Princeton endorses deer‑management plan; town seeks state sign‑off on sterilization research amid reported resistance

The Princeton Mayor and Council unanimously approved a resolution Sept. 8 endorsing the municipality’s application to the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife for designation of a special deer management area and for approval of Princeton’s 2025–2026 community‑based deer management plan.
Why it matters: Princeton has pursued a mixed approach to deer management for several years. Council and staff told the meeting that the municipality is seeking authorization to use both lethal and nonlethal tools but faces resistance at the state level to sterilization and other nonlethal methods.
Staff briefing and council comments: Municipal staff reported that Princeton applied in early June for a research permit to conduct sterilization and that the state has not yet issued the permit. Trishka (staff member leading the matter) told the council that the town has supplied requested clarifications to the Division of Fish and Wildlife but that responses from the state leave the project in a holding pattern; she said the town has not been given an outright denial but called the state’s posture a “brick wall” in practical terms and added that the issue may require political solutions. Trishka also described White Buffalo, the town’s contract provider with experience in sterilization programs elsewhere, as an active and frustrated partner pressing for approval.
Council members said the town will bifurcate the sterilization request from the remainder of the application so the Division’s review of other management components is not delayed or jeopardized by the sterilization question. Staff described the practical constraint that white‑tailed deer in New Jersey are a state resource and that both hunting and sterilization require state authorization, the latter needing a separate research permit.
The resolution (25‑3‑08) to endorse Princeton’s application passed by unanimous vote. Councilmembers and staff noted persistent efforts over multiple years to obtain state approval and said they would continue to pursue authorization through agency channels and possible political avenues.
What wasn’t decided: The state agency has not approved sterilization; staff said the research permit remains pending and that no nonlethal sterilization program has been authorized. The council did not commit to a change in approach beyond continuing to seek state approval and to proceed with the elements of the plan that the state will authorize.