Julie Evans

Thank you for the opportunity to submit testimony on HB 1691. I am a landowner in Coos County. I am opposed to HB1691 as written. This bill would overhaul the Current Use Assessment law which is not needed; furthermore it is overly restrictive and in opposition to the goals of the current use program. The proposed restrictions on acreage in any given community is arbitrary and unfair. Current Use law should not be addressing specific land management actions such as pesticides or clearcutting or requiring specific species to be on a given piece of land. These are forestry practices addressed in other existing state laws. Current Use is critical to support NH's forested landscape for scenic beauty, as a backdrop to our recreation industry, and most importantly as a foundation for our forest economy. The Current Use program must ensure landowners can afford to keep land as forests, without loss of private property rights. Finally, this is extremely burdensome to both communities and landowners without clear benefits to anyone. I hope the committee will kill this bill. I thank you for your consideration.