A bill (SB 272) has been introduced in the Maryland Senate that will allow a person to hunt deer on each Sunday of the deer bow hunting season (off and on September through January) in Prince George’s; and adds Prince George’s County to the list of counties in which the safety zone for archery hunters extends a distance of 50 yards from a dwelling house, residence, church, or any other building or camp occupied by human beings. (The current safety zone in PG is 150 yards.) Prince George’s County currently has NO Sunday hunting.
The hearing on this bill is set for Tuesday, February 4, before the Senate Energy, Education and Environment Committee.
If you would like to express your views on this proposal, you can contact the Committee as a whole here: AA_EHE@mlis.state.md.us. Be sure to mention that you live, work, and/or ride in Prince George’s!
You can also contact the members of the Committee individually:
- Sen. Brian Feldman (Chair) – brian.feldman@senate.state.md.us
- Sen. Cheryl Kagan (Vice Chair) – cheryl.kagan@senate.state.md.us
- Sen. Malcolm Augustine – malcolm.augustine@senate.state.md.us (represents Prince George’s County)
- Sen. Benjamin Brooks – benjamin.brooks@senate.state.md.us
- Sen. Mary Beth Carozza – marybeth.carozza@senate.state.md.us
- Sen. Jason Gallion – jason.gallion@senate.state.md.us
- Sen. Katie Fry Hester – katiefry.hester@senate.state.md.us
- Sen. Bryan Simonaire – bryan.simonaire@senate.state.md.us
- Sen. Mary Washington – mary.washington@senate.state.md.us
- Sen. Ron Watson – ron.watson@senate.state.md.us (represents Prince George’s County)
You can also contact the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Michael Jackson (Prince George’s, Charles and Calvert) michael.jackson@senate.state.md.us.
You can also submit written testimony for the hearing, or testify orally either in person in Annapolis, or via zoom. If you would like to do that, you must sign up in advance (8:00 am – 6:00 pm, two business days before the hearing – so Friday for the Tuesday hearing).
Click on this link or easy video tutorials on how to create an account at the General Assembly, and then how to sign up as a witness on a bill: Scroll to the bottom of the page for the two tutorials: (https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Information/VideoTutorials