Pennsylvania Game News - April 2020 - 19

during the hunting seasons someday will
be added.
"Getting complete authority for the
Game Commission to broaden Sunday
hunting even further is a future goal of
mine," Laughlin said.
Laughlin is looking forward to hunting
the first open Sunday of the 2020 archery
season.
"I hope to have my adult children with
me on that historic day," he said.
Laughlin said he was fortunate to
have others on the Game and Fisheries
Committee who are as passionate about
expanding Sunday hunting as he is.
"Senator Jim Brewster had been fighting this battle for years before I got to
the Senate, so we naturally hit it off and
became friends," Laughlin said. "He had
the bill in previous sessions and was kind
enough to let me take the lead this time
around, so he deserves a ton of credit on
getting the bill passed. It would not have
gotten through the process without his
help."
Laughlin also noted Rep. Bill Kortz,
who is the Democratic Chair of the House
Game and Fisheries Committee, was
instrumental in the bill's passage.

OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS

Brewster, who represents parts of
Allegheny and Westmoreland counties,
was elected to the State Senate in 2010.
He has served on the Senate Game and
Fisheries Committee since 2015.
Brewster introduced Sunday hunting
bills in 2015-16, then again in 2017-18
while serving as Minority Chair of the
Game and Fisheries Committee.
When Laughlin was appointed to
majority Chair of the committee, Brewster
realized the best opportunity to get the bill
passed was to co-sponsor with Laughlin.
Like Laughlin, creating more oppor-

APRIL 2020	

tunity for hunters was what prompted
Brewster to passionately pursue furthering
Sunday hunting in the state.
"Senate Bill 147 opens entire weekends to hunt for students and others who,
because of work and other family commitments, can't hunt during weekdays,"
Brewster said. "Also, it will generate revenue in the state that was lost to adjacent
states that have had Sunday hunting."
Under the tutelage of his uncle and
grandfather, Brewster has hunted for
more than 50 years, mainly for deer,
bears and turkeys. He hunts mostly in
Greene and Washington counties in the
southwestern part of the state, but also
out of a camp in Clarion County, near
Tionesta.
Brewster passed up a couple of deer
at his camp during the 2019 season, but
he had a great time and made plenty of
memories with his grandchildren. He's
looking forward to the added Sunday
hunting opportunities to spend even
more time hunting with family.
Brewster also said that most comments
he's received from hunters after the passage of Senate Bill 147 have been positive.
"Naturally, as with most changes,
there is a learning curve, but I reiterate
making available our 1.5 million acres of
state game lands to the hunters who pay
for them on the extra Sundays, allowing
them more opportunity and more options
for traveling to camps, the extra day is a
win-win for sportsmen and local economies," he said. "Landowners still have
the option of restricting hunters on their
property no matter what day of the week
it is," he added.
Thanks to the untiring efforts of
Senators Dan Laughlin and Jim Brewster,
hunters have more time and more options
for pursuing their favorite game in Penn's
Woods.
19
Pennsylvania Game News - April 2020

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