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Committee advances bill clarifying donation of hunting licenses to Purple Heart and disabled veterans
Summary
The committee advanced House Bill 307 on a unanimous voice vote after hearing testimony from veteran‑serving nonprofits that the bill would fix administrative and distribution problems that hinder donated hunting licenses for Purple Heart and disabled veterans.
The House Fish, Wildlife and Parks Committee heard testimony and took executive action on House Bill 307, a bill sponsored by Representative Brad Barker that revises the statutory procedure for donating hunting licenses to Purple Heart recipients and other disabled veterans.
Proponents including Mac Menard (Big Hearts Under the Big Sky), Bill Minton (Operation Second Chance), Mark Vomund (Operation Second Chance volunteer/outdoor coordinator), Rob Arnaud and others described programs that provide donated licenses and full‑service hunts at no charge to combat‑wounded veterans. Witnesses said logistical problems sometimes prevent a donated tag from being paired to the intended recipient when donations are pooled or when the recipient is named late in the process; HB 307 narrows distribution rules to ensure donations can be matched to organizations whose mission aligns with the donor’s intent (Mac Menard, testimony at 3130.0298; Bill Minton at 3352.53).
Proponents also said the programs are small in scale (Big Hearts reported using roughly two donated licenses per year on average) and important to veterans’ recovery and community well‑being; Will Israel, a program recipient and MOGA director, described his experience as a beneficiary of the program and urged support (Will Israel, testimony at 3661.595).
FWP Chief Quentin Kujala appeared as an informational witness and stood for questions about administration; no departmental opposition was recorded. The committee moved HB 307 to executive action; Vice Chair Kohenhauer moved a due‑pass motion and the committee advanced HB 307 to the floor by unanimous voice vote.
Actions recorded: a due‑pass motion and voice vote advanced HB 307 to the House floor as unanimous.
Clarifying details: organizational testimony described how most donated tags are reserved for nonresident veterans and that many organizations provide trips at no cost to the recipients. Several witnesses said organizations limit use (for example, Big Hearts applies tags one time per recipient) and that donated tags are routed to charities whose mission aligns with the donor’s intent.
Provenance: testimony and informational remarks on HB 307 run from Representative Barker’s introduction at 3065.405 through the committee’s executive action and closing at 4280.225.
