pNew Jersey’s deer and state forests are in peril due to two pieces of legislation currently pending in the New Jersey Senate Assembly. Your prompt calls are needed to protect both the deer and their habitat, the forest, from this grotesque legislative attack led by New Jersey Senator Bob Smith (D-17)./p
pSen. Smith (D-17) re-introduced a bill in May, 2102, (S1848) that would permit the killing of deer on forest stewardship lands by heinous” poaching” methods: if passed, the bill would allow the killing of deer “with any weapon” directly over bait, at anytime of day or night, and would allow stunning deer with lights and shooting from vehicles. The bill also includes a statewide prohibition against the feeding of deer. The baiting of deer is banned in at least 26 states, and surveys report that an estimated seventy-three percent of Americans disapprove of baiting practices. This aggressive assault on New Jersey’s deer cannot be allowed to become law. /p
pThe “deer poaching” bill, S1848, was referred to the Senate Environment and Energy Committee in May, and it is currently still in this committee. The New Jersey Senate will be back in session on August 20th, and the bill could be voted on immediately. Please call the members of the Committee (below) and your own Senator and voice your opposition to this bill that would make the barbaric practice of baiting deer legal in New Jersey./p
pPlease a href=”http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/districts/municipalities.asp”use this link/a to locate your state Senator and tell them to vote against both S1848. /p
pSenator Bob Smith (Chairman)/p
p 732.752.0770/p
pLinda R. Greenstein (D-14)/p
p 609.395.9911/p
pSenator Christopher “Kip” Bateman (R-16)/p
p 908.526.3600/p
pSenator Jennifer Beck (R-11)/p
p 732.933.1591br /
Senator Jim Whelan (D-2)/p
p 609.383.1388/p
p The controversial Forest Harvest bill, (A 2837), sponsored by Assemblymember John. F. McKeon, will allow commercial logging, or “thinning,” in state forests if passed. New Jersey forests need more protection, not more logging./p
pAside from the destruction of yet more trees, logging supporters do not disclose the fact that A2837 will increase the number of white-tailed deer. Forty scientists a href=”http://www.njconservation.org/documents/40NewJerseyBiologistsandForestScientistsOPPOSEDtoS1085.pdf”signed a letter/a against the earlier version of this legislation, stating that commercial logging would “grow the deer herd even more.” The Senate version of the bill, introduced by Sen. Bob Smith, passed overwhelmingly with a vote of 36-3 on June 25th, and the Assembly version is currently in the Assembly Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee and could come up for a vote immediately. /p
pPlease use this link to a href=”http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/districts/municipalities.asp”contact your New Jersey State Assemblymember /aand tell them to vote against A2837. Please also call the members of the Assembly Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee (below) to oppose this destructive bill. We must hold our legislators accountable, and demand policies that protect and truly conserve our forests, and the wildlife that rely on the preservation of natural habitat to survive./p
pAssemblymember Nelson T. Albano (Chairman) (D-1)/p
p856.696.7109/p
pAssemblymember Gilbert L. Wilson (Vice-Chair) (D-5)/p
p856.547.4800/p
pAssemblymember Marlene Caride (D-36)/p
p201.943.0615/p
pAssemblymember Robert D. Clifton (R-12)/p
p732.446.3408/p
pAssemblymember Ronald S. Dancer (R-12)/p
p609.758.0205/p