AT THE OUTSET: There's Good and Bad News

Good news: According to the reports I have heard most recently, membership in the Federation is healthy, and although recruitment will never end until every sportsman and woman in New jersey is a member, it is nevertheless encouraging to see that all of us may yet step up en masse to pressure our legislative powers into wise and intelligent conservation practices.

Bad news: Assembly Bill 1202, sponsored by Assemblyman Anthony Chiappone (D-Bayonne), would again drastically change the make up of the Fish and Game Council and place it within the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), rather than specifically within the Division of Fish and wildlife. The bill also calls for the Director of the division of Fish and Wildlife to be appointed by the Commissioner of the DEP. Appointees are to be recommended by anti-hunting organizations such as the Humane Society of the United States and the New Jersey Animal Rights Alliance. The bill also gives the Commissioner of the DEP the sole authority to cancel hunting seasons, without public haring, and mandates that all future wildlife regulations, including season dates and bag limited, be subject to the approval of the commission.

Good news: Spring is around the corner – trout fishing and turkey hunting, anyone?