Basically it's like this....you buy a hunting license. That is a general license which priveleges you to hunt whitetail deer, small game(rabbits, grouse, pheasant, squirrel, groundhog, etc.) and turkey. On that general license there will be 3 tags....one for an antlered deer(buck) and two for turkey(one spring season and one fall season). When you kill a deer you fill out the deer tag from your license and attach it to the deer. You then send in a report card(supplied with the license) that tells the state where, when, how, who killed that deer. The turkey tags work the same way. Bear tags you must purchase seperately....one per year....season is 3 days long. If you kill a bear you have to attach a similar tag to the bear and then take it to a check station where the PGC weighs it and pulls a tooth and gives you a permanent tag. You don't pay anything to the state after you kill and tag an animal....you've already paid for the privelige to hunt and the tags come with it.
In PA the licenses are valid from July 1 to the following June 30.....this year the license with be valid from July 1, 2004 to June 30, 2005.....also known as the 2004-2005 Hunting season/license year.
You really need to check out the PGC website and browse for awhile. Download the "Digest of Hunting and Trapping Regulations" and read it over. Most of your questions will be answered there. Also, here is a
website dedicated to just PA hunting that you may enjoy.