Clarifies that Fish and Game Council has sole authority to regulate freshwater fishing, hunting, and trapping.

This bill clarifies that New Jersey's Fish and Game Council has sole authority to regulate freshwater fishing, hunting, and trapping. It amends state law to establish the council as the sole decision-maker for these activities, removing it from being part of the Division of Fish and Wildlife and instead locating it "in but not of" the division and the Department of Environmental Protection. The bill also specifies that lands acquired with hunters' and anglers' license funds, waterfowl stamp accounts, or federal fish and wildlife funds cannot be closed to fishing or hunting without the council's approval. This clarification responds to a recent Supreme Court decision that incorrectly gave the Commissioner of Environmental Protection veto power over the council's decisions.