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Timber ticket bill advances after split between forest service and industry on practicality
Summary
HB1752 would require origin information on scale slips or industry receipts to help forest rangers trace stolen timber to property of origin. Division of Forests & Lands supports a narrowed version after testifying about multiple theft prosecutions; timber industry groups warned the paperwork burden would be impractical and that determined thieves can falsify records.
Representative Heath Howard introduced HB1752 with amended language aimed at adding a required origin field to scale slips (the mill paperwork generated when logs are purchased) to speed enforcement of timber theft and protect landowners.
Sponsor testimony and Division of Forests & Lands evidence showed multiple recent theft investigations and indictments where lack of origin information made cases harder and prolonged investigations; the state forester said rangers recently built multiple indictments around one contractor and that recorded thefts were in the tens of thousands of dollars in individual cases.
Timber industry witnesses, including the New Hampshire Timberland Owners Association and mill operators, opposed a wide paperwork mandate. They said a scale slip is produced at mills, logs are often mixed during processing and concentration yards break and reassemble loads; they argued that falsified paperwork would not deter a determined thief and that the paperwork burden would be time‑consuming and degrade industry efficiency. Division of Forests & Lands said the amended, narrower approach requiring an origin field tied to existing intent‑to‑cut data would be a manageable first step and was supportive of the amendment.
Ending: Committee heard sharply divided testimony; sponsor agreed to work with industry and DNCR on drafting to minimize impractical burdens while providing enforcement value.
