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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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CONTACT: Mike
Storm |
State Rep. Gary Haluska |
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Haluska advances rights of night hunters and municipal authorities
HARRISBURG, May 23 – State Rep. Gary Haluska, D-Cambria, successfully ushered two pieces of legislation through the House this week.
The seven-term lawmaker said his bills would provide a boost to many hunters and help to curtail the frequency of municipal authority violations if both make it through the Senate and are signed into law by Gov. Ed Rendell.
Haluska’s first bill (H.B. 881) would allow Pennsylvania hunters to use a light at night to hunt furbearing animals such as bobcats, coyotes, raccoons, skunks, opossums and foxes. It would also fix a provision in current law that makes simply possessing a weapon and a light while viewing wildlife at night a violation of the law.
“Hunters need to be able to use a light at night to successfully hunt these animals,” Haluska said. “I applaud my colleagues in the House for seeing fit to ensure that hunters are not charged with a violation of game laws when they use a light to aid in night hunting.”
The second measure sponsored by Haluska and passed by the House this week (H.B. 588) would clarify in law the power of municipal authorities to refer for prosecution people who violate regulations concerning water and sewer lines on their property. The bill would also authorize fines of $100 to $500 for these violations.
“Municipal authorities have gone without the clear power to enforce the regulations necessary to ensure public health and safety,” Haluska said. “We must provide the legal ‘teeth’ necessary to enforce municipal water and sewer authority rules and punish people who violate those rules.”
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