Bear encounters are on the rise in Connecticut, prompting residents and lawmakers to consider different ways to address the issue.
On one side, some state legislators are advocating for a bill that would legalize a bear hunting season in Connecticut. Republican State Rep. Pat Callahan is among those lawmakers who fear that increasing bear sightings pose a risk to Connecticut residents.
“I just don’t want it to be a situation where we have to wait for someone to get killed in order for us to take proactive action, as the experts dictate,” Callahan said.
Bear hunting is a practice allowed in most northeastern states, including Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and New Jersey.
The proposed bear hunt bill
Connecticut's current law only allows people to kill bears if it's necessary for self-defense or to defend a pet.
Connecticut farmers who have a permit from the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) can also legally kill a bear if it damages their crops or livestock.
The bill, S.B. 1523, passed in the state House of Representatives, but ultimately failed to clear the state Senate as time expired when it went up for a second vote.
Supporters believe the implementation of a bear hunting season would reduce the number of home entries and negative bear-human encounters.
“The experts tell us that if you do a bear hunt, the behavior changes,” Callahan said. “So for instance, Massachusetts has a bear hunt. They had one home break-in last year — we had 68.”
Opponents of the bill argue that non-lethal solutions should be prioritized.
“Bear hunting is the last thing on the list, but all these other preventative steps have not been fully taken in Connecticut,” said Democratic State Rep. Mary Mushinsky, who voted against the bill’s advancement to the senate.
Environmentalists voice concerns
Environmental advocates argue that hunting bears will not be as effective as some people may think.
"If people think a hunt is all we need to do then they might even become less diligent about securing their trash and taking down bird feeders,” said Nicole Rivard, government relations manager at Friends of Animals, one of several advocacy groups opposing the bill.
Opponents of the bill maintain that these rising interactions can be attributed to an increase in food supply due to human carelessness.
“We’ve made it very easy to be a bear here,” Mushinsky said.
This process, called habituation, occurs when bears lose their natural wariness and grow accustomed to human presence due to easy food access, according to DEEP.
Environmental advocates are pushing for a comprehensive bear management plan that includes bear-proof trash cans and civilian education programs, before turning to hunting.
Bear hunting in the Northeast
Bear hunting is currently legal in most New England states, with Rhode Island and Connecticut being the only exceptions.
New Jersey is among the states in the Northeast where hunting bears is legal.
Dave Golden, commissioner of New Jersey’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), said bear hunting is necessary to protect residents in such a densely populated state.
New Jersey is the most densely populated state in the country, with Connecticut coming in fourth, according to the World Population Review.
“What we’ve been able to do through a regulated hunt is to relieve the pressure of our residents who were encountering these negative interactions,” Golden said.
New Jersey pairs its hunting season with a bear management strategy, which includes non-lethal initiatives like public education, monitoring and research.
Aversive conditioning is also used in New Jersey. That is when bears are conditioned to associate negative stimuli — such as rubber bullets or loud noises — with human interaction. The goal is to prevent encounters in the future.
This multi-faceted approach is also common among other states that have legalized the hunt.
As encounters across the state continue to increase, the future of bear management in Connecticut hinges on balancing public safety with environmental concerns.
However, one thing remains clear: something must change.
Connecticut reported nearly 3,500 human-bear conflicts in 2024, according to the DEEP report, "The State of the Bears."
The debate is expected to continue into the next legislative session.
