TITLE L
WATER MANAGEMENT AND PROTECTION

CHAPTER 483
NEW HAMPSHIRE RIVERS MANAGEMENT AND PROTECTION PROGRAM

Section 483:12-a

    483:12-a State Action; Notification of Rivers Coordinator; Petition for Review. –

[Paragraph I effective until July 10, 2028; see also paragraph I set out below.]


I. Any state agency considering any action affecting any river or segment designated under this chapter shall ensure that the rivers coordinator and the local river management advisory committee are notified prior to taking any such action. Such agency shall forward to the rivers coordinator and the local river management advisory committee for review and comment copies of all notices of public hearings, or, where a public hearing is not required, shall ensure that a copy of the application for issuance of a permit, certificate, or license within the designated river or corridor under RSA 485-C, RSA 485-A, RSA 483-B, RSA 12-E, RSA 270:12, RSA 482, RSA 482-A is provided, except notifications for minimum impact activities under RSA 482-A:3, V and XII and for routine roadway maintenance under RSA 482-A:3, XVI on land used for agricultural purposes, RSA 149-M, RSA 430, or RSA 147-A. If an agency is notified by the rivers coordinator that a proposed activity would violate a protection measure under RSA 483:9, 483:9-a, 483:9-aa, or 483:9-b, such agency shall deny the application.

[Paragraph I effective July 10, 2028; see also paragraph I set out above.]


I. Any state agency considering any action affecting any river or segment designated under this chapter shall ensure that the rivers coordinator and the local river management advisory committee are notified prior to taking any such action. Such agency shall forward to the rivers coordinator and the local river management advisory committee for review and comment copies of all notices of public hearings, or, where a public hearing is not required, shall ensure that a copy of the application for issuance of a permit, certificate, or license within the designated river or corridor under RSA 485-C, RSA 485-A, RSA 483-B, RSA 270:12, RSA 482, RSA 482-A is provided, except notifications for minimum impact activities under RSA 482-A:3, V and XII and for routine roadway maintenance under RSA 482-A:3, XVI on land used for agricultural purposes, RSA 149-M, RSA 430, or RSA 147-A. If an agency is notified by the rivers coordinator that a proposed activity would violate a protection measure under RSA 483:9, 483:9-a, 483:9-aa, or 483:9-b, such agency shall deny the application.
I-a. State agencies shall develop, in conjunction with the rivers coordinator and the local river management advisory committees, the procedure by which the appropriate local river management advisory committee is notified when state action is being considered which affects a designated river.
II. If an application is denied solely because the proposed activity would violate a protection measure under RSA 483:9, 483:9-a, 483:9-aa, or 483:9-b, the applicant may petition the commissioner for a review. Within 30 days of receiving such a petition, the commissioner, in consultation with the advisory committee and the appropriate local rivers management advisory committee, shall review the application. If the commissioner determines that the proposed activity is consistent with the character of the designated river or segment or that the proposed activity would provide a public benefit sufficient to outweigh the public benefit of a protection measure under this chapter, the commissioner shall submit to the speaker of the house and the president of the senate a recommendation that the proposed activity be allowed to proceed. Such recommendation shall require review and approval by the general court and shall be filed as a bill in the next legislative session following the petition.

Source. 1990, 233:14. 1995, 219:3. 2007, 285:8. 2009, 201:13, eff. July 15, 2009. 2016, 287:33, eff. Aug. 20, 2016. 2026, 67:2, eff. July 7, 2026; 292:11, eff. July 10, 2028.