Assembly Bill A507 is scheduled to be heard in the general assembly on Monday April 29th. For those of you that support the deer farmers move from the division of fish and wildlife please contact your assembly members in New Jersey and ask them to support the bill. Here is the link for your assembly members:
http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/legsearch.asp
Here are some key points:
Why New Jersey Deer Farmers should move from the Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Fish and Wildlife to the New Jersey Department of Agriculture.
1. The animals that reside on cervid farms in New Jersey are privately owned livestock and by definition should be governed by the New Jersey Department of Agriculture.
a. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) is a government agency that is responsible for managing the state's natural resources and addressing issues related to pollution. More specifically the Division of Fish and Wildlife is dedicated to the protection and management of the state's fish and wildlife resources.
b. The New Jersey Department of Agriculture is a state governmental agency that is responsible for promotion and protection of agriculture and agribusiness in the State. The department oversees school meal programs, distributes surplus food from federal programs, oversees soil and water resources, maintains farmland for agricultural uses, assists in development of overseas markets for New Jersey products from its farms and fisheries and administers agricultural education programs.
2. Cervids are recognized as livestock under the New Jersey Department of the Treasury, Division of Taxation.
a. Sales and Use Tax Statute: Tangible personal property for use and consumption primarily for raising of agricultural or horticultural commodities for sale (N.J.S.A. 54:32B-8.16)
i. Receipts from sales of tangible personal property and production and conservation services to a farmer for use and consumption directly and primarily in the production, handling and preservation for sale of agricultural or horticultural commodities at the farming enterprise of that farmer are exempt from the tax imposed under the "Sales and Use Tax Act."
ii. The exemptions provided by subsection a. of this section shall not apply to sales of: (1) automobiles; (2) energy; or (3) materials used to construct a building or structure, other than a silo, greenhouse, grain bin, or manure handling equipment.
iii. For the purposes of this section: "Agricultural or horticultural commodities" means tangible personal property produced through the raising of plants or animals useful to people, including but not limited to: forages and sod crops; livestock; grains and feed crops; dairy animals and products; poultry and poultry products; game animals and fur-bearing animals; honey and other apiary products; the products of aquaculture; trees and forest products; fruits, nuts and berries; vegetables; and nursery, floral, ornamental and greenhouse products; and "Farming enterprise" means a facility used primarily for the raising of agricultural or horticultural commodities for sale, including but not limited to truck farms, ranches, orchards, nurseries, greenhouses or other similar facilities.
3. Cervid farms are allowed for Farmland Assessment purposes.
4. Cervid farms are allowed for Farmland Preservation.
5. Humane Standards Decision
a. The New Jersey Department of Agriculture’s comprehensive standards for the humane treatment and care of livestock in New Jersey were upheld February 16 by a state appeals panel. In a decision addressing the challenge filed by the New Jersey Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the panel wrote: “The regulations are not arbitrary or unreasonable or in derogation of the statutory mandate.” In upholding the rules, the judges determined that the Department’s expertise and experience were entitled to their deference. The standards were approved in 2004 to protect livestock by providing a clear baseline for determining when inhumane treatment occurs, ensuring that treatment that falls below that baseline can be accurately identified and promptly addressed by all applicable enforcement authorities. The regulations established standards for the humane raising, keeping, care, treatment, marketing and sale of domestic livestock and cover horses, donkeys, cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, llamas, alpaca, captive deer, poultry and rabbits. They apply to livestock farm operations as well as hobbyists or other individuals who own these types of animals.
Why New Jersey Deer Farmers should not be regulated by the Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Fish and Wildlife
1. The Division of Fish and Wildlife has aligned itself with the Northeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies. “The Northeast Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies has taken a very strong position on the issue of captive cervids and resolved that they be eliminated entirely from the region.”
a. NEW JERSEY, Larry Herrighty & Larry Niles, New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife, P.O. Box 400, Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0400, Northeast Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Chronic Wasting Disease Plan, Approved 11-2-06, Northeast Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies.
2. Regulatory Agency – The Department of Environmental Protection is a Regulatory Agency of the State’s natural resources. It does not encourage agricultural growth.
3. Chronic Wasting Disease – The Division of Fish and Wildlife has used Chronic Wasting Disease as an excuse for not allowing new cervid farms to operate in New Jersey yet:
a. It has not implemented a Statewide CWD Monitoring Program or adopted the Federal CWD Monitoring Program for Deer Farmers in the State of New Jersey since its ban on the importation of live cervids in 2002. Other states that have cervid farms have CWD Monitoring Programs
b. Protection of existing herds – The Division of Fish and Wildlife allows for the importation of deceased deer and their parts from cwd endemic areas, while the borders have been closed for the importation of live cervids since 2002. Other states have bans on the importation of deceased deer and their parts. It has been shown that CWD can be dispersed through carcasses and even carrion eating bird feces.
In conclusion, cervid farms must be governed by the New Jersey Department of Agriculture.
1. The evidence demonstrates the animals that reside on cervid farms in New Jersey are tangible personal property and an agricultural commodity. These animals clearly do not belong to the state.
2. The Division of Fish and Wildlife should continue to regulate the fish and wildlife that belong to the people of the State. If they continue to regulate animals that are tangible personal property cervid farms will cease to exist in New Jersey.
