Articles Open space and environment
Deer Management in Bernards, Explained: The Community Program, Its Advisory Committee and Its Budget
How Bernards manages its deer herd: the community-based program renewed for 2026-2027, the advisory committee that runs it, the budget lines that pay for it, and the hunting closures at English Family Woods.
The short version
- The program continues. The Township Committee renewed the Community Based Deer Management Program for 2026-2027 on July 28, 2026, 5-0.
- A volunteer committee runs it, coordinated by a police officer, under a state Division of Fish and Wildlife permit.
- Cost: $38,125 in the 2026 budget for the Deer Task Force, unchanged from 2025.
The July 28, 2026 resolution
Res. #2026-0343, adopted 5-0 on the consent agenda (Asay, Hodges, McNally, Tompkins, Duarte McCarthy):
- acknowledges receipt of the Deer Management Advisory Committee’s “Annual Report on the results of the 2025-2026 Season for submission to the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife,” a season “a portion of which was conducted under a permit from the NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife”; and
- authorizes the program “to continue in Bernards Township” for the 2026-2027 season “under the guidance of the Deer Management Advisory Committee, and application for the CBDMP extended season.”
The resolution’s title names a final report on the “2024-2025 CBDMP,” while its body acknowledges the report on the 2025-2026 season; the two are given here as printed. The annual report, with harvest numbers, methods and locations, is not printed in the minutes, and LocalWhy has not reviewed it.
The advisory committee
Appointed Jan. 6, 2026 for one-year terms ending Dec. 31, 2026:
| Role | Member |
|---|---|
| Coordinator | Officer Olivia Strama (Police Department) |
| Resident members | William L. Allen, Curtis Graham, Leon Harris, William Nobels, Robert Rich, Jr., Robert Vincent |
| Township Committee liaison | John Tompkins |
The township calendar lists its next meeting on Nov. 5, 2026, at 7:00 p.m.
The budget
| Line (2026 introduced budget) | 2026 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Deer Task Force, salaries and wages | $7,800.00 | $7,800.00 |
| Deer Task Force, other expenses | $30,325.00 | $30,325.00 |
| CDC Comm Deer Reduction (grant appropriation) | $8,084.00 | — |
The same Deer Task Force amounts appear in the emergency temporary appropriations approved March 24, 2026, before the budget was adopted.
Hunting closures at English Family Woods
Patch reported on Sept. 19, 2025, and TAPinto on Sept. 22, 2026, that the English Family Woods property off Allen Road closes to the public on designated dates from September through January for deer hunting, and that only hunters approved by English Farm Associates may hunt there on those days. TAPinto reported that November 2026 has the most scheduled closures. The township posts the closure dates as a news item on its website.
What is not known
- How many deer were taken in 2025-2026, and where hunting takes place beyond English Family Woods.
- What the CDC deer-reduction grant funds.
What residents can do
- Attend the Deer Management Advisory Committee’s meetings (next listed Nov. 5, 2026, 7:00 p.m.).
- Check closure dates before walking at English Family Woods during the season.
- Speak at Township Committee meetings, where the program is renewed each summer.