NH Fish and Game to hold public hearings on proposed hunting season rules 

New Hampshire Fish and Game is reporting stable and increasing deer, bear, and turkey populations, and will propose additional hunting opportunities as a result. 

Hearings on the proposed changes for the 2023-2024 hunting season will be held in March and April in Concord, Keene, and Lancaster. Fish and Game recommends changes every two years based on field data and goals of the state’s 10-year Game Management Plan. 

In 2022, Fish and Game reported more than 60,000 hunters in New Hampshire. 

The department said the state’s 2022 deer seasons resulted in the highest harvest in the past 10 years and third largest in state history. As a result, it proposes increased hunting opportunities in certain areas of the state. 

Also proposed is the opportunity for hunters to take a second bear in the White Mountains, and lengthening bear hunting season in southeast regions of the state. Fish and Game also wants to establish bear registration stations like it already has for deer and turkey. Turkey populations are currently “robust” in most areas of the state, the department said. 

Fish and Game is recommending the issuance of 35 moose permits for the fall, two of which are set aside for the New Hampshire Wildlife Federation and New Hampshire Wildlife Heritage Foundation.

Hearings on the proposed 2023-2024 season rules are as follows:

• March 30 at Fish and Game Department headquarters, 11 Hazen Drive, Concord, 6 p.m.
• April 4 at Keene High School, room 620, 43 Arche Street, Keene, 6 p.m.
• April 5 at Fish and Game’s Region 1 office on Route 3, 629B Main Street, Lancaster, 6 p.m.

For more information about all proposed rules and changes, visit https://nhfishgame.com/2023/03/09/wildlife-rule-proposal-hearings-set-2/.