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Tennessee wildlife agency withdraws proposed broad fee increases after lawmakers press for hybrid funding alternatives

4002420 · June 18, 2025
AI-Generated Content: All content on this page was generated by AI to highlight key points from the meeting. For complete details and context, we recommend watching the full video. so we can fix them.

Summary

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency withdrew a proposed rule that would have raised license and registration fees after extensive committee debate. Lawmakers and agency officials discussed a possible hybrid funding model combining fees and a share of sales tax; the agency said it would meet with chairs and the commission before refiling.

The Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) withdrew a proposed rule to raise many hunting, fishing and boat registration fees after a lengthy exchange with the joint Government Operations Committee on June 24.

Blair Beatty, legislative director for the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, described multiple rule items: moving a $10 boater safety exam certificate fee from statute into rule to accommodate online testing; updating boat registration amounts to reflect a 22% increase tied to CPI since 2019; and a broader package that would adjust license and permit fees across many categories to account for a 32% rise in the consumer…

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