S2880

An Act concerning penalties applicable under the State’s saltwater fishing registry program, and amending P.L.2011, c.23.

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

1. Section 1 of P.L.2011, c.23 (C.23:2B-22) is amended to read as follows:

1. a. The commissioner, in consultation with the Marine Fisheries Council, shall establish and implement a registry program for saltwater recreational anglers, which program shall provide for:

(1) the registration, including the name, date of birth, address, telephone number, and other identification and contact information determined to be necessary by the department pursuant to federal requirements, of individuals who engage in recreational fishing:

(a) in the Exclusive Economic Zone;

(b) for anadromous species;

(d) in the tidal waters of the State; and

(2) the registration, including the ownership, operator, and identification of the vessel, or vessels used in such fishing.

b. (1) The registry program established pursuant to this section shall [comply with the provisions of] be fully consistent with the registry program to be established pursuant to section 201 of Title II of the “Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Reauthorization Act of 2006,” Pub.L.109-479 (16 U.S.C. s.1881).

(2) Upon establishment of the registry program pursuant to this section, the commissioner shall apply to the [National Marine Fisheries Service of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for exempted state designation from the federal registration] Secretary of the United States Department of Commerce to obtain State exemption from federal registry program requirements.

c. The department shall not charge a fee for the registration required pursuant to this section.

d. A person who is under 16 years of age or a customer fishing from a state-licensed or federally permitted for-hire vessel shall not be required to register pursuant to this section.

e. (1) Any person who is required to register pursuant to this section, and who fails to register in accordance with established registry program requirements, shall be issued a warning to comply, except that during the second or subsequent years of the registry program’s operation, such person shall be subject, at the discretion
of the department, to the issuance of a warning or to a fine of $20. Any penalty imposed pursuant to this subsection shall be collected in the manner specified in paragraph (2) of subsection a. of section 73 of P.L.1979, c.199 (C.23:2B-14). However, no other provisions of P.L.1979, c.199 (C.23:2B-14) shall be applicable in the event that a person fails to comply with the requirements established under this section.

(2) In the event that the federal government does not approve of the penalty system established by this subsection, a person who is required, but who fails, to register in accordance with established registry program requirements shall be subject to a fine of $20 or such other amount deemed by the department to be the minimum necessary for the purposes of attaining State program exemption from federal requirements.

f. In order to facilitate and promote increased awareness of, or compliance with, registry program requirements, the department shall: (1) post information about the registry program and its requirements in a conspicuous place on the department's Internet website; and (2) develop and disseminate informational materials, including, but not limited to, pamphlets and posters, which identify the program's requirements, any relevant compliance deadlines, the available methods for attaining compliance, the penalties for non-compliance, and any other relevant program details.

In disseminating the materials developed pursuant to this subsection, the department shall provide informational pamphlets or other appropriate materials to the State's conservation officers, for distribution to individuals engaged in recreational fishing activities; and it shall provide informational posters, signs, pamphlets, and other appropriate materials to the State's bait and tackle shops, for display therein, and for distribution to bait and tackle consumers.

g. Any non-resident of New Jersey who is engaged in recreational fishing activities in this State shall be exempt from compliance with the State’s registry program requirements if: (1) the person is registered under another state’s registry program and the state in which the person is registered provides reciprocal exemption from its own registration requirements for persons who are registered under this State’s registry program; or (2) the person is registered under the regionally-based registry program established by the federal government in accordance with the provisions of section 201 of Title II of the “Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Reauthorization Act of 2006,” Pub.L.109-479 (16 U.S.C. s.1881).

(cf: P.L.2011, c.23, s.1)

2. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill would provide a specific penalty for persons who fail to comply with the State’s newly established saltwater fishing registration requirements, which are being implemented by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) in accordance with the provisions of the saltwater fishing registry law, P.L.2011, c.23 (C.23:2B-22) (“registry law”).

The DEP has indicated that persons who fail to comply with its saltwater fishing registration requirements will be subject to preexisting penalties of $300 to $3,000 for a first time offense, and $500 to $5,000 for any subsequent offense. Although these penalties have been derived from the State’s “Marine Fisheries Management and Commercial Fisheries Act,” P.L.1979, c.199 (C.23:2B-1 et seq.), to which the registry law was a supplement, anglers have indicated their strong belief that the application of these fines for registry offenses is excessive.

Accordingly, the bill would amend the State’s registry law to establish a lower penalty for saltwater fishing registration offenses. In particular, the bill would provide that a person who fails to comply with the DEP’s saltwater fishing registration requirements will be subject to the issuance of a warning, except that in the second or subsequent years of the registry program's operation, such person would be subject, at the discretion of the department, to the issuance of a warning or to a fine of $20. The bill would require any penalties imposed for saltwater fishing registration offenses to be collected in accordance with the procedures identified in the “Marine Fisheries Management and Commercial Fisheries Act.” However, none of the act’s penalties would be applicable to persons who fail to comply with registry program requirements.

The bill would additionally provide that, in the event the federal government does not approve of the bill’s penalty system, a person who is required, but who fails, to register in accordance with established registry program requirements will be subject to a fine of $20 or such other amount deemed by the department to be the minimum necessary to comply with federal requirements for State program exemption.

The bill also would require the DEP to post information about the registry program and its requirements on its Internet website, and to develop informational materials, including pamphlets and posters, which identify the program's requirements, its relevant compliance deadlines, the penalties for non-compliance, instructions for attaining compliance, and any other relevant program details. The department would be required to distribute these materials, as appropriate, to (1) the State’s conservation officers, for distribution to individuals engaged in recreational fishing activities, and (2) to the State’s bait and tackle shops, for display therein, and distribution to bait and tackle consumers.

Finally, the bill would exempt from the State’s registry program requirements any non-resident of the State who has been registered: (1) under another state’s registry program, provided that the other state provides reciprocal exemption from its own registration requirements for persons who are registered under this State’s registry program; or (2) under the regionally-based registry program established by the federal government pursuant to the federal “Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Reauthorization Act of 2006.”