AUGUSTA (AP) — A GOP lawmaker in Maine wants to allow adults to carry a firearm while hunting bears with kids.
Currently, licensed junior hunters can hunt bear with a firearm, bow and arrow or crossbow on Maine’s youth bear hunting day.
But parent, guardians and adult supervisors aren’t allowed to hold a firearm while accompanying the young hunter.
Republican Sen. Andre Cushing’s bill as published online would allow such adults to possess a firearm while supervising the young person.
Maine like dozens of other states doesn’t have a minimum age to purchase a junior hunting license. Hunters under the age of 10 must be under the effective control of an adult supervisor who must remain very close.
The bill is scheduled for a Tuesday hearing.
A mounted black bear is displayed at the Maine State Museum in July in Augusta. Maine bear hunting season effectively started Aug. 1 with laying of bait, which survived a November referendum. Hunting starts Aug. 31.
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