2006 New Hampshire Statutes - Section 208:1-a Moose.

    I. No person shall hunt, take, or possess any moose or any part of the carcass of a moose taken in this state without first obtaining a valid license for such activities from the department of fish and game. The executive director of fish and game, with the consent of the commission, may establish, by rules adopted under RSA 541-A, a hunting season for moose in any county of the state, or any portion thereof. Such rules shall include, but not be limited to, the mode by which moose may be taken; the length of the season; requirements for reporting by hunters; sex limitations; and total take in any one year.
    II. The executive director, with the consent of the commission, shall also adopt rules under RSA 541-A to regulate the issuance of licenses or permits, including the establishment of a lottery for awarding of permits to applicants, and to set fees for applications, licenses, or permits for both resident and nonresident applicants.
    II-a. Any permit lottery established under paragraph II shall include a bonus point system as a weighing factor to benefit applicants not drawn in the annual moose permit lottery. Beginning with the 2004 lottery, the moose permit lottery shall allow a person to accumulate one point for each consecutive year that person legally purchases an application for a permit but is not selected to receive a permit. Each point entitles that applicant to one chance in the lottery. A person's accumulated points shall be non-transferable and shall be forfeited if, in any year, that person is selected to receive a permit or that person fails to purchase a new chance.
    III. The state treasurer shall establish a separate nonlapsing account within the fish and game fund, to be known as the moose management fund, to which all fees collected by the fish and game department from the moose licenses and applications shall be applied. The moneys in this account shall be used exclusively for the implementation of a comprehensive moose management program, including education, research, protection and management, and are hereby appropriated for said purposes.
    IV. Prior to the establishment of any hunting season for moose, the executive director shall implement a comprehensive moose management program that shall include, but not be limited to: education of the public as to the biological status and management needs of the moose; research to determine the population, distribution, and future trends and needs of the New Hampshire moose herd; and management measures, which may include hunting, as well as habitat enhancement, to promote the maintenance of a healthy moose population. Every 2 years, the executive director shall report in writing to the legislature and the governor and council the status of the moose in New Hampshire, and the performance of the moose management program.

Source. 1965, 83:1. 1967, 14:1. 1985, 371:1. 1991, 352:1. 1993, 99:3, eff. April 29, 1993. 1996, 108:2, eff. Jan. 1, 1997. 2003, 189:1, 2, eff. Aug. 29, 2003.