TRENTON – The Assembly Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee has advanced legislation sponsored by the 9th District legislative team to establish a statewide Hooked on Fishing program.

Sen. Christopher J. Connors and Assembly members Brian E. Rumpf and DiAnne C. Gove, all Republicans, want to establish a Hooked on Fishing - Not on Drugs program within the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Division of Fish and Wildlife to encourage children to avoid drug use.

Hooked on Fishing is a nationally recognized program developed by the Future Fisherman Foundation, which has operated successfully in more than a dozen states.

According to Connors, the program would work with local programs already in existence – including one in Galloway that has been sponsored by the municipality and the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.

The Connors-Rumpf-Gove measure would establish the program on a statewide basis by enabling the Division of Fish and Wildlife to implement and model the program after a pilot program implemented in Ocean County in 2000.

The division would implement and operate the program in every county it could.

Funding would be a $200,000 appropriation from the Drug Enforcement and Demand Reduction Fund, which is replenished with fines and penalties from convicted drug offenders and used to support state authorized drug and alcohol abuse abatement programs.

“In light of the tremendous costs associated with law enforcement and incarceration in combating drug use, the Hooked on Fishing - Not on Drugs program offers an innovative alternative approach to drug prevention among our youth,” Connors said Friday, Feb. 3.  “Core principles of the program consist of developing positive life skills and promoting an appreciation of wildlife and the outdoors while teaching school-aged children angling skills.”

Hooked on Fishing has a proven track record of success in other states with an established curriculum from which New Jersey can base its own program, he said.

“It is therefore not surprising that the legislation has strong bipartisan support from legislators representing districts throughout the state,” Connors said. “Protecting our children from the self-destructive and dangerous criminal elements of drug use is something that transcends political affiliation.”

The program has the support of groups including the New Jersey Recreation and Parks Association, the Jersey Coast Anglers Association, the New Jersey Outdoor Alliance, the New Jersey State Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs and the United Bowhunters of New Jersey.

“It is important to note that funding for the program is available as the Drug Enforcement and Demand Reduction Fund has carried over a surplus at the end of the fiscal year for the past several years,” Connors said.