Posted 8:28 pm Sunday, May 17, 2009
Crossbows Poised For October Use
By STEVE KNIGHT
Outdoor Writer
I am sure the Texas Legislature must have more important things to do. But, it seems to have found time to pass legislation that will allow the use of crossbows during the October archery season.
Outdoor Writer
I am sure the Texas Legislature must have more important things to do. But, it seems to have found time to pass legislation that will allow the use of crossbows during the October archery season.
Maybe a better question is why weren't crossbows allowed to begin with?
Rep. Mark Homer of Paris sponsored the bill at the request of a hunting partner.
"It originally started with a friend I hunt with some who is more than 65. He said he likes to bow hunt, but he can't pull a bow back anymore," Homer said.
Homer said his friend asked if would consider legislation that would allow hunters 65 and older to use a crossbow during the October archery-only season.
"I first drafted the bill in 2007 and it flew through the House, but was voted down in the Senate. Several senators later said that the archers got to them," Homer said.
An early archery season has been around in Texas in some form since the 1950s. In the 1970s bow hunters began paying a premium in the form of a conservation fee to hunt in October. That was pre-Managed Lands Deer Permits, which meant bow hunters had the month to themselves.
In what seemed like an odd move at the time, the bow hunters also lobbied to keep crossbows out of the woods during the early season. The traditional bow hunters were successful until 1989, when the door was partially opened to allow crossbows for those with upper-limb disabilities.
"It was because this was an issue that was made by the archers," Homer said crossbows initially being excluded. "They said if you give us our season we will buy the stamp, but you have to give us the whole nine yards. They see vertical bows as the only type of archery."
Homer made a second run at the legislation this year. When he proposed it, however, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department officials suggested that instead of an age exemption that he opens the legislation to allow the use of crossbows by anyone in October.
Organized bow hunters, touting that allowing crossbow use in October would lead to opening the month to gun hunting, again tried to kill the bill, but Homer and others were able to push it through.
"If you do a side-by-side comparison of crossbows and compound bows there is no advantage. They are almost identical," Homer said.
This time the bill sailed through both the House and Senate, almost. Before getting sent to the governor for his signature, Homer had to go back and exempt Grayson County. This is ironic because the legislation makes a crossbow a bow in every county except Grayson County where deer hunting is by bow only.
"In the 11 or so states that have already adopted it, this only enhances the opportunity to get more people in the woods," Homer said. "Another thing is that it helps get families in the woods and away from the negatives they are presented with on a daily basis."
How many hunters it adds to the October season can be argued. The bill's assumption is as many as 25,000 bow hunters could be added. That is coming from an assumption that there are about 256,000 October bow hunters in the state.
According to TPWD the number is closer to 80,000.
Clayton Wolf, TPWD's big-game program leader, said two questions that will be determined is how many hunters take up bow hunting because they can use crossbows and how many switch from other archery equipment to crossbows, and how many become October hunters because they can use crossbows.
"One thing is that early season is an allure. That only applies to non-MLDP properties, but it may be a draw for some guys," Wolf said.
October archery hunters are required to purchase a $7 archery stamp. Revenue from that stamp goes to the department's general revenue fund for wildlife and fisheries programs.
Wolf added there is also the perception that crossbows are easier to master than compound bows, which might also attract some hunters.
Manufacturers are bullish on Texas liberalizing its crossbow regulations, hoping the sale of bows that cost from about $400 to more than $1,000 explode in the state.
"I received an e-mail from a guy who is with one of the manufacturers and he said they were having trouble keeping up with demand in Pennsylvania where they recently approved their use," Wolf said.
Wolf said if the bill is signed by the governor, something that is expected, it would be in place for this fall's hunting season.
