Bill
SB 1518
Illinois veterans with honorable or general discharge pay half price on lifetime, 3-year, and certain sportsmen licenses, pending DNR verification rules.
Status and sponsor
- Bill number: SB 1518
- Sponsor: Sen. Sally J. Turner
- Code section amended: Fish and Aquatic Life Code, 515 ILCS 5/20‑45
- Introduction: filed 02/04/2025 (first reading and referred to Assignments)
- Note: The package you provided includes an unrelated Arizona SB 1518 (groundwater/irrigation). The summary below describes the Illinois measure concerning reduced fishing license fees for veterans.
Purpose / intent
- To reduce the cost of certain fishing and sportsmen’s combination licenses for resident veterans by charging them one‑half of the regular fee (applied to lifetime and multi‑year license categories described in the bill), and to require the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to specify what verification of military service is acceptable.
Key provisions
- Fee reduction: For resident veterans of the United States Armed Forces (including the Illinois National Guard and Reserves) who have received an Honorable or General discharge, the fee for specified fishing licenses is set at one‑half the otherwise applicable fee. The bill text applies this reduced fee to:
- Lifetime fishing licenses (explicitly noted in the synopsis),
- 3‑year fishing licenses,
- 3‑year sportsmen’s combination licenses,
- Sportsmen’s combination licenses generally (insofar as the section covers those fees).
- Verification of service: Veterans seeking the reduced fee must provide verification of their military service. The DNR is directed (by administrative rule) to establish:
- The procedure for submitting verification, and
- What constitutes suitable verification of service for issuing reduced‑fee licenses.
- Technical amendments: The bill makes conforming and technical edits within Section 20‑45 to reflect the new reduced‑fee provisions; much of the underlying section remains intact (fees for other categories and senior discounts unchanged except where expressly amended).
Who is affected
- Primary beneficiaries: Resident Illinois veterans who received an Honorable or General discharge from the U.S. Armed Forces, Illinois National Guard, or Reserves.
- Administrative: Illinois Department of Natural Resources — required to adopt rules defining acceptable verification and to implement reduced‑fee licensing.
- Fiscal: State revenues from hunting/fishing licensing may decrease to the extent eligible veterans obtain reduced‑fee licenses; the bill does not specify an offset or dollar estimate in the text provided.
Procedural / timeline notes
- Introduced and first read on 02/04/2025; referred to Assignments. Further committee actions and final disposition are not fully clear in the mixed document supplied. The DNR must promulgate administrative rules to implement the verification procedures before the reduced‑fee program can be fully operational.
Potential impacts to consider
- Access: Lowers cost barrier to lifetime and multi‑year fishing-related licenses for veterans, likely increasing participation among eligible veterans.
- Fiscal: Reduced licensing revenue proportional to veteran uptake; fiscal impact would depend on the number of veterans who apply and which license types they choose.
- Administrative: DNR will incur rulemaking and implementation tasks (establishing verification standards, updating fee collection systems).
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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