NH Agriculture commissioner outlines staffing, fees and invasive‑species work

CONCORD — New Hampshire Department of Agriculture Commissioner Jasper gave members of House Finance Division I a sweeping overview of the department’s programs, staffing and revenue sources during a committee hearing.

Jasper said the department has 44 full‑time positions, several part‑time roles, and an array of largely self‑supporting programs that generate fees and fines that in many cases are earmarked to remain in their program accounts. “We are a net positive to the general fund every single year,” Jasper said, describing the department’s mix of general‑fund and dedicated‑fund activity.

The department’s regulatory portfolio spans food safety, agricultural development, pesticides, plant industry, weights and measures and animal industry. Jasper said the pesticide program registers about 12,000 products and that regulatory services registers nearly 20,000 animal‑feed and pet‑food products. Weights and measures regulates roughly 20,000 licensed devices, from supermarket scales to gas pumps, and the department uses licensed agents to inspect devices annually.

In plant industry work, Jasper said the department is focused on preventing invasive plants and insects from entering New Hampshire. The department now funds a full‑time biological scientist in plant industry who leads invasive‑species work. Jasper told the committee that Japanese knotweed is particularly persistent: “It is illegal to transport soil in the state of New Hampshire that has Japanese knotweed in it,” she said, and added that effective eradication methods remain elusive.

Jasper described animal‑industry workloads tied to pet transfers and veterinary records. The department recently launched a new animal database system that stores certificates of transfer; Jasper estimated it costs about $250,000 a year to maintain and proposed a possible $5 per‑search or per‑certificate fee to offset upkeep costs.

On staffing and operations, Jasper said the department is using Administrative Services for human resources and that the agency is stepping up recruitment after a period of unfilled authorized positions. She told lawmakers she had asked for an assistant commissioner because the workload made the office difficult to manage without additional leadership capacity.

Jasper also described several fee and funding questions the department is reviewing. She said some fees have not been increased in decades and noted a split in certain program revenues — for example, some pesticide fees are kept in a dedicated fund while parts flow to the general fund. She asked the committee to consider targeted fee increases to keep dedicated programs solvent and to cover technology maintenance costs tied to recent database investments.

Committee members asked about the scope of the department’s role at the Big E exposition and at other fairs. Jasper said the New Hampshire building at the Big E is run by the department and is largely self‑funded, with private donations and vendor revenues used for capital needs. The department does not run other independent town fairs but participates in farm and garden events.

On staffing levels and reductions requested by the governor’s office, Jasper said her first priority was maintaining personnel to preserve services that had been stretched thin in prior years. She said the department achieved requested reductions by reducing vehicle purchases, reallocating costs that go to town animal care, and trimming grant programs while trying to avoid cuts that would force the department back into “constant triage.”

The Department of Agriculture’s work, Jasper said, combines regulatory inspections, grant administration, outreach to towns and vendors, and a growing focus on invasive‑species coordination with municipalities and the Department of Transportation. “All we can do is work with the towns to try to keep it spreading and keep things under control,” she said of invasive plants such as Japanese knotweed and bittersweet.

The commissioner said she and her staff would provide follow‑up details requested by members, including agency headcount and further breakdowns of dedicated funds and fee proposals.