Hooked on Fishing not on Drugs Passes NJ Assembly Committee

TRENTON, NJ –-(Ammoland.com)- Hooked on Fishing not on Drugs (A638), a bill that the New Jersey Outdoor Alliance has made a priority to become law was unanimously approved by the Assembly Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee last week.

NJOA (CF) council members present at the hearing and testifying in favor of the bill were New Jersey Outdoor Alliance, Jersey Coast Anglers Association, and New Jersey State Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs. Other groups also testified for the bill, including New Jersey Recreation and Parks Association.

Committee members:

• Albano, Nelson T. (D)
• Clifton, Robert D. (R)
• Wilson, Gilbert L. (D)
• Caride, Marlene (D)
• Dancer, Ronald S. (R)

Bill sponsors:

• Rumpf, Brian E. as Primary Sponsor
• Conaway, Herb, Jr. as Primary Sponsor
• Gove, DiAnne C. as Primary Sponsor
• Albano, Nelson T. as Primary Sponsor
• Wolfe, David W. as Co-Sponsor
• Diegnan, Patrick J., Jr. as Co-Sponsor
• McHose, Alison Littell as Co-Sponsor
• Moriarty, Paul D. as Co-Sponsor
• Chiusano, Gary R. as Co-Sponsor
• Rumana, Scott T. as Co-Sponsor
• Peterson, Erik as Co-Sponsor
• Burzichelli, John J. as Co-Sponsor

Bill A638 (HOFNOD) would establish a program within the Division of Fish and Wildlife to encourage children to avoid drug use. HOFNOD is a nationally recognized program developed by the Future Fisherman Foundation which has operated successfully in over a dozen states.

The program’s funding source would be the Drug Enforcement and Demand Reduction Fund (DEDRF) from which there would be a $200,000 appropriation to support the cost of implementing the program. This is a statutory account established to receive fines and penalties from convicted drug offenders that are used to support State authorized drug and alcohol abuse abatement programs.

Ed Markowski, President of NJOA (EP) and a long-time champion of the bill said, “HOFNOD is a uniquely designed approach to drug prevention among our youth. It is as effective with urban kids as it is with suburban and rural kids. HOFNOD consists of developing positive life skills while providing an appreciation of wildlife and the outdoors with the catalyst being the teaching of angling skills to school-aged children.”

The legislation is scheduled to be heard by Senate Environment and Energy Committee (S178) on Thursday, February 9, 2012. If approved, it would need to be passed by the full Assembly and full Senate to be sent to Governor Christie to be signed into law.

JOIN NJOA: http://www.njoutdooralliance.org/support/njoa.html

About:
NJOA – The mission of New Jersey Outdoor Alliance is to serve as a grassroots coalition of outdoorsmen and outdoorswomen dedicated to environmental stewardship. We will champion the intrinsic value of natural resource conservation – including fishing, hunting and trapping, among opinion leaders and policy makers. We will support legislation, and those sponsoring legislation, that provides lasting ecological and social enrichment through sustainable use of the earths resources. Visit: www.njoutdooralliance.org

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