Maine Lifts Hunting Age Minimum

With the signing of a new bill, Maine's current minimum hunting age requirement will be lifted. Signed by Governor Paul LePage, the bill will be effective January 2016 and kids of any age will be able to hunt. There is no age requirement for hunters in 39 other states, which was one of the foundational reasons for this proposal to change the law.

The bill was headed by the U.S. Sportmen's Alliance (USSA), an organization that advocates for hunting, fishing and trapping opportunities across the country. USSA had been working on this legislative change for months, but it was the incorporation of an amendment that reassured the Senate, thus passing the bill. The amendment, suggested by the Senate chair of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, would require the bill to state that the junior hunter under the age of 10 must be “under the effective control, within 20 feet, of an adult supervisor.” To read more about Maine's new bill, please see Bangor Daily News.