Overview
- House Bill 1431 takes effect in early September, ensuring Sundays are included in the 2025–26 deer firearms season schedule.
- The Pennsylvania Game Commission is revising hunting schedules and bag-limit plans to incorporate Sunday hunts under its expanded authority.
- Stakeholders expect the expanded Sunday access to help reverse a 37 percent decline in license sales since 1980 and boost funding for wildlife conservation.
- The repeal achieved bipartisan backing in both chambers, with former opponents such as the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau endorsing the legislation.
- The law modernizes a legacy blue-law restriction dating back centuries and brings Pennsylvania in line with most other states on weekend hunting.