Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Dedicated Hunter topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
RAC backs 'banking' clarification for dedicated‑hunter credit; change applies to 2026 draw
Summary
The RAC approved a Division clarification to the dedicated‑hunter program that allows recent volunteer service performed in the calendar year prior to a draw to be merged into a newly earned three‑year dedicated‑hunter term; change will be effective for 2026 applications.
The Southeast Regional Advisory Council unanimously approved a clarification to the Division of Wildlife Resources’ dedicated‑hunter credit rules that the Division and RAC staff described as an initial year "banking" clarification.
Under the clarification, when a person applies in the big‑game drawing and draws a tag while also qualifying as a dedicated hunter, the Division will look back at the volunteer service the applicant performed from Jan. 1 of that same calendar year up to the draw result date and merge those approved hours into the three‑year term the applicant earned by drawing. Division staff emphasized this is not a perpetual carry‑forward program; the extra hours apply only to that front‑loaded first year to help people reach the service thresholds in time for a drawn tag.
Why it matters: Dedicated‑hunter status provides preferential drawing opportunity for people who perform approved volunteer service. The clarification gives applicants more time in the first year to accumulate qualifying volunteer hours, but does not create unlimited banked hours across multiple years.
Questions and timing: The RAC asked whether the change applied to people who had already drawn a tag this year but had not been registered for the volunteer event. Division staff said the change is not retroactive to 2025 draws; it applies beginning with the 2026 application cycle because Division implementation requires board approval and regulatory timing.
Accessibility and recordkeeping: Division staff explained that RAC meeting attendance can be credited as volunteer service if registrants prearrange credit in advance (the meeting must be set up in the Division’s online volunteer registration system). Without prior registration, Division staff said they cannot credit past meetings retroactively. The Division also clarified that travel reimbursement does not preclude recording meeting time as volunteer service; only certain reimbursements and forms of compensation would affect crediting.
Outcome: Motion to approve the RAC recommendations passed unanimously.
