ALBANY, N.Y. (WBNG) — The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has made changes to deer hunting regulations in an effort to help manage the deer population and increase antlerless deer harvests.
New Earn-a-2nd-Buck System
Under the new system, all hunters will receive a first Antlered Deer Tag, which can be used during any season — with appropriate privileges — except the September antlerless season.
Hunters who harvest and report an antlerless deer using a Deer Management Permit (DMP), Bow/Muzzleloader Antlerless Deer Tag, or Deer Management Assistance Program Tag will be eligible to receive a second Antlered Deer Tag, which can be used during those same seasons.
“Deer populations, if they’re not kept in check through hunting, can grow to levels that cause a variety of impacts,” said Brendan Quirion, Big Game Unit Leader for the DEC. “This can manifest in reduced deer quality or condition. So the deer themselves can have lower body weights and smaller antler sizes. It can show up in deer damage to agriculture, orchards, nurseries, and increased deer-vehicle collisions, and increased prevalence of disease spread within the deer population.”
Tag reclassifications
To support the new system, DEC is reclassifying the former Regular Season Deer Tag as an Antlered Deer Tag and the former Bow/Muzzleloader Either-Sex Deer Tag as a Bow/Muzzleloader Antlerless Deer Tag. Hunters who purchase bowhunting and muzzleloading privileges will receive a Bow/Muzzleloader Antlerless Deer Tag for each privilege.
Background and public input
The changes were first proposed based on input from New York deer hunters and professional deer managers across the Northeast through focus groups and surveys.
DEC also reviewed more than 1,000 public comments on the regulatory proposal announced in March 2026.
Many comments recognized the need to increase the antlerless harvest to reduce negative impacts of deer on ecosystems and the public.
Safeguards and monitoring
DEC said it closely monitors harvest success and has processes in place to reduce antlerless harvest if the new regulations exceed anticipated results. The agency will also establish safeguards to minimize fraudulent harvest reports.
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