A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO expand the use of firearms for hunting of wild animals AND UPLAND GAME BIRDS on sunday and to allow hunting of migratory birds on sunday.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 103‑2 reads as rewritten:
"§ 103‑2.  Method of take when hunting on Sunday.
(a)	Any landowner or member of the landowner's family, or any person with written permission from the landowner, may, subject to rules established by the Wildlife Resources Commission, hunt wild animals and upland game birds with the use of firearms on Sunday on the landowner's property, except that all of the following limitations apply:

(3)	The use of a firearm to take deer that are run or chased by dogs on Sunday is prohibited.
(4)	Hunting on Sunday within 500 yards of a place of worship or any accessory structure thereof, or within 500 yards of a residence not owned by the landowner, is prohibited.
	
(a1)	Any person may, subject to rules established by the Wildlife Resources Commission, hunt wild animals and upland game birds with the use of firearms on Sunday on public lands of the State managed for hunting, except that the following limitations apply:
(1)	The use of a firearm to take deer that are run or chased by dogs on Sunday is prohibited.
(2)	Hunting on Sunday within 500 yards of a place of worship or any accessory structure thereof, or within 500 yards of a residence, is prohibited.
(a2)	The hunting of migratory birds on Sunday is prohibited unless authorized by proclamation or rules of the Wildlife Resources Commission, subject to the following limitation. The Wildlife Resources Commission shall not authorize hunting of migratory birds on Sunday prior to March 1, 2018.
(1)	Hunting on Sunday within 500 yards of a place of worship or any accessory structure thereof, or within 500 yards of a residence, is prohibited.
(b)	A person who hunts on Sunday in a manner prohibited under this section or rules adopted by the Wildlife Resources Commission shall be guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor. Provided, that the provisions of this section are not applicable to military reservations, the jurisdiction of which is exclusively in the federal government, to field trials authorized by the Wildlife Resources Commission, or to actions taken in defense of a person's property. Wildlife protectors are granted authority to enforce the provisions of this section."
SECTION 2.  The Wildlife Resources Commission shall complete a study that includes, but is not limited to, examining biological and resource management impacts, economic impacts, and social impacts associated with hunting migratory birds on Sunday. The Wildlife Resources Commission shall submit its findings to the Speaker of the House, President Pro‑Tempore of the Senate, and the chair or chairs of the House Committee on Wildlife Resources no later than March 1, 2018.
SECTION 3.  This act is effective when it becomes law.