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Committee OKs voluntary $10 turkey stamp and permit to fund conservation and identify turkey hunters
Summary
A Game, Fish & Parks committee advanced a bill creating a voluntary $10 turkey stamp and a no-fee turkey permit intended to raise money and produce better data on turkey hunters; supporters said the stamp would be voluntary and funds would support turkey conservation.
A Game, Fish & Parks committee on Wednesday voted to advance legislation that would create a voluntary $10 "turkey stamp" and a free turkey permit to help fund turkey conservation and produce better data about turkey hunters. Representative (sponsor), state representative, presented House Bill 432 (LC443118S) and said the measure responds to requests from hunters and the Department of Natural Resources.
The bill would let any resident or nonresident voluntarily buy an annual $10 turkey stamp; purchasers would receive a stamp that is analogous to a federal waterfowl stamp. The bill would also create a turkey-specific permit (no cost if taken in-state) to allow DNR to identify and contact people who specifically hunt turkeys, supporters said.
"If you wanna give $10, we'll have a stamp every year, that you can purchase voluntarily, whether you turkey hunt or not," Representative (sponsor), state representative, said, explaining the voluntary nature of the stamp and the permit process.
Colton Bozeman, introduced to the committee as a turkey hunter and proponent of the idea, said the stamp would provide both funds and more accurate hunter counts. "A turkey stamp would be phenomenal because 1, it provides you with a stamp that you can save... But also, like Trey spoke on earlier, it provides us accurate numbers of how many turkey hunters that are in the state," Bozeman said.
Supporters pointed to Arkansas as an example: according to testimony, Arkansas' voluntary stamp (about $9.50–$10) has raised about $2.2 million since inception for wild turkey and bobwhite quail conservation. Committee members asked the department about the administrative cost of producing the stamp; DNR representatives said the design of the bill allows flexibility and the intent is to set the price to avoid making it a losing proposition for the agency.
The committee called the question by voice vote. After a motion and second, the chairman announced the bill "moves on," indicating committee approval to advance the measure to the next step.
Supporters described the proposal as hunter-driven: two North Georgia turkey hunters — Brady Garrett and Colton Bozeman — appeared with the sponsor. No fiscal appropriation was included in the bill text discussed in committee; supporters said funding decisions would be addressed later in budget or implementation steps.
