Montana Hunters Can Donate Licenses to Disabled Veterans

With hunting seasons in Montana starting to kick into high gear, there has been a noticeable increase in demand for this program.

Maybe it turns out you have a tag that you're just not going to fill or you just want to spread goodwill among fellow hunters, Montana law allows residents and nonresidents to donate their hunting licenses and/or special permits to a disabled military veteran or disabled active duty service member. This year, there is a higher interest among veterans to take advantage of this program, and Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is asking for more hunters to donate licenses.

The "red tape" FYI reads like this: The disabled veteran or active armed forces member must be working with an organization that uses hunting as part of the rehabilitation process. While one cannot choose the organization to receive a donated license, the disabled veteran or armed forces member who receives the license must be a Purple Heart recipient and have a 70 percent or greater disability rating.

Each license must be donated or surrendered before the beginning of the general hunting season. The deadline to donate your license is Oct. 23 at a Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks office or postmarked by Oct. 23. After donating the license, a hunter cannot repurchase the same license again during the license year.

You can find out more about the program on the FWP website license donation page or by calling Licensing at 406-444-2950.

PS: Good luck to all the Montana waterfowl hunters who get their seasons started this Saturday, October 3.