The first JCAA General Membership Meeting of YR2025 is January 28th, at 385 Herbertsville Rd., Brick, NJ 08724. I would like to thank the Jersey Coast Shark Anglers (JCSA) / Riviera Beach Boat Club (RBBC) for the use of their facility to hold our monthly meetings for the past years and years to come. They have a great facility. If you live in the area and are looking to join a fishing club, check out the JCSA/RBBC. It is extremely important that the member clubs have their representatives attend the General Membership Meetings which will be held in person and zoom. If you belong to a recreational fishing club that is not currently a member of JCAA, you need to contact the membership secretary John Toth at once. A lot of valuable information will be discussed throughout the year the individuals of clubs should be aware of. I listed the dates below and you should mark your calendars now to hold the date.
YR2025 JCAA General Membership Meeting Dates:
Election of JCAA Officers:
At the January 28th meeting, member clubs in good standing will be voting on who will be the leaders elected to JCAA Board that would lead this outstanding association for YR2025. If you are interested in being one of the leaders a nomination can, be made that night, JCAA is always looking for new motivated and dedicated individuals to step forward and get more involved to keep this / your Association going. If interested in becoming a JCAA Officer call or text Don Marantz at (908) 347-1434. This is an extremely important meeting to attend.
End of Year Support Donations:
We thank you for your support in 2024! Without it we could not have accomplished all our objectives during this year.
There are ongoing costs associated with trips that are required for JCAA volunteers to represent anglers at fishing-related meetings in Trenton and Washington, DC, and other locations throughout the country. Of course, there are other costs associated with office rental space, mailings, and other hard costs to keep an association like the JCAA in business. While the JCAA staff is made up of volunteers. The JCAA is a 501(c)(3) organization and donations that are given to it are eligible for tax deduction purposes. The year 2024 is rapidly ending and during this time period individuals and businesses often make contributions to charities and organizations that provide a tax deduction benefit.
Please consider providing a donation to the JCAA. Your donation will help us to fight for and protect the fishing rights for all recreational anglers who fish in New Jersey. You also benefit since your donation can be used to reduce your tax 2024 or 2025 assessment. If your company provides a matching donation, you may be able to double your contribution.
Please make your check out to the Jersey Coast Anglers Association and mail it to C/O Info Age, 2201 Marconi Road, Wall NJ 07719.
ASMFC – Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board Meeting:
As YR2024 ends and the start of YR2025. As many of you that fish for Striped Bass should have known that the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC – Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board) Meeting was held on Monday December 16, 2024 (10am to 2pm). This meeting was to set the regulations for both Commercial and Recreational for 2025. This meeting had a lot of discussions by the commissioners and a few different motions made which assumed all the time of the meeting. A motion was finally passed that NJ will continue with the same regulations for YR2025. This topic is far from over because this will be an extremely hot topic all YR2025 for the regulations for YR2026. We as the recreational Community cannot wait until the last minute to start talking about it. JCAA had an emergency zoom meeting on Tuesday December 17th, to discuss what came out of the ASMFC – Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board Meeting. JCAA’s Striped Bass Committee will being reviewing all the data from ASMFC as well as other sources that are available and will be meetings to discuss it. The Chairperson of the JCAA Striped Bass Committee is Past President Paul Haertel. I know he and the committee will do an excellent job. If you are interested in being on the committee, contact Paul Haertel (732-943-8201) or anglerpmh@aol.com.
Introductory Fisheries Science for Stakeholders (IFISSH) course for 2025:
For many of you that do not know, there are diverse ways you can educate yourself with topics that pertain to the marine environment. One fantastic way is the zoom online seminar course program that is ran by Douglas Zemeckis, Ph.D. who is the County Agent II (Associate Professor) of Marine Extension Agent for Ocean, Atlantic, and Monmouth Counties, County Extension Department Head (CEDH) - Ocean County. This program ran through the Cooperative Extension of Ocean County Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station - Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. The course is called Introductory Fisheries Science for Stakeholders (IFISSH) course for 2025. It is on Tuesday evenings (6:30 - 9:00 PM) from February 4 – April 8. Each night has a different remarkably interesting topic. They are Course Introduction and Fisheries Biology, Fisheries Biology, Fisheries Oceanography and Atmospheric Science, Climate Change Impacts on Fish and Fisheries, Fisheries-Independent Data, Fisheries-Dependent Data, Social and Economic Issues in Fisheries, Introduction to Stock Assessments, Fisheries Management and Offshore Wind Energy and Fisheries. There is a minimum cost of $40, but the wealth of information from scientists is well worth it. Check out the informational notice included in this newsletter for more information or download the flyer, you will not be disappointed.
Show Season:
JCAA will have a booth at three fishing/boat shows next year:
We need volunteers to work at the booths. I am asking the clubs to ask their membership if anyone would volunteer their time. I am looking for individuals to volunteer 4-hour shifts for JCAA at the booth promoting JCAA which is your Association. I will be emailing the show schedules with time slots that need to be filled. By volunteering a shift, JCAA pays for your entry into the show for that day. These shows are important to be at, talk to individuals that fish in our waters and keep them informed. Anyone that can volunteer please contact me at (732) 245-9445. I would like to get the list of volunteers done early.
JCAA is always looking for more individuals to get more involved with JCAA at all diverse levels. Let me know if you are interested at (732) 245-9445.
Get Involved, Voice Your Concerns, Unite as a Community and Protect the Future of Recreational Fishing.
Important Information: The Next General Membership Meeting is scheduled for January 28th at 7:30pm, held in person at 385 Herbertsville Rd., Brick, NJ 08724 with a zoom meeting invite (Hybrid Meeting).