I live in NC and took a hunter safety course in high school when I was 14 years old through the agricutural class I was in. At that time it was not mandatory to have taken the course before you bought a hunting license. I didn' t start deer hunting until 1993 after they had passed the HSC law. To my suprise, I wrote a letter requesting a copy of my hunters safety course certificate and a week later I recieved a copy in the mail. It had been 9 years since I had taken the course.

The law was passed I think in 1990 that required anyone who had never had a hunting license go through the hunters safety course before you could get the hunting license. I can' t say that it has decreased the number of hunting accidents but I' m sure it hasn' t hurt either. IN MY OPINION hunting accidents (hunters being shot by other hunters) are caused by stupid, careless people and all the courses in the world can' t help them.