Sponsored by:
Senator VIN GOPAL
District 11 (Monmouth)
Senator LORETTA WEINBERG
District 37 (Bergen)
Co-Sponsored by:
Senator Greenstein
SYNOPSIS
Institutes moratorium on black bear hunting until adoption of new comprehensive policy on black bear management.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act instituting a moratorium on black bear hunting.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Notwithstanding any law, rule, regulation, or provision of the State Fish and Game Code to the contrary:
a. the Fish and Game Council shall immediately begin the process of adopting a new comprehensive policy pursuant to section 30 of P.L.1948, c.448 (C.13:1B-28) for the management of black bear. The policy shall include a study of non-lethal methods of black bear population control; and
b. there shall be no open season nor any hunting by permit for black bear anywhere in the State until the adoption of a new comprehensive policy for the management of black bear pursuant to subsection a. of this act.
2. This act shall take effect immediately, and shall expire upon adoption of the policy required pursuant to section 1 of this act.
STATEMENT
This bill would require the Fish and Game Council to immediately begin the process of formulating a new comprehensive policy for the management of black bear, and would institute a moratorium on black bear hunting in the State until the policy is adopted. This bill would explicitly require the council to study non-lethal population control methods as part of the comprehensive policy required by the bill.