Archery Trade Association, Boone and Crockett Club, Cabela's, Delta Waterfowl, Mule Deer Foundation, National Assembly of Sportsmen's Caucuses, Pheasants Forever, Quail Forever, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Safari Club International, U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance and the Wildlife Management Institute.

SOURCE National Shooting Sports Foundation