Supports Sunday hunt

To the editor:
    Recently, I received a flier from our Representative to the state legislature, Henry Joy. The one issue that I would like to comment on at this time is the Sunday hunt. The question is posed, should there be a Sunday hunt “if it required written landowner permission and a $25 permit fee?” Now, I am all for a Sunday hunt and have pestered our esteemed leadership for this change for the past couple years, but I am against the conditions set forth in this question.
    Being a landowner myself, I reserve the right to allow or deny any person access to the property I own, maintain and pay taxes on. I’m sure others feel the same and hunters usually respect that right. Most landowners would give written permission if asked politely by responsible hunters. But to make this a mandatory condition would mean hunters who hunt the paper company lands would need to get those corporations to write individual permission slips. That is a bit much. It should be that the hunter takes responsibility to check out any area he hunts for restrictions of the owner.
    Most other states have Sunday hunting at no extra charge. What are these extra fees going toward? No matter how much money the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife gets, they could always spend more. True, there are too few wardens to effectively enforce game laws. This fee will not help that problem and only be squandered along with the rest of the supposed voluntary revenue generation schemes such as the loon plate and the like.
    If we allow the state government to charge us to hunt on Sunday, what would be next? We archery hunters pay extra to hunt with bows for the month prior to the firearm season but we can still only take one deer for the entire fall season. The same goes for the muzzle load hunters. We have to buy turkey permits, duck stamps, trapping permits, bear licenses, fishing licenses (but you can fish on Sunday). For the most part, all is paid by those of us who have too little time available for hunting.
    I say “Yes” to a Sunday hunt, but “No” to conditions that benefit no one.
Jeff Boudreau
Ludlow