New Hampshire Code of Administrative Rules
Fis - Executive Director, Fish and Game Department
Chapter Fis 300 - WILDLIFE SEASONS AND RULES
Part Fis 303 - FURBEARING ANIMALS
Section Fis 303.13 - Award of Trapping Permits for State Managed Lands

Universal Citation: NH Admin Rules Fis 303.13

Current through Register No. 40, October 3, 2024

(a) Trapping rights on state managed lands shall be awarded for a 2 year period.

(b) State managed lands shall be divided into trapping units.

(c) The boundaries of each such trapping unit on state managed lands shall be outlined on maps maintained by the wildlife division, which shall be open to public inspection during regular business hours at fish and game headquarters in Concord and on the department's web site at www.wildlife.nh.gov.

(d) Trapping rights on state managed lands shall be awarded to properly licensed trappers as follows:

(1) Applicants for award of such trapping rights shall make application to the wildlife division, on the "Application for Trapping on State Managed Lands" form, Rev 12/23 available at; and

(2) Applications shall be received by the department headquarters on or before the second Monday of September or be postmarked on or before the third Friday in August.

(e) Trapping rights shall be awarded on the first Friday after the deadline by computer selection of random numbers.

(f) Based on the order of computer selection, applicants shall be assigned a trapping unit as follows:

(1) Applicants shall be awarded trapping rights for the highest priority trapping unit indicated on their application that has not been awarded;

(2) Assignment of trapping units shall continue, with each applicant being awarded trapping rights for the first trapping unit the applicant listed on the application which has not been previously awarded; and

(3) If trapping units are still available after all applications have been randomly selected utilizing each applicant's first choice, the procedure shall be repeated again using the second trapping unit the applicant indicated on the application and shall continue until all applicant choices have been awarded or until all trapping units have been assigned.

(g) Permits awarded during the lottery process shall become effective on October 1st of the year awarded and shall be valid for the 2-year drawing period.

(h) Permits shall be mailed to successful applicants, who hold a valid trapping license, prior to the opening of that year's trapping season.

(i) Units not awarded during the drawing shall be issued after the drawing on a first-come first-served basis at department headquarters, and these permits shall be valid for the remainder of the 2-year period.

(j) No more than one individual shall be awarded the trapping rights for any one trapping unit.

(k) Permittees shall eliminate nuisance beaver within any state managed trapping unit when such nuisance beaver has been identified by the department in their assigned unit(s).

(l) Permittees shall initiate actions to eliminate the nuisance beaver within 7 days of being notified by the department that their trapping unit has developed a nuisance beaver or return their permit for that area to the department within 7 days.

(m) Upon notification, the executive director shall remove the trapping unit(s) on state managed land that have been issued to a permittee when the executive director finds that the permittee has failed to comply with the provisions of paragraphs (k) and (l) above.

(n) Any permittee who has not purchased a trapping license by October 10 of the second year the permit is effective or whose trapping license has been suspended or revoked for any reason shall forfeit all permits to trap state managed lands.

(o) No permittee shall sell a permit for trapping on state managed lands.

(p) A permittee may surrender a property(ies) listed on their permit in writing to the department. These properties shall be made available and reissued as specified in paragraph (i) above.

(q) Permits shall be non-transferable.

(r) Permittees may have up to 2 helpers, who may trap within the permittee's trapping unit, under the following conditions:

(1) A helper shall be a licensed trapper in New Hampshire;

(2) Permits to trap state managed lands shall be valid so long as there is no subsequent conviction for a trapping violation by the permittee or one of the helpers;

(3) The helper(s) shall be listed on the permittee's permit; and

(4) If a permittee wishes to add or remove a helper after a permit has been issued, the permittee shall return the permit to the department indicating the change, and the department shall then issue a new permit.

#8764, eff 11-23-06 (renumbered by #9163, formerly Fis 303.17)

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