Revision: March 8, 2016, midnight
\t \t\tSB 376-FN - AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE
02/11/2016 0395s
2016 SESSION
\t16-2810
\t10/05
SENATE BILL\t376-FN
AN ACT\trelative to wildlife corridors.
SPONSORS:\tSen. Watters, Dist 4; Sen. Woodburn, Dist 1; Rep. Backus, Hills. 19
COMMITTEE:\tEnergy And Natural Resources
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ANALYSIS
\tThis bill requires the fish and game department to identify existing and needed wildlife corridors connecting wildlife habitats in the state and to make recommendations to the legislature for changes to laws.
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Explanation:\tMatter added to current law appears in bold italics.
\t\tMatter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
\t\tMatter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
02/11/2016 0395s\t16-2810
\t10/05
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Sixteen
AN ACT\trelative to wildlife corridors.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
\t1 Wildlife Corridors; Findings. The legislature finds and declares that:
\t\tI. It is recognized as a public good that habitat connectivity, including wildlife corridors and habitat linkages, be maintained and expanded. It is the policy of the state of New Hampshire to encourage, wherever feasible and practical, voluntary steps to protect the functioning of wildlife corridors through various means, as applicable.
\t\tII. Areas containing diverse ecological and geological characteristics are vital to the continual health and well-being of the state's natural resources and of its citizens.
\t\tIII. Connectivity between wildlife habitats is important to the long-term viability of the state's biodiversity. Preserving and connecting high-quality habitat for wildlife can create habitat strongholds. Increasingly fragmented habitats threaten the state's wildlife species.
\t\tIV. Analysis of the state's habitat connectivity benefits from the consideration of all relevant data, including information from private and public landowners.
\t2 Fish and Game Department; Report.
\t\tI. Because of the importance of wildlife corridors to assist in adapting to warming temperatures and shifting habitats, create habitat strongholds, and in order to protect ecosystem health and biodiversity and improve the resiliency of wildlife and their habitats to such existing and potential changes, the fish and game department, in collaboration with the department of environmental services and the department of transportation, shall identify existing and needed wildlife corridors, including riparian corridors, and including potential crossings of transportation arteries, such as a possible crossing in the Jefferson-Randolph section of Route 2. The executive director of fish and game, the commissioner of transportation, and the commissioner of environmental services shall direct their departments to audit existing statutes, rules, and regulations that affect wildlife corridors and shall make recommendations concerning any necessary changes.
\t\tII. The executive director shall file a report containing the department's findings pursuant to paragraph I and any recommendations to the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the senate no later than June 30, 2018.
\t\tIII. For purposes of this act, "wildlife corridor" means a habitat linkage that joins 2 or more areas of wildlife habitat, allowing for fish passage or the movement of wildlife from one area to another, and "habitat stronghold" means high-quality habitat that supports wildlife in being more resilient to increasing pressures on species due to climate change and land development.
\t3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t16-2810
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAmended 2/24/16
SB 376-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT\trelative to wildlife corridors.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Fish and Game Department, Department of Transportation, and Department of Environmental Services state this bill, as amended by the Senate (Amendment #2016-0395s), may increase state expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2017 and FY 2018. There will be no impact on state, county, and local revenues or county and local expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
This bill requires the Fish and Game Department (F&G), in consultation with the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Department of Environmental Services (DES), to identify existing and needed wildlife corridors, including riparian corridors and potential crossings of transportation arteries. The bill further requires F&G, DOT, and DES to audit existing statutes, rules and regulations that affect wildlife corridors and shall make recommendations concerning necessary changes and requires F&G report findings and any recommendations no later than June 30, 2018. As the specific amount of work to comply with this bill is unknown at this time, F&G, DOT, and DES state this bill may increase state expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2017 and FY 2018.