Section Fis 1603.01 - General Standards and Restrictions Regulating Use of a Public Boat Access Area(a) Public use of the department's public boat access areas listed in Table 1600.01 shall be accessible 24 hours a day, year round, without charge to all members of the public for ingress and egress and the launching and retrieving of boats, unless: (1) Closed or restricted to public use under (b) below; (2) Limited by any other restriction imposed by Fis 900; or(3) Limited by rules at areas referenced in Fis 1602.01(d). (b) A public boat access area, or any portion thereof, shall be temporarily closed or restricted to use if the executive director or his or her designee finds such action reasonably necessary to: (1) Construct, install, replace, repair, or maintain the physical capital improvements of the public boat access area;(2) Protect against a specific risk to public health or safety;(3) Reduce actual or threatened vandalism; or (4) Protect the natural and historical resources, or other features of the public boat access area.(c) All activities undertaken at a public boat access area shall be at the sole risk of the person or persons engaged in the activity pursuant to RSA 212:34. (d) Swimming shall be prohibited at all public boat access areas.(e) Owners or custodians of dogs at properties listed in Table 1600.01 and Table 1600.02 shall: (1) Control the animal by leash at all times; and (2) Clean up and remove all waste from the animal from the site.(f) No person shall dispose of household or commercial rubbish, garbage, trash, debris, dead animals, pet waste, sewage, or solid waste material of any kind from a boat, recreational vehicle, or other vehicle at a public boat access area except: (1) In those places where trash receptacles are provided for such purposes; and (2) Only to the extent that the materials are generated by allowable and permitted activities at the site.(g) No person shall consume or possess any open container of liquor or alcoholic beverage as defined by RSA 175:1 while at a public boat access area.(h) No person shall sleep overnight at a public boat access area, whether in a vehicle, on the ground, in a tent, or within any other camping device.(i) No vehicle, vehicle with an attached trailer, or trailer shall be parked at a public boat access area for a period longer than 24 consecutive hours, unless in accordance with a special use permit issued in accordance with these rules.(j) No person shall create a campfire or use any form of a portable grill in a public boat access area.(k) No person shall ignite or display fireworks of any type at any public boat access area at any time.(l) No person shall engage in target shooting with a firearm, air gun, muzzleloader, bow and arrow, or crossbow at a public boat access area at any time.(m) No person shall discharge a firearm, air gun, muzzleloader, bow and arrow or crossbow within a public boat access area, unless lawfully engaged in the taking of wildlife and in full conformance with Title 18 of the New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated, and all rules adopted in accordance with that title. (n) No person shall feed or bait wildlife at any public boat access area at any time.(o) No person shall remove, destroy, or damage any tree, shrub, vine, or terrestrial plant, or any part thereof, at a public boat access area.(p) No person shall introduce, abandon, or leave any plant, aquatic, or terrestrial life, or other foreign object or item on a public boat access area except in compliance with RSA 487:16-c or RSA 487:16-d of the New Hampshire clean lakes program. (q) Motor vehicles or vehicles with trailers shall be operated, occupied, parked on roads, parking areas, ramps, and other designated areas in accordance with: (1) Applicable state motor vehicle laws and rules;(2) All posted site restrictions, and the directional, guide, parking, or regulatory signs posted at the public boat access area; and (3) The commands of a law enforcement officer, or department employee who is seeking to maintain order and the safety of users at the site.(r) Vehicles with attached trailers or cartop vehicles shall be parked only in designated areas.(s) No person shall park any vehicle without an attached trailer in an area which has been designated for parking of vehicles with an attached trailer.(t) If the public boat access area is filled to capacity, the area shall be closed to entry by additional vehicles and trailers for parking until such time as additional parking is available.(u) Any motor vehicles or trailers operated, occupied, used, or parked in violation of any state motor vehicle law or posted site restrictions, or directional, guide, parking, or regulatory signs at the public boat access area shall be subject to: (1) Appropriate citation by a law enforcement officer;(2) If unattended, towing and storage at the owner's expense; or(v) Any boat found unattended in a sunken, beached, or drifting condition shall be subject to the provisions of RSA 270-B. All boats left on a public boat access area in violation of this section shall be subject to removal and disposal pursuant to RSA 471-C: 14. In the event the value of the craft exceeds $250.00, the matter shall be referred to the department of justice, seeking assistance to obtain appropriate legal relief against the apparent owner of the craft.(w) No person shall block or obstruct the pedestrian or vehicular ingress or egress to a public boat access area, other than:(1) A law enforcement officer; or(2) Department personnel, or their agents or contractors, while acting in performance of their duties of management, construction, repair, or improvements to such properties.(x) No person shall conduct any form of soliciting or canvassing at a public boat access area.(y) No person shall withdraw or discharge water at a public boat access area for the following reasons, unless in the conduct of federal, state, county, or municipal public safety training or emergency operations: (1) Application of hydro-seeding materials, mixing or cleansing of equipment; (2) Application of pesticides, mixing or cleansing of equipment; (3) Construction dust control; or(4) Movement of untreated or treated waters for use in pools or spas.(z) In the absence of a special use permit obtained in accordance with Fis 1603.03 and Fis 902.03, no person shall: (1) Attach, affix, or mount any commercial or private numerals, notice, or advertisement of any description, including geocaching or letter boxing, to a department kiosk, gate, tree, or a physical improvement;(2) Construct or alter a permanent or temporary structure, including but not limited to a tree stand, observation or hunting blind, rope swing, or diving platform; (3) Alter the existing condition of the public boat access area by changing the flow of storm-water drainage or by removing any material or vegetation from the site;(4) Conduct or cause to be conducted any investigation, including the use of metal detection equipment, that could discover, yield, or alter a known or previously unrecorded historic resource, except in cooperation with the department of natural and cultural resources pursuant to RSA 227-C:9; (5) Conduct any organized activity or event that would impede the free ingress or egress of the general public;(6) Land or launch an aircraft or motorized drone; or(7) Conduct any form of commercial or non-profit activity or business on the site, excluding permitted fishing tournaments and state licensed guides associated with hunting, trapping, and fishing which would serve to: a.Consume limited parking sites, or b.Exclude other members of the public from free and fair access to the public boat access area. (aa) In order to prevent damage to the public boat access area caused by the practice known as "power loading", no person at a public boat access area ramp shall utilize the propulsion forces of an outboard or inboard motor propeller or jet to assist in the process of either launching a boat from a trailer into the water or loading a boat from the water on to a trailer, except to the minimum extent required to maintain control of the boat against the forces of wind, tide, or current then experienced. N.H. Admin. Code § Fis 1603.01
Adopted by Volume XXXVIII Number 28, Filed July 12, 2018, Proposed by #12546, Effective 6/9/2018, Expires 6/9/2028.