Marine Fisheries Council tables striped bass change, approves administrative moves and seeks agency response on bridge closures

At its July 9 meeting, the New Jersey Marine Fisheries Council handled several administrative and policy items and recorded formal motions on committee business and interagency coordination.

The council voted to table a decision about advancing a proposal to open the striped bass bonus‑tag season earlier and instead asked staff to collect broader input from permit holders. Staff and advisers had presented two options: submit a proposal to the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission now to change the opening date, or wait for an upcoming stock assessment and more participant feedback. Council members cited low tag‑use and reporting compliance and agreed to run a questionnaire and revisit the matter at the September meeting. "We will work on developing proposals so that if council decides they want to act, we'll have the proposal ready to go," staff said.

The council also approved a bundled executive‑committee motion to: appoint Paul Hartel and Steven Spinelli as advisers to the striped bass task committee, dismiss one adviser for nonparticipation, revise administrative guidelines and adviser applications to clarify participation expectations, and assign offshore sand mining and maintenance‑dredging review to the access committee. The package passed on a voice vote.

Separately, commercial fishermen described multiple incidents around June 29–July 3 when scheduled bridge openings were delayed or canceled, leaving party boats and other commercial vessels unable to leave or return to port. The council moved to draft a letter to New Jersey Transit, the Army Corps and the Coast Guard district asking for clearer operational plans to protect navigation safety and local commerce; the motion passed unanimously on a voice vote. A commercial captain said the events led to stranded vessels, split itineraries and safety concerns; the council asked staff to work with local contacts to frame the request and copy federal and state officials.

Staff also summarized other items of council business, including work on incidental‑take permit applications (a NOAA‑funded joint application with New York and Delaware) and an offer from the Research & Monitoring Initiative (RMI) to present completed offshore wind‑related monitoring projects. The council did not adopt immediate changes to fishery rules at the meeting but set direction for staff and committees to gather additional data and present refined proposals.

Votes at a glance

- Motion to accept minutes of May 7: moved and approved by voice vote. - Motion to send letter requesting clarity on Mid‑Atlantic Council appointments and seek additional New Jersey representation: approved by voice vote. - Motion to table consideration of opening the striped bass bonus program until September and to conduct a questionnaire of permit holders: moved and approved by voice vote. - Motion to approve executive committee adviser appointments and administrative guideline updates: approved by voice vote. - Motion to draft a letter to New Jersey Transit, the Army Corps and Coast Guard district concerning bridge openings and navigational safety: approved by voice vote.

Next steps for the council include staff‑led questionnaires of striped bass permit holders, committee follow‑ups on shore‑based shark fishing and potential public education materials, scheduling RMI presentations on offshore projects, and drafting the interagency letter on bridge operations.