My first editor’s log of 2026 back in January – Out With The Old – focused on the “half-baked lottery scheme” for selling beach buggy permits at Island Beach State Park developed under then governor Phil Murphy and his New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) commissioner Shawn LaTourette. Six months later, with a new administration, perhaps In With The New is a good way of looking at the four-wheeling fiasco with mobile sport fishing vehicle (MSFV) permits at Island Beach.
A lot of smart, thoughtful and actively engaged members of New Jersey’s surfcasting community have met regularly to discuss the issue. Members of Berkeley Striper Club, New Jersey Beach Buggy Association and other stakeholder groups already have had productive talks with NJDEP leadership and park staff; or so I’m told. I’m not actually allowed to attend many of these public/private stakeholder meetings as a member of the press, but what I’ve heard from attendees makes me more optimistic about the new administration, Governor Mikie Sherrill and incoming NJDEP commissioner Ed Potosnak.
Island Beach buggy access exclusively for anglers was memorialized in the 1950s by Sal Bontempo, then commissioner of the New Jersey State Department of Conservation and Economic Development, the precursor to what is now NJDEP. Overall, it ran pretty smoothly until LaTourette arrived; under his leadership (or lack thereof) there was little enforcement of established state code that defines “sport fishing” as required for driving on Island Beach, the popularity of MSFV permits surged, with passes selling out online in a matter of hours, and party time at Island Beach soon commencing.
To fix the problem created under his watch, LaTourette and his team developed an online lottery system in 2025 to make the process of driving the beach even more onerous and restrictive. According to NJDEP’s own records, there were 11,609 applications for annual MSFV permits for the 2026 season, with 8,000 permits issued and 3,609 applicants turned down. Truth be told, I’m a lottery loser who has found it especially frustrating to learn how some folks improved their lottery odds by registering multiple vehicles (moms, dads, sisters, cousins, etc.) in hopes of a win. In some cases, double-dippers had their names drawn multiple times, leading to black market MSFV sales, which has been quite prevalent on some social media pages.
Suffice to say, I’m happy to hear NJDEP leadership seems more receptive to addressing issues created under the previous administration. But as anyone who has ever reported on, or dealt with state bureaucracy knows, handshakes often have a limited shelf life once a meeting adjourns. Legislation on the other hand, is binding.
On Thursday, May 7th, Assemblyman Alex Sauickie (R-District 12) introduced Assembly Bill 4940 on behalf of aggrieved surfcasters, a bill which would prohibit NJDEP from limiting the number of mobile sport fishing permits issued annually at Island Beach State Park, while also requiring valid registration with the New Jersey Saltwater Recreational Registry. While it’s nice to see that NJDEP has pledged to undo the LaTourette mess, Assemblyman Sauickie’s bill – as long as A4940 gets a Senate companion bill and moves forward in Trenton – would make sure that actually happens as promised.
There’s already a daily cap of 500 MSFV permit holders allowed on the beach at any time, so the 8,000-permit cap has no relevancy – it’s essentially a random number created out of administrative convenience. Thus, selling another 3,609 permits won’t affect the current system nor will it result in any documented ecological impact. But at roughly $200 a pop, that’s another $721,800 in additional state revenue with more funding directed to state parks, while eliminating the ill-conceived lottery along with any need to log in at 12:01 a.m. on December 1 in hopes of getting a pass online before they sell out (i.e. Ticketmaster).
It’s a win, win; like I said, in with the new.
