New Jersey-2010-S333-Introduced

An Act providing for no net loss of certain State lands for the purposes of fishing, hunting, and trapping, and supplementing P.L.1983, c.324 (C.13:1L-1 et seq.) and Title 23 of the Revised Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. The Department of Environmental Protection shall administer State parks and forests in a manner to support, promote and enhance public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping opportunities and shall recognize fishing, hunting, and trapping as primary uses of those lands. The Commissioner of Environmental Protection shall not give preference to public recreational fishing, hunting, or trapping over other primary uses of State parks and forests or other priorities established by law.

2. The Department of Environmental Protection shall inventory the amount of acreage in State parks and forests available for public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping as of the date of enactment of this act. The Commissioner of Environmental Protection shall not make land management decisions or take any other action that results in any net loss of acreage in State parks and forests available for public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping opportunities on or after the date of enactment of this act. The commissioner shall expeditiously find replacement acreage to compensate for closures of any existing State park and forest land to public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping. The commissioner shall open as much State park and forest land as possible for the purposes of public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping and shall, as much as possible, expand public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping opportunities when acquiring any new land.

3. All State park and forest land shall be accessible for public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping, except for reasons of public safety or homeland security, as determined by the Commissioner of Environmental Protection in consultation with the State Police, or for reasons of environmental or wildlife management, or as otherwise provided by law.

4. The Department of Environmental Protection shall inventory the amount of acreage in State wildlife management areas, wildlife refuges, public hunting grounds, and recreational areas managed by the Division of Fish and Wildlife as of the date of enactment of this act. The Commissioner of Environmental Protection shall not make any land management decisions or take any action that results in any net loss of acreage, managed by the division, available for public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping opportunities on or after the date of enactment of this act, except in the following circumstances:

a. Closure due to environmental or biological reasons for the protection of wildlife or fisheries or their associated habitat; or

b. Reduction of acreage as a result of a land exchange wherein the department or division receives property of equal or greater value.

5. The Commissioner of Environmental Protection shall submit a written report, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), to the Legislature, and to the Senate Environment Committee and Assembly Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee, no later than the first day of March of each calendar year, which shall include:

a. An inventory of, and information about, the acreage managed by the department that was available for public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping during the previous year, the closure of such acreage, and the reasons for any closures of acreage to those uses;

b. An inventory of, and information about, the acreage managed by the department that was opened to public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping to compensate for any acreage closed; and

c. The reasons why any newly acquired State parks and forests, wildlife management areas, wildlife refuges, public hunting grounds, and recreational areas were not open to public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping.

6. The department shall work in cooperation with sportsmen, conservation organizations, and others to encourage participation in recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping at a level to ensure continuation of such activities in perpetuity and prevent any reduction in the amount of acreage available for the purposes of public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping.

7. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill would protect fishing, hunting, and trapping opportunities by providing for no net loss of certain State lands made available for the purposes of public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping. This bill requires the Commissioner of Environmental Protection to recognize fishing, hunting, and trapping as primary uses of the lands and to exercise management authority in order to promote and enhance public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping opportunities. The commissioner would not be required to give preference to fishing, hunting, or trapping over other primary uses of State park and forest land or other priorities established by law.

The commissioner would be required to make land management decisions that do not result in any net loss of acreage available for public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping opportunities and would provide for the expeditious replacement of acreage to compensate for any closures of existing land for such uses. By providing for no net loss of acreage, the department would be prohibited from reducing the amount of acreage of land, administered by the department, available for public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping opportunities in the State, on or after the date of enactment of this bill into law. Acreage dedicated to State wildlife management areas, wildlife refuges, public hunting grounds, and recreational areas, managed by the Division of Fish and Wildlife, would not be reduced except due to environmental or biological reasons for the protection of wildlife or fisheries or their associated habitat, or as a result of a land exchange wherein the department receives property of equal or greater value. State parks and forests would be accessible for the purposes of recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping unless restricted for reasons of public safety or homeland security, as limited by the commissioner in consultation with the State Police.

The commissioner would further be required to submit an annual report to the Legislature and the Senate Environment Committee and the Assembly Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee including information regarding: the acreage managed or owned by the department that had been available for public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping during the previous year, and the reasons for such closures; the amount of acreage opened to public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping to compensate for the acreage closed; and the reasons why any newly acquired State public park and forest land, wildlife management areas, wildlife refuges, public hunting grounds, and recreational areas were not open to public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping.

A number of states are considering legislation similar to this bill and a growing number of states have passed laws protecting public recreational fishing, hunting, and trapping land by preventing the net loss of acreage for such uses. Similar legislation has also been introduced in Congress to prevent the net loss of Federal public land for the purposes of fishing, hunting, and trapping.