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CONCORD, N.H. (AP) - Hikers and others rescued in New Hampshire's backwoods would pay several hundred dollars in fees to the state to help bring the search and rescue fund out of the red under new legislation.
House Republican Leader Gene Chandler has filed a bill that proposed a variety of ways to raise money, including a fee paid by people who are rescued. The amount of the fee could be on a sliding scale based on the cost of the rescue.
Fish and Game Maj. Kevin Jordan says recent rescue costs have ranged from less than $200 to more than $50,000. He says hunters, anglers, boaters, snowmobilers and all-terrain vehicle riders pay 100% of the rescue costs through license fees but make up an average of only 14% of the rescues since 2006.
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