The topic of a New Jersey saltwater fishing license came up in conversations at the winter shows, with fee-to-fish supporters often pointing to the obvious – “Florida has a saltwater license, look at all the good things that that have to offer.” On top of balmy weather and a thousand species of warmwater fish, they do also have more fishing piers and public boat ramps; but Floridians also have lower property taxes, pay no personal income tax, and typically don’t need a permit to carry a concealed weapon. Basically, we’re comparing Harrison apples to fresh-squeezed Florida orange juice.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has a $104 million budget; 22% of that, roughly $23 million, comes directly from Florida’s General Revenue. Comparatively speaking, New Jersey’s 2025 fiscal year budget appropriates just $4.7 million for Shellfish and Marine Fisheries Management from the state’s General Fund. They ought to change the sign on the Warren Street Bridge over the Delaware to “What New Jersey Makes, Trenton Takes” as a reminder to Trenton politicians about mighty Jersey Shore tourism dollar!
Our free saltwater registry came about due to a 2007 change in federal law (Magnuson Stevens Act) requiring a national database of saltwater anglers for survey purposes. Since New Jersey never collected our names and numbers, the state created the free saltwater registry. Folks tell me Floridians don’t have a problem paying a saltwater fishing license, but that’s not actually true.
While Florida has long charged boating anglers and out-of-state visitors, before the Magnuson Stevens Act update there was no registration requirement for resident shorebound anglers. Thus, when Florida started charging a $9 fee for resident surfcasters to meet the federal requirement, it led to a lot of angler backlash and protest. One year later the Florida legislature repealed the fee for shorebound resident anglers to register. As per the FWC website, “Florida residents who only saltwater fish from the land or a structure attached to land, may get the no-cost resident recreational saltwater shoreline fishing license.”
So no, Floridians don’t have to pay a fee to fish in saltwater, next question.
“Why is New Jersey asking about child support?” Last fall, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) began requiring all anglers who register to fish in marine waters (saltwaterregistry.nj.gov) to prove they’re not delinquent in child support. Under the Child Support Program Improvement Act, NJDEP is required by law to obtain this information – just as it is required to obtain Social Security numbers – prior to issuing any license or permit. Hunters and freshwater anglers have complied with this rule for years, and now saltwater anglers must do the same.
Basically, when the free saltwater registry was rolled out in 2011 to meet federal registration requirements, New Jersey wasn’t in compliance with its own Child Support Program Improvement Act. Thus, NJDEP worked with the Office of the Attorney General, the Administrative Offices of the Court, and State Information Technology staff to develop a way of meeting their longtime obligations under this law. Every year when you get your free saltwater registry at saltwaterregistry.nj.gov, you must complete the Child Support Certification Form. And yes, Florida can suspend your fishing license if you’re behind in child support payments; so how do you like them apples?
One final thought on angler numbers; according to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s 2022 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting and Wildlife-Associated Recreation, there were 194,130 resident and non-resident anglers in New Jersey in 2022. According to the state of New Jersey, there were 138,607 individuals and 732 for-hire vessels registered with the New Jersey Saltwater Recreational Registry in 2022, along with a total of 137,300 resident and non-resident freshwater anglers.
Honestly, I’m not sure how these numbers all add up. But don’t forget to secure your license and/or registration today from the New Jersey Division of Fish & Wildlife.
