For Tennessee hunters, April and May mean a few things: Turkey season, prime fishing time . . . and the time when TWRA managers and TWRC commissioners will meet in Nashville to dictate our hunting privileges over the next year.

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency will present its proposals for the 2007 fall hunting seasons, as well as the 2008 spring hunting seasons, to the Wildlife Resources Commission when it meets in its April session at the Ellington Agricultural Center in Nashville later this week.

While the TWRA isn't overly fond of revealing glimpses of its proposals ahead of time, it is rumored that there will be a mild change or two in store this year.

The TWRA presents its proposals to the TWRC this same month each year. Sometimes, those proposals set off a firestorm of controversy, such as the 1998 proposal to drop the buck limit to six (TWRC took it a step further, reducing it to two, the following month) or the 2005 proposal to permit the use of crossbows during the archery season.

The commission will consider the recommendations over the next month, and the public will be permitted to comment on the proposals, and the 2007-2008 hunting seasons will be set when the commission re-convenes in Nashville in May.

The TWRC meeting is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. local time on Wednesday. The proposals are on the agenda to be presented that afternoon. The meeting will recess at the end of the day and resume at 9 a.m. local time on Thursday, concluding Thursday afternoon.

While the Wildlife Resources Commission meets each month, 12 times annually, it is the April and May meetings that stir the most interest, for obvious reasons.

In addition to its season-setting proposals, TWRA is expected to give a presentation on the feasability, or lack thereof, of moving to a telecheck system for big game hunting seasons in the state. Bordering states such as Kentucky and Mississippi already use a telecheck system.