Salt water fishing license? Would you pay?

[Gerry Zagorski]

Originally Posted by bulletbob

NJ has a great FW program but its administered by the NJDEP.. Not sure if a marine program would be handled the same way. Remember that much of the problem with marine fishing is access pure and simple.. Not stocking, not maintaining clean stream and rivers really,, but access.. Even reef building is access really.. Providing suitable habitat to hold fish for anglers to work.. NJ needs better access to the varied , extensive and very desirable salt and tidal waterways it has.. That means parking areas, shoreline access, ramps, piers etc etc... Not near as easy as dumping a truckload of fish into a lake or stream.. I may be cynical but I have my doubts that salt water anglers would see much more than maybe a few worn out boxcars dumped out onto a reef thats already established.. NY and NJ needs reasonably priced , well developed access to boat and shoreline marine fishing areas more than it needs a new reef in my opinion.. I just think that the anglers paying the fees would realize few tangible benefits. Thats just the way govt agencies work.. A lot of that money would go to bloated staff salaries... bob

I agree that access, meaning more free ramps and parking are important issues but lets be practical about this, especially on the SW side... It's a pipe dream to think that any or even some of the parking and ramps that are owned privately or by municipalities would be bought up and suddenly become free.. Even in our current state marine parks, you pay to launch I have no reason to believe that will change, at least not enough to make a real difference but it would be great if we could.

As far as fishing access to beaches, I think at least in some cases you don't have to pay to get on the beach if you are fishing but where do you park? Show your fishing license and get a free parking spot at the beach... That certainly would sell a lot of licences and maybe there's something there

Reefs are pretty cheap in comparison to buying land for ramps and parking and it's something we could realistically get done. Reef habitat feeds and benefits the entire marine ecosystem.

Yes we need to protect our environment because with out it nothing else matters... I think we've made great strides here but it hardly has anything to do with fishermen and even less about paying for a license. It's a priority for everyone and the state, has it's own funding we already benefit from.

I'm certainly with you on how government tends to work here and most other places and the reason for my doubts. Some department gets some money from the general fund or lets say from a license fee, that's never going to end and will go on in perpetuity and takes on a life of it's own without any public input on how the money is spent and the will of the people. Think Parkway and Turnpike tolls here. Put in place years ago to pay for a bridge that has been paid for several times over..

I'm cynical as well and so are many others here for good reason.

Thanks for taking the time with your thoughtful reply and let's always remember, we might disagree on some things but in general, we're all on the same team