On April 1, no doubt there was a long, collective sigh of relief that eminated from the crossbow supporters, manufacturers, lawmakers, hunting writers and others who watched apprehensively in the waning days of the 2014 New York legislative session as the budget measure intended to approve the crossbow for use in The Empire State was signed by the governor.
Indeed, there were some pessimists who, until the Senate and Assembly agreed on the measure's final wording the afternoon of March 31, still believed it wouldn't happen. Of course, these were experienced observers who'd witnessed years of disappointing setbacks and partisan maneuvers, and year-after-year of cronyism at its most reprehensible.
But, on April 1, all the nastiness and deceit apparently came to an end. At least, for now.
With Gov. Cuomo's signature, crossbows are now permitted during part of the general archery season and through the entire general firearms season. As part of his proposed 2014-15 budget, Cuomo encouraged New York lawmakers to legalize crossbow hunting in his statewide push to attract visitors to the state's natural sites, while also calling for $40 million to establish 50 public access sites around the state for hunting, fishing, bird-watching and hikers.
The budget language permits crossbow use for all small game and any big game season that includes firearms. In addition, it permits crossbow use in the final 14 days of the Southern Zone early archery season and the final 10 days of the Northern Zone early archery seasons. Further, the restrictions for archery hunting in proximity to dwellings were changed to 150 yards for standard bows and 250 yards for crossbows.
A late (and not unexpected) amendment eliminated Suffolk and Westchester counties, located on Long Island, from the remainder of the state where crossbow hunting will be permitted.
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) will be responsible for drafting specific regulations for the crossbow. Our good friend and longtime New York outdoors scribe Bill Hilts, Jr. wrote in this week's Niagara Gazette that there is no time frame for when the DEC's public review will take place, but the intent is to have crossbow in the 2014-15 hunting season. Hilts reports that minimum overall length requirements will be 24 inches from butt stock to front limbs; limb width will be a minimum of 17 inches. Poundage for peak draw will be between 100 and 200 pounds and the bolt (arrow) must be at least 14 inches long.
Following the budget's passages, a statement issued by Rick McDermott, President of the New York Crossbow Coalition read, in part: "We thank all who worked on this issue, including the New York Legislative Sportsmen's Caucus, for their support and commitment to sportsmen and women. These new measures will provide additional opportunities for hunting and professional wildlife management across New York, while simultaneously stimulating the state's economy. This is a great victory for sportsmen and women in New York, as well as professional wildlife management, and is a reflection of the strong cooperative effort among all outdoors groups."
Dave Robb, Vice President of Marketing of TenPoint Crossbow Technologies, one of the industry veterans who watched the action in Albany this year as closely as anyone, was obviously encouraged by the passage of the measure.
"The good news is that the new regulation be very attractive to tens of thousands of hunters who have aged-out of vertical bow hunting, have bad shoulders, or who are handicapped. And, those new crossbow hunters will create a large enough group to change the NY regulatory landscape forever," Robb told The Archery Wire. "As those numbers grow, the pressure to remove all restrictions will increase, the positive economic impact will become self-evident, and all the myths regarding the devastation of the resource will turn to dust."
Rob Dykemen, President of Excalibur Crossbow, was equally enthusiastic.
"Excalibur Crossbow and Stryker Crossbow are pleased and excited to welcome New York hunters to the crossbow fraternity. New York now joins a long and growing list of states and provinces that have legalized crossbows for hunting, giving all hunters the opportunity to enjoy the great sport of crossbow hunting," Dykemen said. "By legalizing crossbows, there's no doubt the hunting community in New York and as a whole just got stronger!"
Despite, the relief that came from this encouraging turn of events for the crossbow in New York, TenPoint's Robb couldn't resist reflecting on the disappointment and frustration repeatedly dealt to his company and others involved in the crossbow business since the 1990s.
"My greatest disappointment is that the state legislature will maintain control the regulatory process," Robb said. "I can't think of another state where so many measures have been introduced to liberalize crossbow regulations over the past 20 years only to have one legislator keep them from ever seeing daylight."
- J.R. Absher
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