HB 1455-FN – AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE
22Feb2012… 0780h
2012 SESSION
10/01
HOUSE BILL 1455-FN
AN ACT relative to special licenses for taking lobster while engaged in recreational scuba diving.
SPONSORS: Rep. Hill, Merr 6; Rep. Peterson, Hills 19; Rep. Greemore, Belk 3; Rep. Avard, Hills 20
COMMITTEE: Fish and Game and Marine Resources
This bill allows the fish and game department to issue special scuba diver lobster licenses for non-commercial taking of lobsters while engaged in recreational scuba diving.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
22Feb2012… 0780h
12-2312
10/01
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twelve
AN ACT relative to special licenses for taking lobster while engaged in recreational scuba diving.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Lobster Licenses; Recreational Licenses. Amend RSA 211:18, III(a) to read as follows:
(a) If a person is a resident of this state and does not take lobsters or crabs for the purpose of sale and does not use more than 5 traps, the person may receive a recreational lobster and crab license. A person receiving a recreational lobster and crab license may not also receive the scuba diver lobster license under paragraph III-c.
2 New Paragraph; Special Scuba Diver Lobster License. Amend RSA 211:18 by inserting after paragraph III-b the following new paragraph:
III-c. For a $35 fee, a person who wishes to engage in scuba diving as a recreational activity and not for the purpose of sale, and who is in compliance with RSA 270:31 through 32-a, and has attained 18 years of age, shall be permitted to take lobsters under a special scuba diver lobster license issued by the executive director. The executive director shall make available a number of scuba diver lobster licenses that is equivalent to the number of recreational lobster and crab licenses available each calendar year under subparagraph III(a).
(a) The scuba diver lobster license shall be valid for the month of September only.
(b) The license shall consist of letters and/or numbers which the person engaged in scuba diving shall affix to his or her diving tanks and regulation dive flag in a contrasting color making it readily visible to a conservation officer.
(c) The number of lobsters taken per day by a scuba diver holding an license under this subparagraph shall not exceed 5 per licensee and shall be taken only for the consumption by the licensee, and the licensee’s family and guests. No person shall at any time take any lobsters by any method except by hand. Use of a tickle stick, which is a straight or slightly bent stick used to agitate a lobster into coming out of its hole, shall be permitted.
(d) All lobsters taken under a scuba diver lobster license shall be of legal size, as provided by RSA 211:62 and in accordance with RSA 211:27, measured immediately upon capture on the seafloor before surfacing. An equipped scuba diver shall not have in his or her possession more than 5 lobsters at any time.
(e) The scuba diver lobster license may not be transferred to any other person.
(f) Annual catch reports shall be required of all scuba diver lobster license holders at the time of renewal or, if not renewing license, at year end. Annual catch information, in a format determined by the executive director, shall be required of all divers before renewal application will be accepted.
(g) The executive director shall adopt rules for the issuance of the license under this paragraph, and rules governing the sex and size of lobsters allowed to be taken under this paragraph provided such rules conform with requirements applicable to non-commercial 5 pot licenses and commercial lobster license holders.
3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2013.
LBAO
12-2312
Amended 03/15/12
HB 1455 FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT relative to special licenses for taking lobster while engaged in recreational scuba diving.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Fish and Game Department states this bill, as amended by the House (Amendment #2012-0780h), may increase state fish and game fund revenue by an indeterminable amount in FY 2014 and each year thereafter. There will be no fiscal impact on county or local revenue, or state, county, and local expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
The Fish and Game Department states this bill allows it to issue special licenses for non-commercial taking of lobsters while engaged in recreational scuba diving. The Department cannot predict the number of individuals who purchase recreational scuba diving licenses who would also purchase the special license allowed in this bill, so it cannot estimate the increase in revenue at this time.