Whether a Nonconforming Use is Lawful Depends Upon the Facts Existing at the Time the Change in the Zoning Ordinance Created the Nonconforming Use

Practice Pointers: Whether a nonconforming use is lawful depends upon the facts existing at the time the change in the zoning ordinance created the nonconforming use. The burden to prove a lawful nonconforming use is on the party asserting that right.  Although RSA 156:26, I prohibits municipalities generally from regulating the sale, purchase, ownership, use and possession of firearms, it does not bar a town from regulating a shooting range under its zoning ordinance.  Although RSA 159-B:4 bars the retroactive application of local regulations to limit the scope of shooting activities at a shooting range, that protection is only afforded to a lawfully operated shooting range.