The start of deer rifle season is a time honored tradition that saw a huge change last hunting season. The Pennsylvania Game Commission moved the traditional start date of deer rifle season from the Monday after Thanksgiving to the Saturday after Thanksgiving in order to try to increase the sales of hunting licenses and allow younger hunters that may be in school the opportunity to enjoy the sport. Representative Bud Cook hosted a public hearing of the state house’s Game and Fisheries Committee and tried to gain insight on the subject. Cook tells us that each start date has positive and negative consequences. Families with young hunters liked the new date. Hunters that have camps do not like the move because it eliminates set up time that normally went on over the weekend before opening day. Testimony from the game commission pointed to gains in license sales as a positive. Dennis Fredricks stated that the move may have eliminated an excuse hunters used to hunt in Ohio and New York with weekend hunting now available in Pennsylvania. Testimony from Randy Santucci, Southwest Regional Director of the group Unified Sportsmen showed evidence of economic disaster. A poll of 10 retailers in northern Pennsylvania reported a combined loss of more than $360,000 in the two days lost due to the moving of opening day. Public comment on the subject of opening day is welcomed by the Game commission until April 7.