South Carolinians should be allowed to hunt on public lands on Sundays

Weekends offer days to recharge, reconnect, and reestablish life priorities. For some, it’s family time. Others enjoy sports and some mark the weekend by gathering in pews in worship.

Some South Carolinians, though, are blocked from these important weekend activities because state regulations prevent Sunday hunting on public lands. Everywhere on Sunday in South Carolina, citizens can camp in our state parks, fish in our teeming waters, trail ride through the woods, and boat along our coastal waters. No regulations prevent these.

Not for hunters, though. It’s time for that to change.

That’s why I introduced H. 4614, legislation to allow Sunday hunting in state-run Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs). Recreation should be open for everyone in all our state public places. This is a matter of equity and fairness, removing unnecessary barriers, and growing the next generation of hunters with an eye toward perpetuating South Carolina’s rich wildlife resources.

Hunting enjoys a rich tradition in South Carolina but it’s the only outdoor recreational activity our state denies participation on Sundays. No regulations exist denying fishing on the Santee Cooper lakes for striped bass or running lines for redfish along the coast. Sunday hikes along Table Rock State Park’s trails are open and golfers can finish 18 holes at Cheraw State Park. Mountain bikers can take on miles of trails at Paris Mountain State Park on a Sunday afternoon and equestrians can ride on Hunting Island State Park’s five miles of open beaches.

Only hunters are excluded from enjoying South Carolina’s public resources on Sundays. That’s a shame, not only for the prohibition, but because it is costing South Carolinians their state Constitutional right to hunt. Voters approved the amendment to protect citizens’ right to hunt in 2010 but Sunday hunting bans fence off that right.

Sunday hunting is allowed on private property but not everyone has access to private lands. That’s why the Wildlife Management Areas were established, so all residents could enjoy outdoor recreation in public spaces each day of the week. Only hunting is barred on Sundays.

South Carolinians are working hard, especially in an age of increasing inflation. Not everyone’s workweek is 9-5, five days a week. Some put in 10 and 12-hour days, six or seven days a week. Those precious days off might only come on a Sunday, where moms and dads who want to share our state’s rich resources can’t take their children afield. We are tolerating unnecessary barriers to participating in our treasured traditions.

This winnows down the next generation of hunters. Eventually, hunting will only be enjoyed by the elite who can afford private estates. That’s detrimental not only to conservation-minded outdoorsmen and women but a disaster-in-waiting for South Carolina’s wildlife.

Hunters are the original conservationists. The U.S. Department of the Interior recently announced that $1.5 billion is being distributed to the states for wildlife conservation and public access projects. South Carolina’s portion is $15.2 million, which is tied to hunting. South Carolina sells over 700,000 hunting licenses annually, generating another $10.8 million, which funds continued state wildlife conservation. Sunday hunting bans threaten those funds.

It is time for South Carolina to live up to our state’s Constitution. It’s time to give South Carolina’s public resources back to the public each day of the week. It’s time for The Palmetto State to join the other 40 states with no Sunday hunting restrictions and pass this legislation.

Our rights aren’t worth anything if we only allow them on select days.

This story was originally published March 28, 2022 at 1:26 PM with the headline "South Carolinians should be allowed to hunt on public lands on Sundays."