Bill Text: NJ S2580 | 2014-2015 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Allows nonprofit organizations to serve food made from wild game animals at charity and fundraising events and meetings.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-12-08 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee [S2580 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2014-S2580-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator JEFF VAN DREW
District 1 (Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland)
SYNOPSIS
Allows nonprofit organizations to serve food made from wild game animals at charity and fundraising events and meetings.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning wild game animals and supplementing Title 23 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Notwithstanding the provisions of R.S.23:4-27, food processing regulations, or any other law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, a charitable, religious, fraternal, or other nonprofit organization may serve food made from wild game animals at a charity or fundraising event or meeting, provided the consumer is informed by a clearly visible placard at the sales or service location that the wild game animals are not subject to food processing regulations and inspection by any federal, State, or local agency.
b. For the purposes of this section, "wild game animal" means a game animal, as defined by the Division of Fish and Wildlife, that has not been commercially raised, and that has not been inspected and approved by a regulatory health agency or authority.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would allow nonprofit organizations to serve food made from wild game animals at charity and fundraising events and meetings.
Under current State regulations, if a retail food establishment serves food made from game animals, the animals must be commercially raised for food, and raised, slaughtered, and processed under certain standards. Although the regulations permit nonprofit organizations to conduct "wild game or venison dinners" at fundraising events, it is unclear to what extent these events must comply with the health standards for game animals. At least one local health authority has interpreted the regulations to prohibit a church group from serving, at fundraising events and meetings, wild game animals that were lawfully hunted and killed.
This bill would permit a charitable, religious, fraternal, or other nonprofit organization to serve food made from wild game animals at charity or fundraising events and meetings. Under the bill, the nonprofit organization must inform the consumer by a clearly visible placard at the sales or service location that the wild game animals are not subject to food processing regulations and inspection by any federal, State, or local agency. For the purposes of this bill, a wild game animal is a game animal, as defined by the Division of Fish and Wildlife, that has not been commercially raised, and that has not been inspected and approved by a regulatory health agency or authority.
