State: NJ

Why It Matters: Across the nation, state fish and wildlife agencies, or, more specifically, fish and wildlife boards/commissions/councils, are seeing a push for non-consumptive representation. This poses a threat to conservation, as sportsmen and women are the primary funders of state-level conservation efforts. Such legislation (Assembly Bill 2005 [A2005]/Senate Bill 471 [S471]) seeks to strip three of the six seats for sportsmen on the council and insert three seats for individuals from animal […]

Why It Matters: The 2024-2025 New Jersey legislature adjourns on January 12th, and the 2026-2027 session quickly starts the next day on the 13th. Due to the final push of the 2024-2025 session and to prepare for 2026-2027, just before Christmas the New Jersey Angling and Hunting Conservation Caucus held an event with the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) and the New Jersey Outdoor Alliance (NJOA) in the New Jersey…

Why It Matters: Each year, legislators look at ways to recognize and thank certain qualified individuals/groups by providing free and/or discounted licenses for hunting, fishing, and trapping. While this is well-intended, such legislation has the potential to reap deteriorative effects on the fish and wildlife agencies’ budgets. To prevent the loss of sportsmen-generate dollars for…

Why It Matters: New Jersey Assembly Bill 2920 (AB 2920) would increase the minimum age for the issuance of a trapping license from 12 years of age to 18. Increasing the minimum age for someone to be eligible to participate in trapping would be extremely detrimental to the recruitment, retention, and reactivation (R3) of trappers,…

Why It Matters: In the Garden State, successfully passing pro-sportsmen and women’s legislation is an uphill battle. New Jersey Senator and Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus Co-Chair, Parker Space, continues to be a champion for sportsmen and women and because of his dedication, he was awarded with the New Jersey Outdoor Alliances (NJOA) Conservation Leadership Award.  NJOA…

Many sportsmen and women depend on federal lands managed by agencies such as the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for access to activities like hunting, fishing and recreational shooting. As these agencies develop strategies to manage federal lands, it is critical for those who support these activities…

In many areas of the country, state court rulings, as well as actions taken by local and state governments, have limited freshwater angling access. To prevent unnecessary closures that negatively affect freshwater angling, it is important that closures be based on scientific evidence. Recent developments regarding freshwater angling access have led to a growing concern…

In addition to the American System of Conservation Funding, some states have begun to seek alternative methods of funding for their fish and wildlife agencies. A conservation sales tax on all taxable goods is one such mechanism that states might consider implementing. This excise tax is primarily applied to sporting goods such as firearms and…

Properly managed wildlife habitat is essential for supporting sustainable and healthy wildlife populations. Well-managed lands containvarious successional stages that provide a diversity of habitats capable of supporting a diversity of wildlife. On federal lands, however, young forests and other early seral habitats are often underrepresented. The most efficient method to improve wildlife habitat is through…

Revenue from sporting licenses is a crucial element for funding state fish and wildlife agencies’ conservation efforts across the nation. However, well-intentioned programs to offer free and discounted licenses to certain qualified individuals/groups have the potential to reap deteriorative effects on the agencies’ budgets. To prevent the loss of sportsmen-generated dollars for conservation funding, some…