Bill Text: MS HB542 | 2023 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Hunting and fishing license; waive requirement for residents who are honorably discharged veterans.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Failed) 2023-01-31 - Died In Committee [HB542 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2023-HB542-Introduced.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2023 Regular Session
To: Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks
By: Representatives Sanford, Tullos
House Bill 542
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTIONS 49-7-5 AND 49-7-9, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT ANY RESIDENT WHO IS A HONORABLY DISCHARGED VETERAN THAT SERVED IN THE ARMED FORCES IS NOT REQUIRED TO PURCHASE, OR HAVE ON HIS OR HER PERSON, A HUNTING OR FISHING LICENSE WHILE ENGAGED IN SUCH ACTIVITIES; TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 49-7-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATES TO RESIDENT AND NONRESIDENT HUNTING AND FISHING LICENSES, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 49-7-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
49-7-5. (1) (a) Any resident, as defined in Section 49-7-3, upon application, shall receive a combination resident hunting and fishing license for the sum of Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00). The license shall qualify the licensee to hunt under this chapter all game and fowl, including deer and turkey, and to fish in any county of the state.
(b) Any resident, as defined in Section 49-7-3, upon application, shall receive a resident combination small game hunting and fishing license for the sum of Ten Dollars ($10.00) together with the fee provided in Section 49-7-17 to the office or agent issuing the license. The hunting license shall qualify the licensee to hunt and fish under this chapter all game and fowl, except deer and turkey, in any county in the state.
(c) Any resident, as defined in Section 49-7-3, upon application, shall receive a sportsman's license for the sum of Forty-five Dollars ($45.00). The license shall qualify the licensee to hunt under this chapter all game and fowl, including deer and turkey, and to fish as provided by law, in any county in the state, and to hunt using primitive weapons and bow and arrow in the manner provided by law. The commission may notify the licensee of the expiration of his license, and the licensee may renew the license by mailing the sum of Forty-five Dollars ($45.00) to the commission. A licensee who has not renewed the license within thirty (30) days after the expiration date shall be removed from the commission's records, and the licensee must apply to be placed on the renewal list.
(d) In addition to a hunting license allowing the taking of turkey, a resident who hunts turkey during a fall turkey season must purchase a fall turkey hunting permit for a fee of Five Dollars ($5.00) plus the fee provided in Section 49-7-17. A resident sportsman's licensee or resident lifetime sportsman's licensee may hunt during the fall turkey season without purchasing a permit.
(e) The commission may offer a resident apprentice hunting license for a resident who does not have the required certificate of hunter education and may set the fee for the apprentice hunting license. An apprentice license may be purchased only one (1) time by a resident and the apprentice hunting licensee must be accompanied by a licensed or exempt resident hunter at least twenty-one (21) years of age when hunting.
(2) (a) Any resident citizen of the State of Mississippi who has not reached the age of sixteen (16) years or who has reached the age of sixty-five (65) years, or any resident citizen who is blind, paraplegic, or a multiple amputee, or who has been adjudged by the Veterans Administration as having a total service-connected disability, or has been adjudged to be totally disabled by the Social Security Administration shall not be required to purchase or have in his or her possession, a hunting or fishing license while engaged in such activities. A person exempt by reason of total service-connected disability, as adjudged by the Veterans Administration or who has been adjudged to be totally disabled by the Social Security Administration or who is blind, paraplegic or a multiple amputee, shall have in their possession and on their person proof of their age, residency, disability status or other respective physical impairment while engaged in the activities of hunting or fishing.
(b) Any resident who
is a member of the Armed Forces, including the Reserves and National Guard, and
on active duty * * * is not required to purchase or have in his or
her possession a hunting or fishing license while engaged in such
activities * * *. The resident shall have in his or her
possession and on his or her person any proof as may be required
by the commission.
(c) Any resident who is a honorably discharged veteran that served in the Armed Forces is not required to purchase or have in his or her possession a hunting or fishing license while engaged in such activities. The resident shall have in his or her possession, and on his or her person, proof that he or she is a honorably discharged veteran of the Armed Forces, or any other proof as may be required by the commission. A certificate from the State Veterans Affairs Board stating that the resident is a honorably discharged veteran of the Armed Forces is sufficient proof.
( * * *d) All exempt hunting and fishing
licenses previously issued for disabilities shall be null and void effective
July 1, 1993.
( * * *e) The commission may offer a youth
all-game hunting and fishing license for exempt youths who have a hunter education
certificate and an all-game hunting and fishing license for other persons
exempted under paragraph (a). Youths and other exempt persons shall not be
required to purchase this license or have it in possession while hunting or
fishing. The commission may establish a fee not to exceed Five Dollars ($5.00)
for the licenses.
( * * *f) The requirement for purchasing
and/or having a hunting or fishing license authorized in subsection (1) of this
section may be waived for any resident or nonresident who is an honorably
discharged veteran with a combat-related disability and who will be participating
in a special hunt, fishing trip or other outdoor recreational event that is
available only to such persons as determined by the entity sponsoring the
event. The commission is authorized to establish such criteria and/or
procedures for an organization to be recognized as a sanctioned entity that
provides unique outdoor recreational opportunities for wounded or disabled
veterans. Any events sponsored by a recognized organization, and the persons
participating in such event, shall be entitled to the waiver set forth above
without further action on the part of the commission or the sponsoring
organization.
(3) No license shall be required of residents to hunt, fish or trap on lands in which the record title is vested in such person.
(4) Any person or persons exempt under this section from procuring a license shall be subject to and must comply with all other terms and provisions of this chapter.
(5) Any person authorized to issue any license under this section may collect and retain for the issuance of each license the additional fee authorized under Section 49-7-17.
SECTION 2. Section 49-7-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
49-7-9. (1) (a) Each resident of the State of Mississippi, as defined in Section 49-7-3, fishing in the public fresh waters of the state, including lakes and reservoirs, but not including privately owned ponds and streams, shall purchase a combination small game hunting and fishing license as provided in Section 49-7-5 for Ten Dollars ($10.00). Any resident purchasing a license as prescribed in this subsection shall be entitled to fish, in accordance with the regulations and ordinances of the commission, in all public fresh waters within the territory of the State of Mississippi.
(b) A resident may purchase a resident fishing license valid for a period of three (3) days for the sum of Three Dollars ($3.00).
(c) No license shall be required of any resident citizen of the State of Mississippi who has not reached the age of sixteen (16) years or who has reached the age of sixty-five (65) years or who is blind, paraplegic, a multiple amputee or has been adjudged by the Veterans Administration as having a total service-connected disability, or has been adjudged totally disabled by the Social Security Administration. Such person shall not be required to purchase or have in his possession a hunting or fishing license while engaged in such activities.
(d) A person exempt by reason of age, total service-connected disability as adjudged by the Veterans Administration or total disability as adjudged by the Social Security Administration or who is blind, paraplegic or a multiple amputee, shall have in their possession and on their person proof of their age, residency, disability status or other respective physical impairment while engaged in the activities of hunting or fishing.
(e) Any resident who
is a member of the Armed Forces, including the Reserves and National Guard, and
on active duty * * * is not required to purchase or have in his or
her possession a hunting or fishing license while engaged in such
activities * * *. The resident shall have in his or her
possession and on his or her person any proof as may be required
by the commission.
(f) Any resident who is a honorably discharged veteran that served in the Armed Forces is not required to purchase or have in his or her possession a hunting or fishing license while engaged in such activities. The resident shall have in his or her possession, and on his or her person, proof that he or she is a honorably discharged veteran of the Armed Forces, or any proof as may be required by the commission. A certificate from the State Veterans Affairs Board stating that the resident is a honorably discharged veteran of the Armed Forces is sufficient proof.
( * * *g) The requirement for purchasing
and/or having a hunting or fishing license authorized in this subsection (1)
may be waived for any resident or nonresident who is an honorably discharged
veteran with a combat-related disability and who will be participating in a
special hunt, fishing trip or other outdoor recreational event that is
available only to such persons as determined by the entity sponsoring the
event. The commission is authorized to establish such criteria and/or
procedures for an organization to be recognized as a sanctioned entity that
provides unique outdoor recreational opportunities for wounded or disabled
veterans. Any events sponsored by a recognized organization, and the persons
participating in such event, shall be entitled to the waiver set forth above
without further action on the part of the commission or the sponsoring
organization.
(2) (a) All persons fishing in privately owned lakes or ponds shall have specific permission to do so from the owner of such lake or pond.
(b) Residents do not need a fishing license to fish in those waters, except when the owner of the lake or pond charges a fee for fishing, then a resident must have a fishing license to fish in those waters unless exempted under subsection (1) of this section.
(3) The first weekend of "National Fishing and Boating Week" in June of each year is designated as "Free Fishing Weekend." July 4 is designated as "Free Fishing Day." Any person may sport fish without a license on "Free Fishing Weekend," and on "Free Fishing Day."
(4) Any person authorized to issue any license under this section may collect and retain for issuing each license the additional fee authorized under Section 49-7-17.
SECTION 3. Section 49-7-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
49-7-3. (1) Any resident of the State of Mississippi shall be entitled to receive a resident fishing license.
(2) Any person domiciled within the State of Mississippi shall be entitled to receive a resident hunting license provided in Section 49-7-5. The domicile of a person is that person's principal or primary home or place of abode. A "principal or primary home or place of abode" is that home or place in which a person's habitation is fixed and to which he, whenever absent, has the present intention of returning after a departure of absence therefrom, regardless of the duration of the absence. The burden of proving domicile shall be on the person claiming such status. The following evidence or other reliable evidence may be considered in establishing, but is not necessarily determinative of, domicile: driver's license, valid and current tribal identification card issued by a federally recognized Indian tribe containing a photograph of the person submitting the identification card, residence for income or other tax purposes, homestead exemption receipt, or any other means prescribed by the department. In the case of minors, domicile of the parents shall be used as evidence of the minor's domicile.
(3) A nondomiciliary of the state may be issued a resident hunting or fishing license or combination resident hunting/fishing license upon providing the following:
(a) A current identification card from a Mississippi college or university; or
(b) A current military identification card showing that the person is an active member of the United States Armed Forces (excluding Reserves and the National Guard) and proof that the person is stationed on a military base in Mississippi.
(4) A nondomiciliary of the state may be issued a special Armed Forces fourteen-day hunting and fishing license with the same hunting and fishing privileges and at the same fee of a resident sportsman's license, if the nondomiciliary is an active member of the United States Armed Forces (excluding Reserves and the National Guard) and his application is approved by the department. The applicant must file his application for the special fourteen-day license in the office of the department. The department shall establish requirements for proof of active military status and any other requirements it deems desirable. The department shall not issue more than two (2) special fourteen-day licenses to the same applicant per license year.
(5) A holder of a resident or nonresident license is required to carry the license on his person while engaged in hunting, trapping or fishing. Any penalty for not carrying a license while engaged in hunting, trapping or fishing shall be waived if the person can verify purchase of a license prior to the date of the violation.
(6) Each application or filing made under this section shall include the social security number(s) of the applicant in accordance with Section 93-11-64.
SECTION 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2023.
