ASSEMBLY, No. 1502

 

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

 

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 8, 1996

 

 

By Assemblyman T. SMITH

 

 

An Act concerning marine fisheries and amending P.L.1979, c.199.

 

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

 

    1. Section 4 of P.L.1979, c.199 (C. 23:2B-4) is amended to read as follows:

    4. a. There is hereby created in the department a Marine Fisheries Council, which shall consist of [11] 15 members, [nine] 13 of whom shall be appointed by the Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate, of whom [four] five shall represent and be knowledgeable of the interests of sports fishermen, [two] five shall be active commercial fin fishermen, one shall be [an active fish processor, and two] the chairperson of the council and shall not represent the interests of either the sports fishermen or the active commercial fin fishermen, one shall have a marine science or technical background, and one shall represent the general public[; the] . The other two members shall be the chairmen of the two sections of the Shell Fisheries Council.

    [Of the nine members first to be appointed by the Governor, three shall be appointed for a term of 1 year, three for a term of 2 years, and three for a term of 3 years.] Of the six new members to be appointed by the Governor pursuant to P.L. , c. (C. ) (now before the Legislature as this bill), one commercial fin fisherman and one representative of the sports fishermen shall be appointed for a term of one year, one commercial fin fisherman shall be appointed for a term of two years, and one commercial fin fisherman shall be appointed for a term of three years. The chairperson shall be appointed at the next expiration following the effective date of that act of the term of the active fish processor member, and the member with a marine science or technical background shall be appointed at the next expiration following the effective date of that act of the term of a citizen member. Thereafter, all appointments shall be made for terms of 3 years. Upon the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (now before the Legislature as this bill), new members shall be appointed to the council subject to the requirement that the council shall include one commercial fin fisherman and one representative of the sports fishermen from each of the counties of Monmouth, Ocean, Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland.

    b. All appointed members shall serve after the expiration of their terms until their respective successors are appointed and shall qualify, and any vacancy occurring in the appointed membership of the council, by expiration of term or otherwise, shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment for the unexpired term only, notwithstanding that the previous incumbent may have held over and continued in office as aforesaid. The Governor may remove any member of the council for cause upon notice and opportunity to be heard.

    Members of the council shall serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for expenses actually incurred in attending meetings of the council and in the performance of their duties as members thereof.

    [The Governor shall appoint a chairman, from the citizen members of the council, who shall serve at his pleasure. Six] c. The chairperson shall vote only in the case of a tie. Eight members of the council shall constitute a quorum to transact its business.

    d. The Governor shall appoint the chief administrative officer of the marine fisheries program for a term of four years.

(cf: P.L.1979, c.199, s.4)

 

    2. Section 7 of P.L.1977, c.199 (C.23:2B-7) is amended to read as follows:

    7. The commissioner shall have the following powers and duties:

    a. Administer and enforce the laws, rules and regulations relating to fisheries resources;

    b. Appoint all necessary employees, other than the chief administrative officer , of the marine fisheries program [and all other necessary employees], including enforcement personnel, within the limits of available revenues;

    c. Develop and implement a program for the management of fisheries resources, including such species related management plans as may be appropriate;

    d. Acquire by gift or purchase and hold real property in the name of the State, or any right or interest therein, including, but not limited to, easements or rights of access;

    e. Accept for the State any Federal funds apportioned under Federal law related to authorized programs of the department and to do such acts as are necessary for the purpose of carrying out such Federal laws; and to accept from any other agency or government, individual, group, or corporation, such funds, gifts, or devises as may be available to carry out the purposes of this act;

    f. Make periodic reports to the Governor and the Legislature, including therein such recommendations for changes and amendments in existing law and licensing procedures as are warranted by investigations and research;

    g. Conduct or sponsor a program or programs for research and development of fisheries resources of the State, in cooperation, where appropriate, with Rutgers, The State University, the Marine Sciences Consortium, and other responsible research or academic agencies, which programs shall include, but not be limited to biological, chemical, technological, hydrological, processing, marketing, financial, economic, and promotional research and development. The department may carry out such a program or programs in cooperation with other State agencies, Federal, regional, and local governmental entities, or with private institutions or persons;

    h. Establish programs for public education concerning the conservation, utilization, development, and enhancement of fisheries resources;

    i. Acquire, introduce, and propagate marine fish species in such manner as will carry out the fisheries resources management programs;

    j. To coordinate and integrate the marine fisheries program established herein with the activities of all other State agencies which affect fisheries resources, and access thereto including but not limited to, freshwater fisheries, coastal zone management, water pollution control and marine law enforcement; and,

    k. To encourage every agency which operates a bridge or road over any of the marine waters of this State to construct a fishing platform on each such bridge.

(cf: P.L.1979, c.199, s.7)

 

    3. This act shall take effect immediately, except that the chairman appointed by the Governor from the citizen members of the council shall serve until the commencement of the term of the new chairperson to be appointed at the expiration of the current term of the active fish processor member.

 

 

STATEMENT

 

    This bill would increase the membership of the Marine Fisheries Council from 11 to 15 members. Six new members would be added and two, the active fish processor member and one of the members representing the general public, would be removed at the end of their current terms.

    Three of the new members would be active commercial fin fishermen and one of the new members would represent the interests of sports fishermen. One new member would be a person with a marine science or technical background. The other new member would be a chairperson who would not represent specifically the interests of either the sports fishermen or the active commercial fin fishermen. The chairperson would be appointed to replace the active fish processor member, and would vote only in the case of a tie. Because of the increased membership, the required quorum for the council would be increased from six to eight.

    The State's commercial fishing industry provides fish and shellfish for more than four million local consumers and is vital to the economies of numerous coastal communities and major ports in the counties of Monmouth, Ocean, Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland. Four of these counties are not currently represented on the Marine Fisheries Council by members representing the commercial fishing industry, because there are only two seats on the council for representatives of the commercial fishing industry.

    The council is unbalanced because the sports fishing interests have twice as many seats (four) on the council as the commercial fishermen have. Even within the sports fishing delegation, there is a lack of balance because Monmouth County and Atlantic County, which are both major sport fishing areas, are not represented on the council.

    Further, although the chairperson is required to be appointed from among the two representatives of the general public on the council, there is no guarantee currently that the chairperson will be impartial between the two industry groups.

    Finally, there is a need for the marine fisheries administrator to be more impartial and accountable to the Marine Fisheries Council. This bill would therefore have the Governor appoint the administrator and limit the administrator's position to a four-year term.

 

 

 

Changes membership and procedures of Marine Fisheries Council and limits term of marine fisheries administrator.