TRENTON – Senator Jeff Van Drew, Assemblyman Bob Andrzejczak and Assemblyman Bruce Land (D-Atlantic/Cape May/Cumberland) this week sent a letter to the Department of Agriculture opposing proposed rules associated with a pair of 2015 laws intended to protect and encourage beekeeping in the state, and informing the department they are inconsistent with legislative intent.
Sponsored by Senator Van Drew and Assemblyman Andrzejczak, the laws provided for the establishment of a penalty for the destruction of man-made native bee hives and for consistency in the regulation of apiary activities through state-level rules.
“The sponsors of this legislation were hoping to grow New Jersey’s beekeeping industry, as well as preserve important pollinators for the health of our agriculture industry, and we believe that these proposed regulations will instead stifle the growth of hobbyist beekeepers and small business apiarists alike,” the legislators wrote.
The lawmakers said they will consider sponsoring legislation to overturn or supersede the regulations if the rules move forward as proposed.
The laws, A1295/S1975 and A1296/S2302, were signed in 2015. The proposed regulations can be found here.
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