CHAPTER 50

HB 393-FN - FINAL VERSION

 

13Feb2025... 0126h

2025 SESSION

25-0472

06/02

 

HOUSE BILL 393-FN

 

AN ACT prohibiting mooring of boats without a permit.

 

SPONSORS: Rep. J. Smith, Carr. 5; Rep. Avellani, Carr. 4; Rep. R. Brown, Carr. 3; Rep. Cordelli, Carr. 7; Rep. Crawford, Carr. 3; Rep. J. MacDonald, Carr. 6; Rep. D. Paige, Carr. 1; Rep. Peternel, Carr. 6; Rep. Woodcock, Carr. 1

 

COMMITTEE: Resources, Recreation and Development

 

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AMENDED ANALYSIS

 

This bill expands the definition of "mooring" to include spuds, lifts, and similar devices used to secure boats to the bottom of the public waters of the state.  This bill also prohibits the use of spuds, lifts, or similar devices in place of a permitted mooring in waters requiring mooring permits and includes a list of exemptions.

 

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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

13Feb2025... 0126h 25-0472

06/02

 

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

 

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Five

 

AN ACT prohibiting mooring of boats without a permit.

 

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

 

50:1  Mooring of Boats on Public Waters; Definitions.  Amend RSA 270:59, III to read as follows:

III. "Mooring" when used as a noun, means a mooring anchor, or other fixed object or stationary point, with or without a mooring buoy together with attached chains, cables, ropes, and pennants and related equipment used for the purpose of securing watercraft; or any spuds, lifts, or other devices which are an integral part of the vessel and being used to secure a boat to the bottom of the public waters of the state in lieu of a dock or pier.

50:2  New Paragraph; Moorings Prohibited.  Amend RSA 270:64 by inserting after paragraph III the following new paragraph:

IV.  No person shall use spuds, lifts, or similar devices that are an integral part of a vessel, in lieu of a permitted mooring, on any body of water requiring a mooring permit.  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the following uses shall be exempt from this section:

(a)  Commercial barges engaged in their trade and moored adjacent to shorefront property with the permission of the landowner;

(b)  Vessels operated by state, local, or federal agencies; or

(c)  Vessels occupied by an operator for stabilization in the water for waterborne activities, including, but not limited to, fishing.  

50:3  Effective Date.  This act shall take effect January 1, 2026.

 

Approved: May 29, 2025

Effective Date: January 01, 2026