← New Hampshire burn ban rules›Current Fire Restrictions
New Hampshire Current Fire Restrictions (2026)
Info: LawLert last read the New Hampshire General Court RSA 227-L:17 page on November 4, 2026 and cannot re-read it. New Hampshire requires a written permit from the local forest fire warden before any outside burning. Under RSA 227-L:17, no person, firm or corporation shall kindle or cause to be kindled any fire, or burn any material, without first obtaining a written permit from the forest fire warden of the town where the burning is to be done, unless it is in the presence of the warden or the warden's agent. The statute's "except when the ground is covered with snow" wording sits in the same sentence right after its rule on towns burning at public dumps, so it is unclear whether snow cover exempts anyone else - ask your town's forest fire warden before burning, even on snow. Camp or cooking fires need the written permission of the landowner and of the town's forest fire warden, and may be built without written permission only on public camp or picnic grounds open to the public, or at private camp and picnic places with fireplaces the warden has approved; a camp or cooking fire means "a small fire suitable for cooking purposes" and never household rubbish or large amounts of brush. Violating the section is a misdemeanor; willfully or recklessly kindling a fire that endangers a woodland is a misdemeanor for a person and a felony for a company, and whoever burns without a required permit is liable in a civil action for the warden's costs of attending or extinguishing the fire. New Hampshire's daily fire-danger class is not published on a web page LawLert can read: the Division of Forests and Lands posts it each weekday morning (Friday for the weekend) on its X account and daily fire-weather email, and on its wildfire information line, 1-866-NH-FIRES (866-643-4737). Your town's forest fire warden, who issues the permit, can tell you whether burning is allowed today. Statute re-read November 4, 2026.
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“and no city or town shall kindle or maintain a fire on a public dump except when the ground is covered with snow without first obtaining a written permit”
Read on Nov 2, 2026 from gencourt.state.nh.us. Quoted as published there; the summary above is LawLert’s plain-language reading of it.
Checked against the official source 2 times between Oct 24, 2026 and Nov 2, 2026. A check re-reads the source and tries to refute the published wording; when it fails, the wording is rewritten from the source and logged in Corrections.
Check the live restriction status: nhdfl.dncr.nh.gov →
General legal information, not legal advice — verify important decisions with a licensed attorney.
Current Fire Restrictions in states bordering New Hampshire
How each neighboring state LawLert has verified classifies the same rule, with its own official source and the date it was last checked. The wording is on that state’s page.
- MaineInfo
Verified Nov 13, 2026 · Source: mainefireweather.org · Full Maine rule →
- MassachusettsInfo
Verified Oct 9, 2026 · Source: mass.gov · Full Massachusetts rule →
- VermontInfo
Verified Oct 13, 2026 · Source: fpr.vermont.gov · Full Vermont rule →
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