We have another anti trapping bill introduced for the 2014 legislative session, HB 1579-FN
Please send emails to the address below urging the House Fish and Game and Marine Committee to kill the bill.
HouseFishandGameAndMarineResources@leg.state.nh.us
Thank you,
Coalman
HOUSE BILL 1579-FN
AN ACT prohibiting the use of certain leghold or foothold traps for the taking of animals.
SPONSORS: Rep. Vaillancourt, Hills 15; Rep. Charron, Rock 4; Rep. Gile, Merr 27; Rep. Levesque, Hills 26; Rep. D. Hooper, Straf 16; Rep. K. Rogers, Merr 28; Rep. Shaw, Hills 16; Rep. Carson, Merr 7; Sen. Reagan, Dist 17; Sen. Carson, Dist 14
COMMITTEE: Fish and Game and Marine Resources
ANALYSIS
This bill prohibits the use of the steel-jaw and padded steel-jaw leghold and foothold traps and conibear traps, and authorizes certain exceptions.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
14-2046
10/04
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Fourteen
AN ACT prohibiting the use of certain leghold or foothold traps for the taking of animals.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Title. The provisions of this act shall be known as Andrews’s bill, for a 4-year-old dog that suffocated in a conibear trap in 2012 set for fishers.
2 New Section; Fish and Game; Certain Traps Prohibited. Amend RSA 210 by inserting after section 11-a the following new section:
210:11-b Traps Prohibited; Penalty.
I. No person, whether or not licensed by the fish and game department, shall use any type of steel-jaw leghold or foothold trap, off-set or padded trap jaw trap, egg-trap, body-crushing conibear traps, tightening or non-tightening snares, or any similar traps made of metal, steel, or other materials. This prohibition shall also apply to landowners using traps on their own land and persons issued a special permit for trapping by the department.
II. A wildlife control operator licensed under RSA 210:24-b may use traps prohibited under paragraph I in animal damage control work until September 30, 2017, and such time after that date only as specially permitted by the fish and game department to provide for a period of transition to the use of alternative techniques that replace the prohibited traps.
III. Small traps designed for rats and mice are not prohibited under paragraph I if used to kill rats and mice in or under buildings. Mouse and rat traps are prohibited for use on any other animal.
IV. A person licensed for trapping by the fish and game department may use prohibited traps to safely capture an animal in order to rescue that animal.
V. A person may apply to the fish and game department for permission to use prohibited traps in the conduct of scientific research. The department may adopt rules for the issuance of permits and for the safe conduct of research.
VI. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs I, the executive director may authorize the use of steel-jaw or padded steel-jaw leghold traps or conibear or conibear type traps by the following persons: Members of the department or assigned wildlife control operators, if the executive director determines that such a trap is necessary in an emergency to protect the safety of humans, wild animals, or domestic animals.
VII. The fish and game department shall provide access to or referral for training in alternative techniques that replace the use of prohibited traps. The training opportunities shall be designed to meet the needs of licensed wildlife control operators.
VIII. Any person who has injured or killed a non-targeted animal, wild or domestic, including dogs and cats, when validly using a trap described in paragraph I, shall report such animals, date, and disposition to the department for inclusion in the fish and game department’s annual report.
IX. Any person who violates the provisions of this section or rules adopted pursuant to this section shall, for the first offense, be guilty of a violation and, if licensed, shall lose such person’s license as a trapper or wildlife control operator for 12 months. For a second or subsequent offense, a person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, if licensed, shall lose such person’s license as a trapper or wildlife control operator for a period of 2 years.
3 Reference Added; Penalties. Amend RSA 210:19, I to read as follows:
I. For each offense under RSA 210:1-4 inclusive, and RSA 210:11-14, inclusive, except as provided in RSA 210:11-b, a person shall be guilty of a violation if a natural person, or guilty of a misdemeanor if any other person; and for each otter, mink, muskrat, raccoon, sable, marten, or fisher taken or possessed contrary to the provisions thereof, any person shall be guilty of an additional violation.
4 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2015.
LBAO
14-2046
12/13/13
HB 1579-FN - FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT prohibiting the use of certain leghold or foothold traps for the taking of animals.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Fish and Game Department, Judicial Branch, Department of Justice, and New Hampshire Association of Counties state this bill, as introduced, will decrease state restricted revenue by $24,581 in FY 2015 and each year thereafter, and will increase state, county, and local expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2015 and each year thereafter. There will be no impact on county or local revenue.
METHODOLOGY:
The Fish and Game Department states this bill would effectively prohibit the use of all traps other than cage traps and would largely eliminate all trapping in the state. The Department assumes individuals would no longer purchase trapping licenses and an unknown percentage of wildlife control operators (WCOs) would likely no longer remain in business. The Department states the licenses issued for the 2012-2013 trapping year are as follows:
