JACKSON — A house bill to create the wild turkey stamp may have hit a hang up last week but a senate bill to do the same thing progressed Monday. Mississippi’s legislative daily action report shows the conference report for Senate Bill 2652 was filed in both senate and house. 

Under the conference report, if the senate bill becomes law, hunters would be required to purchase a turkey stamp to hunt wild turkeys in Mississippi. Money raised by the stamp would go towards habitat work, conservation and research of wild turkeys. 

According to the conference report for Senate Bill 2652, lifetime license holders would be exempt from purchasing a wild turkey stamp. Residents would not be charged for stamps and non-residents would be charged $200 for turkey stamps. 

Turkey stamps would be valid from the date of purchase to the final day of turkey season following its purchase. The stamp would thus expire and a new one would have to be purchased for the next season. 

The next step for the senate bill is for the conference report to be accepted by the senate. House Bill 1298, which would also create a turkey stamp with residents having a fee of $10, had its conference report accepted by the house before the senate recommitted the bill to conference.