As we all know, changes are always in the wind; some we welcome and some we don’t. I am quite sure, however, that a change that is coming to both the Pennsylvania Game Commission and the Fish and Boat Commission is one that will be welcomed by almost all outdoor types. The change I’m referring to is that those buying hunting or fishing licenses will no longer have to purchase a regulation booklet in addition to purchasing a license. That’s right; we’re going back to the “good old days” of when you bought your license, you also got a regulation summary booklet with the license. The reason for the change — simple, the sale of the regulation booklet, was short-lived, and it didn’t pan out financially.

Both commissions went to charging a fee for the regulations summary in hopes of generating additional revenue, but most sportsmen weren’t buying it — literally. At a fee of $3.00 for the regulations summary, the Fish and Boat Commission thus far this year sold only 51,500 copies compared to 819,300 licenses that were sold. The Pennsylvania Game Commission has been charging six dollars for their summary book over the past couple of years, but they too are abandoning the fee. In 2018 the commission sold 885,486 licenses and only 51,165 regulation summaries.

Obviously, there were a lot of objections to the fees from the beginning with many saying, “We bought the license, now why should we have to pay extra for the regulations on how we can use the license?” Some didn’t care one way or the other-they just simply looked up the information on their computer or printed it out themselves. I guess we can do that these days but what about those who don’t have computers or use computers?

Another “interesting” change blowing in the wind is coming from our state legislatures in the form of Senate Bill 1772 introduced by Rep. Dawn Keefer, a York County Republican. For lack of a better name, the bill is being referred to as the “purple paint bill.” Basically, the new law, if passed, would allow landowners to use purple paint to mark property boundaries instead of the common no trespassing signs. Since the signs don’t offer much in the way of longevity, it is being suggested that the paint would be a better alternative.

The new “signs” would be in the form of purple stripes. Specifically, the purple stripes would have to be eight inches long and one inch wide. They would also have to be three to five feet above the ground and on trees no more than 100 feet apart. Apparently, paint manufacturers have formulated paint specifically to be marketed as the “no trespassing paint.” The bill has passed the House and Senate and is now waiting for Gov. Wolf’s signature.

It may be a more permanent solution, but I do have a couple of questions. As a professional artist, I am very cognizant (for my friends at my Dunkin Donuts branch office that means “I pay very close attention to”) of colors; in other words-when does blue become kind-of purple? Will any “purple” paint do? And what if it’s not “purple” enough; does that negate the meaning of the sign? What happens if the stripes are an inch and a half wide? Also, as the tree grows, what happens if the three-foot level requirement is exceeded?

I’ll probably lay awake at night contemplating the outcome of these questions, but in the meantime, I may also get more sleep knowing I don’t have to buy my regulation books from the commissions.