Is it illegal to feed deer in Pennsylvania? It depends on where you are standing. Feeding deer is legal across much of the state, but the Pennsylvania Game Commission bans it inside every Disease Management Area and the CWD Established Area, a separate state regulation bans it across the southeast special regulations area, federal rules ban it on all National Park Service land, and individual townships and boroughs can add their own prohibitions on top.
Where Feeding Deer Is Banned
Pennsylvania currently has nine active Disease Management Areas and one CWD Established Area, covering parts of multiple counties.1Pennsylvania Game Commission. Disease Management Areas Inside every DMA and the EA, it is unlawful to directly or indirectly feed wild, free-ranging deer, and it is also unlawful to possess or use urine-based deer attractants.2Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. CWD Disease Management Areas Adjusted The Game Commission draws these boundaries by executive order and revises them as new CWD cases appear or existing zones go several years without detections, so the map you looked at two seasons ago may not match the map today.
A second state rule covers the southeast. Under 58 Pa. Code Section 141.1, it is illegal to intentionally place food, fruit, hay, grain, salt, or minerals in the southeast special regulations area for the purpose of feeding white-tailed deer, or to place any material that causes deer to congregate. This rule stands on its own. Feeding can be illegal in southeast Pennsylvania even if no CWD has ever been detected in the county.
Federal land adds a third layer. Pennsylvania contains several National Park Service sites, including Valley Forge, Gettysburg, and the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. On NPS land, federal regulations prohibit feeding, touching, or intentionally disturbing wildlife, and the rule applies regardless of land ownership within park boundaries.3eCFR. 36 CFR 2.2 Wildlife Protection Federal penalties there are separate from and in addition to any state charges.
Finally, individual townships and boroughs can pass their own deer feeding bans. Solebury Township in Bucks County, for example, prohibits feeding deer corn, apples, potatoes, oats, and hay, with exceptions for bird feeders, standing agricultural crops, and gardens.4eCode360. Township of Solebury, PA – Part 1 Public Nuisances Deer Feeding These local ordinances tend to appear in suburban communities dealing with deer overpopulation, and they carry their own fines separate from state enforcement.
What Counts as Feeding
Where feeding bans apply, they are broadly written. The prohibited materials include the things people most commonly put out:
- Corn, grain, and hay.
- Fruit and vegetables like apples and carrots.
- Salt licks and mineral blocks.
- Urine-based deer attractants, both natural and synthetic, inside DMAs and the EA.2Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. CWD Disease Management Areas Adjusted
It does not matter whether the feed sits on the ground, in a bucket, at a stand, or in a mechanical dispenser. If deer can reach it and you put it there, it counts.
What Is Still Allowed
Normal farming does not violate any feeding ban. Planting crops, maintaining a garden, and managing hay or alfalfa as part of agricultural operations are all permitted, even if deer eat from them. Wildlife food plots planted for habitat management are also exempt.5Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 34 – Section 2308 Unlawful Devices and Methods The legal line runs between agricultural activity that happens to benefit deer and deliberate placement of feed to attract them.
Bird feeders are generally allowed, but you own the consequences. If deer are eating spilled seed under your bird feeder, the Game Commission can treat that as indirect feeding. Hang feeders high enough that deer cannot reach them and clean up what falls. Some local ordinances go further and require you to remove or modify any device deer are actually feeding from within 24 hours of receiving notice.4eCode360. Township of Solebury, PA – Part 1 Public Nuisances Deer Feeding
Hunting Over Bait Is Banned Statewide
This is where people outside DMAs get caught. Even where casual feeding is legal, 34 Pa.C.S. Section 2308 makes it illegal to hunt any game using bait, grain, fruit, salt, minerals, or other food as an enticement anywhere in Pennsylvania. You also cannot hunt in an area that was baited until at least 30 days after all bait and residue have been completely removed.5Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 34 – Section 2308 Unlawful Devices and Methods The Game Commission can post the area against hunting for that 30-day window whether or not it prosecutes anyone. So if you feed deer on your property legally and then hunt it during archery season, the feed itself was fine but the hunt is a crime.
Elk and Bear Feeding: Different Rules
Do not carry the deer rules over to other animals. Feeding elk is illegal everywhere in Pennsylvania regardless of DMA status.2Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. CWD Disease Management Areas Adjusted A statewide prohibition on feeding bears also exists under 58 Pa. Code Section 137.33. Even where lawful feeding is not banned outright, the Game Commission can issue written notice ordering you to stop if it determines the food is drawing bears or elk.
Fines and Penalties
Hunting over bait under Section 2308 is a summary offense of the fourth degree, which carries a fine of $150 to $300.5Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 34 – Section 2308 Unlawful Devices and Methods Other Game and Wildlife Code violations run on a graduated summary offense scale, with fifth-degree offenses starting at $100 to $200 and first-degree offenses reaching $1,000 to $1,500 plus up to three months in jail. Courts can also assess prosecution costs on top of any fine.
Municipal ordinances have their own penalty structures, and they can stack. Solebury Township, for instance, treats each day a prohibited feeding device remains in place after notice as a separate violation.4eCode360. Township of Solebury, PA – Part 1 Public Nuisances Deer Feeding A week of ignoring a removal notice can turn into seven citations.
Before You Put Anything Out
Check three things against your address: the current Game Commission DMA map, whether your county falls inside the southeast special regulations area, and your township or borough ordinances. If any of the three applies, feeding is off the table. If none applies and you still plan to feed, keep hunting well clear of the site, and remember that the 30-day clean ground rule applies to everyone who hunts that property, not just you.