STATE OF NEW JERSEY
216th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2014 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator BOB SMITH
District 17 (Middlesex and Somerset)
Senator STEPHEN M. SWEENEY
District 3 (Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem)
Senator LINDA R. GREENSTEIN
District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)
Senator CHRISTOPHER "KIP" BATEMAN
District 16 (Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset)
Co-Sponsored by:
Senator Norcross
SYNOPSIS
Prohibits use of certain fishing gear at artificial reef sites.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
An Act prohibiting the use of certain fishing gear at artificial reef sites and supplementing P.L.1979, c.199 (C.23:2B-1 et seq.).
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. No person, within the marine waters of the State, may use, leave unattended, set or deploy fishing gear, other than rod-and-reel, hand line, spear, or recreational gig, within 300 feet of any permitted artificial reef site.
b. The department shall apply, within three months after the date of enactment of this act, to the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council to designate all permitted artificial reef sites constructed under the Artificial Reef Program of the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife within federal waters as Special Management Zones pursuant to section 648.148 of title 50, Code of Federal Regulations.
c. As used in this section, “permitted artificial reef site” means an area for which the department, or any other State agency, has been issued a permit by the United States Army Corp of Engineers for the construction of an artificial reef, the coordinates of which are established pursuant to permit CENAP-OP-R-200401135-1, or any such subsequent permit therefor or update thereto, and which are identified on nautical charts 12326, 12323, 12318, and 12214 issued by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would prohibit, within the marine waters of the State, any person from using, leaving unattended, setting, or deploying fishing gear, other than rod-and-reel, hand line, spear, or recreational gig, within 300 feet of a permitted artificial reef site created under the artificial reef program of the Division of Fish and Wildlife in the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). “Permitted artificial reef site” is defined in the committee substitute as an area for which a United States Army Corps of Engineers permit has been issued, including any subsequent permit or update thereto, for the construction of an artificial reef. The definition includes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permit number and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration chart numbers. Violators would be subject to the penalties established for violations of the “Marine Fisheries Management and Commercial Fisheries Act.”
This bill would also require the DEP to apply to the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council to designate New Jersey’s permitted artificial reef sites in federal waters as Special Management Zones. The purpose of this application would be to limit commercial fishing taking place on New Jersey’s artificial reef sites in federal waters.