Update: This bill failed to pass.
Bill Description: If passed, this legislation would open a hunting season on black bears in New Jersey.
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Bears are hunted using packs of dogs, which many deem as unfair, unsporting, and cruel. Moreover, the rare occurrences of bear/human conflicts in New Jersey will not be resolved by a hunting season as a general hunting season will not lead to the elimination of the offending animals. Instead, the situation could be easily resolved with simple changes in human behavior. Finally, black bears have one of the lowest reproduction rates of any mammal. Many mammal species were removed from New Jersey or almost became extinct in the state through hunting and clearing forests. Black bears were among those nearly eliminated from the state 30 years ago. Don’t let the population that exists in the state now suffer the same fate.