I think a reason why more and more property owners are not allowing access is due to legal and liability concerns.
People by and large these days do not have personal responsibility. We live in a litigious society. Something goes wrong, people want to shift the blame to someone else and are more than happy to go to court.
As a property owner, you definitely need to be concerned and conscious of the possible legal liability that would result if someone gets hurt on your land. Doesn't really matter if you have a signed waiver stating landowner has no responsibility/liability for accidents. Lawyers will still take you to court. Who needs that headache?
That reason holds absolutely no water in NYS. There is a LAW here that clearly states a landowner cannot be held liable for any injury/damages incurred by anyone given permission to hunt their land. That law DOES NOT APPLY to landowners who charge for access and they can be held liable for injury/damages.
