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Baltimore City safety‑zone reduction approved after sponsor removes Sunday‑hunting provision
Summary
Senate Bill 879, a Baltimore City delegation measure, was amended to remove an authorization for Sunday deer hunting and retain a reduction of the archery safety zone from 150 yards to 50 yards; committee members raised enforcement and redistricting concerns, both amendments passed and the bill passed as amended.
Senate Bill 879, presented as a Baltimore City delegation matter, was amended and approved by the Education, Energy, and the Environment Committee.
As introduced the bill would have allowed Sunday deer hunting on private property in Baltimore City and would have reduced the archery hunting safety zone in the city from 150 yards to 50 yards from a dwelling, residence, church, or other occupied building. The bill sponsor offered an amendment that removed the Sunday‑hunting provisions and retained only the reduced safety zone language.
Committee members discussed enforcement and how the change would work in an urban environment. Questions focused on how law enforcement and the public would know whether a given street or block was subject to the 50‑yard zone or the existing 150‑yard zone, and whether signage or other public notice would be used. Members also raised the possibility that future redistricting could alter legislative district boundaries referenced in the amendment.
Senator Atar said the hunting authorization had been removed because Baltimore City is engaging with the U.S. Department of Agriculture on deer management; the sponsor characterized the remaining change as aligning Baltimore City with 12 other counties that use a 50‑yard safety zone for archery.
Two separate amendments were taken: the sponsor’s amendment removing Sunday hunting and retaining the safety‑zone reduction, and the Washington amendment removing legislative district 43A from the bill. Both amendments were adopted after discussion; the committee then approved SB 879 as amended.
The transcript records debate about local enforcement logistics and public notice but does not record any detailed enforcement plan, funding for signage, or exact implementation steps. The committee approved the bill as amended; next steps were not recorded in the transcript.
