General
1. These guidelines are intended to assists the Board of Selectmen in administering the granting of recreational access to certain Town properties and are intended to be advisory to the Board of Selectman. The specific use of Town owned land for hunting by legal residents of Hampton shall be authorized by the Board of Selectmen of the Town of Hampton, or the chairman of the Board of Hunting Oversight, when established. A legal resident is one who has a legal permanent physical address in Hampton, normally a state issued ID (requiring notification of change of address within 48 hours). Applicants for recreational use of town owned property shall not be assessed a tax or charged a fee, for the granting of such privilege.
2. A board consisting of no less than three or more than five individuals (holding a valid Ct Hunting License) shall be appointed to ensure fairness and equal opportunity for all applicants is maintained; and shall have administrative oversight of the process to include additions to or repealing of any aspect of policy, rules or regulation within the purview of the town; the process by which selection of applicants are conducted and permitting authorized; the power to temporarily remove prior authorization until a formal appeal can be completed; the power to enforce all policy, rules and regulations specific to the town. All users must at all times behave in a civil and sportsman like manner or potentially face lifetime revocation of the privilege to use town property for any or all use. The use of Town owned land for other recreational, commercial or private uses is not specifically addressed herein except that all users of such are responsible for being familiar with all rules, policies, regulations, and laws of the town and state as they may apply to hunting; shall be required to wear fluorescent orange during the hunting seasons.
3. Appeals of restriction, denial or revocation of authorized use shall be decided by any such body appointed (Ad-Hoc) by the Selectmen to hear such an appeal except that no person directly involved in the restriction, denial or revocation process may serve on such a body. The composition of such an appeals entity shall be at minimum two thirds of its members licensed hunters within the state; all actions taken shall be final and may be of either a temporary or permanent nature; all actions taken shall be reviewed by the Board of Selectmen.
4. Notification of the citizenry that hunting activity is possible or is in fact occurring on town or private property is not required by statute (Sec. 7-32k.) but may be posted at the discretion of the Board of Selectmen. The town may post season dates and times on the town website or link the information. The state statute referring to hunter harassment applies (Sec. 53a-183a).The Board shall maintain a list of all permitted applicants for the current season for use in validating authorization by the board or such other entity tasked with enforcement; and a list of the same for a period of not more than three years solely for the use of selection of applicants to ensure fairness and any other official use determined by law.
Rules
In addition to all applicable state statutes and regulations pertaining to hunting, the following rules shall apply to hunting on town-owned property.
1. All authorized users of town properties are granted use with the understanding and agreement that the applicant will follow all applicable written town policies, ordinances, regulation, rules and laws that may apply; and to report all violations of rules, regulation or laws to the Board of Hunting Oversight and Selectmen, or the appropriate state official as soon as possible upon being aware of such.
2. Consent shall be valid for the time frame specified, not to exceed thirteen months. A consent shall terminate when the applicant is no longer a legal resident of the Town of Hampton, or when any other required permit, certification, license, or requisite for the activity requested is suspended, revoked or expires.
3. No motor vehicles are allowed for use on the premises except for those specifically authorized for use by the handicapped or for parking in designated parking areas or roadside parking not otherwise prohibited by law. All motor vehicle use (except for parking) shall be authorized in writing on the consent form. Non motorized modes of transportation including but not limited to bicycles, horses, dog sleds, etc… that may have a negative impact upon the land may be limited (in writing) or denied for use.
4. No permanent structure/s may be erected or left upon the premises, temporary structures such as ground blinds, tree stands and climbing aids may be used so long as their use is not affixed to a tree other than by easily removable threaded fasteners or straps (preferred). All structures must have the authorized users name attached. Ground blinds when in use, shall have a fluorescent orange flag (400 Square inches, visible from all sides) erected above and within 12 ft of the structure.
5. No dressing of game shall occur on the property. All waste material (including shell casings) shall be removed from the property.
Season dates/application process and selection
1. Season dates may vary from year to year; consult the DEEP Hunting Field Guide for season dates.
Seasons specific to Junior Hunters are restricted to 2 junior hunters per session per day except that Spring Turkey is limited to one session per day.
2. Application to hunt town owned land shall be made using the DEEP consent form, and a completed appendix A, submitted to the Board of Hunting Oversight by 1 March of each year (or such date determined by the Board). (See Links at Bottom of Page)
3. Selection of applicants by the board shall be determined by lottery and or such other best practice to ensure fairness in selection of the participants for the year.
Applicants selected may be required to attend a preseason briefing to include review of these rules, safety precautions, ethics, state hunting regulations and any specific data for the unique characteristics of the parcel concerned, to be scheduled by the Board.Agreement to Indemnify and Hold Harmless- Appendix A
Private Land Consent Form