Fish and Game tells Senate committee timelines must protect endangered species; department open to coordinated fixes

Sen. Tim Lang, sponsor of Senate Bill 109, told the committee the bill intends to set firm timelines for agency reviews of alteration of terrain (AOT) permits and to create a Threatened and Endangered Species Compensatory Mitigation Fund that would receive mitigation fees collected during permitting.

Why it matters: The bill links permitting timelines to development and housing goals while directing some mitigation fees into a fund to pay for compensatory work. It affects how Fish and Game consults on projects, how other agencies incorporate Fish and Game recommendations into permits, and whether Fish and Game can require species‑specific mitigation rules.

Stephanie Simic, executive director of New Hampshire Fish and Game, said the agency supports efforts to improve permitting efficiency but raised several drafting and operational concerns. "This bill does not just affect alteration of terrain permits, but it affects our whole environmental permitting and review process within our agency," she said, and asked the committee to review a letter the department filed with detailed concerns.

Dan…