Can You Hunt on Sundays in North Carolina? (Facts, & FAQ)

Last Updated on Mar 14 2024

North Carolina has more than 2 million acres¹ of game land, making the state an attractive spot for wildlife and outdoor activities. However, the State Law has prohibited hunting on Sundays in North Carolina since 1868.

As time passed, the Outdoor Heritage Act¹ got accepted in 2015, enabling hunting on Sundays in the state and removing the prohibition on firearms. Soon after that, the Governor of North Carolina, Roy Cooper, signed the Outdoor Heritage Enhanced Act¹ on July 25, 2017.

With this new law, the Wildlife Resources Commission¹ and the public land managers can implement modified hunting options on Sundays on the state’s public lands. However, the hunters are still not allowed to use a firearm for hunting between 9:30 am and 12:30 pm. Several other restrictions also apply to hunters.

If you’re looking to hunt some deer in North Carolina, you need to be aware of the ins and outs of the legislation. Let’s explore more.

The Outdoor Heritage Enhanced Act 2017

The North Carolina General Assembly enhanced Sunday hunting opportunities with the Outdoor Heritage Enhanced Act 2017. The act authorized the public landowners, including the Wildlife Resources Commission, to make instant changes for hunting on private and public lands.

Let’s learn more about North Carolina’s new hunting options¹ on public and private lands on Sundays.

Hunting on Private Lands

Hunters can hunt within the premises of 500 yards of a residence. This opened millions of acres of restricted private lands to recreationists and hunters. However, they can’t hunt near a place of religious worship within 500 yards. In addition, they can’t use hunting dogs to hunt deer.

The shooting hours were not changed for Sundays, meaning hunters could use private lands for hunting wild animals and game birds with firearms. They can’t use guns between 9:30 am and 12:30 pm.

The only exception is if a hunter is licensed under G.S. 113.273(g)¹. In that case, they don’t have to face any restrictions on controlled hunting preserves for this duration.

Hunting on Public Lands

The new law also enabled hunters to hunt on public lands on Sundays. In addition, it authorized public land managers, such as the Commission, to allow hunting with a firearm on the public lands if they have jurisdiction.

Like private lands, public land managers can only allow Sunday hunting on their lands with firearms before 9:30 am and after 12:30 pm. This means no hunting with a gun for this duration. Moreover, hunters are prohibited from using hunting dogs and hunting in a religious place located within 500 yards. Using the Commission’s game lands for Sunday hunting also stays prohibited.

In case you don’t already know, the corporate and federal authorities own about 1.5–2 million acres of land enrolled in the Commission Game Land Program. The law obliges the Commission to make necessary changes in favor of the hunters.

Considering the law and the perspectives of landowners, the Commission developed a collaborative process to evaluate better Sunday hunting opportunities.

Hunting of Migratory Birds

Under the law, you can’t hunt migratory birds on Sundays. However, the legislation empowered the Commission to end this restriction after March 1, 2018, after publishing a complete study.

The main subject of this research study was evaluating economic, biological, social, and resource management impacts related to hunting migratory birds on Sundays. Any proposed changes in migratory bird hunting were evaluated thoroughly before implementing them. The Commission had to establish a collaborative and inclusive decision process.

All the potential impacts were comprehensively studied before making the final decision about making these changes to the Sunday hunting of migratory birds.

Special Rules for Waterfowl Hunting

The law includes compensatory days for waterfowl hunting. However, these special rules depend on Sunday hunting prohibitions that should apply to every migratory bird species.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service collaborated with the Atlantic Flyway Council regarding the compensatory days issue in 1997. As a result, they clarified this issue for states prohibiting Sunday hunting.

Every state compliant with state law regarding the prohibition on Sunday hunting of migratory bird species before 1997 became eligible for this particular rule. They can take advantage of compensatory days for waterfowl hunting.

In these states, federal rules and state laws were on the same page on prohibiting the hunting of migratory birds on Sundays.

The waterfowl hunting season days have to run continuously in every segment. Despite that, Sundays are not considered hunting days. Instead, an equal number of compensatory days replace them.

Duck Hunting Season

The legislators used the General Duck Hunting Season Framework 2016–2017 to allocate hunting days for North Carolina. A total of 60 days were set for hunting under the below circumstances:

Rules for Firearms and Archery Equipment

North Carolina also has strict rules for firearms and archery equipment¹ that apply to hunting on Sundays.

Archery Equipment

Shotguns

Pistols

Rifles

General Restrictions for Sunday Hunting in North Carolina

By now, you know what is prohibited and allowed when hunting on Sundays in North Carolina. Here is a quick takeaway:

Final Thoughts

Hunting on Sundays in North Carolina has been prohibited since 1868. However, the Outdoor Heritage Enhanced Act 2017 authorized the Wildlife Resources Commission and public and private landowners to provide hunters with advanced Sunday hunting options on the state’s lands.

So, you can hunt on Sundays in North Carolina with some restrictions. For instance, you can only hunt within 500 yards of a worship place and can’t use firearms between 9:30 am and 12:30 pm.

However, if you’re licensed per G.S. 113.273(g), you won’t face any restriction on controlled hunting preserves for this duration.

See also:

• Can You Hunt on Sunday in West Virginia?
• Can You Hunt on Sunday in Pennsylvania?

Featured Image Credit: Volodymyr TVERDOKHLIB, Shutterstock