2015 Implementation of NH HikeSafe Card

[RoySwkr]

Hearing Monday was strictly on how electronic issuance would work, law already states card is for calendar year and sets fee as $25 individual, $35 family

Card can only be purchased over Internet

Purchaser must supply name, birthdate, height, weight, hair and eye color, street address, credit card info, and e-mail address for confirmation

Family permit also covers spouse and minor children, only names and birthdates required

Boat or ATV registration covers owner only not family members

Organizations may not buy cards

License vendors may allow you to use their Internet access but don't sell cards direct

Additional comments can be sent to [email protected] before Sept.15

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It was suggested that gift buys be encouraged like hunting/fishing licenses, not presently allowed

Summer camps cannot buy cards, each kid covered separately by parents?

No plans to bill anyone with card, this would discourage purchases

After the official hearing, Col. Garabedian allowed discussion of other topics. Since the moderators have locked that note, here is what he said about the Belknap Range incident. It was the Town of Gilford not F&G who called the DHART helicopter, he is sure DHART will send a bill to somebody but it won't be F&G.

 

[hikerbrian]

So, if I get a card and hike with a group that requires rescue for negligence and no one else in the group has a card, does the group get billed (but not me)? If so, how is the bill divided?

Similarly, if I get an individual card and take my minor children hiking and we require rescue, will they be billed but not me?

Thanks for the update.

 

[Creag Nan Drochaid]

I stand by my remarks on page 11 of the "house study committee" thread. The hiking community was not believed, the success of the Colorado rescue insurance card was not believed, very few people will buy this card at the price, coverage, uncertainty of "negligence", and annual term it has. We will be back at this in a year or two. Oh well... at least the other user groups who buy licenses got to vent about those irresponsible hikers, and F&G is more likely to bill people than ever since they can say "You shoulda bought the card."

Enough! I'm going hiking

 

[HAMTERO]

I don't have any problem with the card myself

 

[sdways01]

Already bought my ATV registration for the year, so I guess I'm good. Although if I am hiking and not riding my ATV, that only makes so much sense to even me.

 

[RoySwkr]

Already bought my ATV registration for the year, so I guess I'm good.

Remember that this works by calendar year, so if you are hiking in January 2015 you may need to have bought your boat registration for 2015 already even if the lake is still frozen

It's possible that a stack of old registrations will do as an indication of intent, but if we all agree on one thing it's that nobody can be sure what F&G will do

 

[Mike P.]

Will buy one when I can pay cash at a location just like the parking pass. $25 a year, IMO is too high, my car can bring five people up to the Whites, $20 for parking when you factor the per person charge is one thing, asking them to each pony up $25.00 annually is just a money grab.

Is this deposited with SAR or into the general fund. If the former, any wagers on how many years before it goes to the latter. (the folks in the CT SLOB, state legislative office building, really, I wasn't being mean, that's what they called the new building, have done the funding bait and switch with the general fund a few times.)

 

[bikehikeskifish]

Will buy one when I can pay cash at a location just like the parking pass. $25 a year, IMO is too high, my car can bring five people up to the Whites, $20 for parking when you factor the per person charge is one thing, asking them to each pony up $25.00 annually is just a money grab.

Parking is $3/car/day or $20/car/year ($25 for dual cars, same household). http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/whitemountain/passes-permits/recreation/?cid=stelprdb5297292

Tim

 

[RoySwkr]

$25 a year, IMO is too high,

It is too high on a per-person basis by an order of magnitude for actual F&G expense, but since less than 1% of hikers will pay it will bring in too little

Is this deposited with SAR or into the general fund. If the former, any wagers on how many years before it goes to the latter.

By law it (less $3 or so to Internet vendor) goes to the special account at F&G to pay their SAR expenses

I can't see that it will ever raise enough even to cover the F&G expense, if it does there are other SAR groups that deserve a share

 

[sdways01]

Remember that this works by calendar year, so if you are hiking in January 2015 you may need to have bought your boat registration for 2015 already even if the lake is still frozen

It's possible that a stack of old registrations will do as an indication of intent, but if we all agree on one thing it's that nobody can be sure what F&G will do

If my ATV registration is valid June - May, then so should my rescue coverage. I bet they wouldn't tell a snowmobile rider his registration doesn't cover him on Jan 2 when he needs help all because a different kind of coverage would need to be repurchased then.