Firearms Deer Season Concludes Today
Pennsylvania’s firearms deer season comes to a close this Saturday, and the Pennsylvania Game Commission is urging hunters to take full advantage of these last hours in the woods.
This year has been a landmark moment for hunters throughout the Commonwealth. With the introduction of the new Sunday hunting law, the fall hunting season featured a total of 13 Sundays available for hunting, providing more opportunities for hunters to enjoy the outdoors with family and friends than ever before. While all hunting seasons, including the firearms deer season, will end on their originally scheduled dates—specifically, Saturday, December 13—the additional Sundays significantly enhanced hunting participation. The last of these expanded Sunday opportunities took place on December 7.
Game Commission Executive Director Steve Smith commended hunters for their outstanding safety record during these 13 Sundays, highlighting that there were no reported safety incidents involving hunters and non-hunters, even with the increased opportunities.
“This demonstrates what we have stated all along: hunters and non-hunters can safely share Pennsylvania’s outdoors together. We look forward to building on the success from this year and continuing to expand hunting access for generations to come,” Smith remarked.
For the remainder of the license year, which runs through June 30, Sunday hunting will only be permitted for foxes, coyotes, and crows during their respective seasons. There will be no Sunday hunting allowed during the upcoming extended firearms deer seasons or during the late archery and flintlock deer seasons.
Looking ahead to the next license year, the Game Commission will initiate the process of adopting the 2026-27 hunting seasons in January 2026. This will be the first opportunity for the Board of Commissioners to consider adding more Sunday hunting chances from the beginning.
The new law that lifted Pennsylvania’s long-standing ban on Sunday hunting took effect in September, well after the 2025-26 seasons had been finalized.
Source: https://www.lockhaven.com/news/local-news/2025/12/firearms-deer-season-closes-today/
