Tennessee House Bill HB2550

Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/3/26
• Refer: 2/5/26
• Refer: 3/11/26
• Refer: 3/17/26
• Refer: 3/25/26
• Refer: 3/31/26
• Chaptered: 5/5/26
• Passed: 5/5/26

Caption

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 70, Chapter 2, relative to the creation of a Tennessee national guard sportsman license.

Summary

HB2550, titled the "Hunting for Heroes Act," creates a new Tennessee national guard sportsman license for members of the Tennessee National Guard who are in good standing. The license entitles eligible members to receive the same benefits as a resident annual sportsman license, but at no cost to the member. To qualify, an applicant must provide information needed to verify eligibility, including a valid U.S. military identification card and National Guard membership information supplied by the adjutant general. The bill also specifies that the cost of providing these no-cost licenses is to be paid by the state from the general fund rather than the wildlife resources fund. It amends Tennessee Code Annotated Title 70, Chapter 2, which governs hunting and sportsman licenses, and takes effect July 1, 2026.

Impact

The bill adds a new category of free sportsman license in Tennessee law for qualifying National Guard members and directs that the associated costs be borne by the state general fund. It affects the licensing provisions in Title 70, Chapter 2 by creating eligibility and verification requirements for the Tennessee national guard sportsman license and by extending the same privileges as a resident annual sportsman license to holders of the new license. The measure shifts a funding obligation away from the wildlife resources fund and onto general state revenues.

Sentiment

The available voting history shows strong, unanimous support at each committee stage, with no recorded dissenting votes in the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Subcommittee, the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee, the House Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee, or the House Finance, Ways, and Means Committee. The bill’s title and structure suggest it was viewed as a supportive benefit for National Guard members and a recognition of military service, and the lack of opposition in committee indicates broadly favorable sentiment.

Contention

There is little evidence of substantive controversy in the available record. The only potentially notable policy issue is fiscal: the bill expressly states that the cost of the free licenses should come from the state general fund rather than the wildlife resources fund, which could matter to budget writers and agencies responsible for wildlife funding. Otherwise, the bill appears noncontroversial, with support centered on providing a hunting and sportsman-license benefit to Tennessee National Guard members in good standing.