Mississippi Announces New Hunting and Fishing License Partner – Daily Leader
The State of Mississippi announces a new hunting and fishing licensing partner
Published at 3:57pm Monday, November 20, 2023
- Just fishing (archive photo)
JACKSON – The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks will have a new licensing sales partner in the next few years. Jason Thompson, Director of Administrative Services, provided some details about the new licensing system.
“We are holding weekly meetings about our new licensing system. January 2025 is the start date,” Thompson said at an MDWFP committee meeting last week.
He explained Monday that the licensing system may take a little longer, but they are planning January 2025 as the go-live date. A project like the MDWFP typically takes between a year and 18 months to launch. Thompson said they are in the construction process now.
PayIt Outdoors announced Monday that it will be the new provider of the MDWFP’s digital licensing system. The platform should provide an enhanced customer experience and allow MDWFP to better serve outdoor enthusiasts.
“We want the look and feel to be similar but we know it will be different,” Thompson said. “It will be more convenient for customers, and on our end we will have more tools that we can use.”
It’s just the latest news that MDWFP is working to improve engagement with the public from a renaming state parks, Renovations in state and new parks Marketing strategies for selling licenses. PayIt is a Kansas City, Missouri-based company that was awarded the contract to provide a digital fishing and fish licensing system through a bidding process.
The Mississippi Department of Information Technology Services approved a bid for a five-year contract costing $8,987,406 in May 2023. The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission currently uses PayIt for license sales if you’re interested in how their system looks and works.
A press release from PayIt notes that the new system will provide “a more modern and convenient customer experience online and in the new mobile app.”
MDWFP will be able to manage license and permit sales while providing visibility to customers through “intuitive CRM,” to help guide more of the agency’s outreach efforts. It will also help the agency recruit, retain and re-energize clients. Executive Director Lynn Posey said the application will help the agency achieve its mission of preserving the environment and providing recreational opportunities.
“As part of our mission to conserve Mississippi’s natural resources, we aim to make it as easy as possible for customers to purchase licenses and permits that directly support our conservation efforts,” Posey said. “We are excited to partner with PayIt Outdoors to deliver a truly modern and convenient experience to our customers on and off the field.”
One of the great features of PayIt is the ability to send game checks abroad even when cellular connectivity is limited. GameCheck is already available on the MDWFP app but the new MDWFP app should run more smoothly. Department staff will have access to ideas to streamline administrative processes to help serve the public more effectively.
License sales are important because they fund 90 percent of the municipal food and agriculture program budget.
