LEGISLATIVE FISCAL ESTIMATE TO

SENATE, No. 2309

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED: DECEMBER 29, 1997

      Senate Bill No. 2309 of 1997 increases the fees for various hunting and fishing licenses, permits, and stamps and makes various revisions to the laws establishing those licenses, permits, and stamps. For example, youths above 10 years and below 16 years of age would be able to obtain free hunting licenses while youths below 16 years of age would not need a license to fish. Another example is reflected by the authorization of a new $2.00 fee to be collected from migratory bird hunters for the purpose of meeting the costs of complying with information collection activities mandated by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program.

      Last, agents/clerks fees for issuing licences and stamps would be increased from $0.50 to $0.75. All revenues generated from these fees are dedicated to the Division of Fish, Game and Wildlife to support its annual operating budget.

      Although the Division of Fish, Game and Wildlife did not respond to the Office of Legislative Services' request for fiscal information on the bill, it did provide fiscal impact data to the bill's sponsors. The division estimates that $13,857,217, rather than its current projection of $11,009,305 in net revenues for 1998, would be generated if the various fee increases and other changes proposed by the bill were enacted. The bill would therefore generate $2,847,912 in additional net revenues in 1998 and thereafter (if pertinent rate and participant variables remain constant). This estimate is based on a "sales resistance dropout" rate of 4 percent for fishing licenses and 6 percent for hunting licenses.

      The Office of Legislative Services concurs with these estimates.

This fiscal estimate has been prepared pursuant to P.L.1980, c.67.