[Adopted 5-26-1998 by Ord. No. 42-98]
A.Â
WHEREAS, the Surgeon General of the United States has
determined:
(1)Â
Cigarette smoking has been causally linked to lung cancer,
atherosclerosis, coronary heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease,
birth defects and other conditions that constitute a wide array of serious
health consequences; and
(2)Â
Smoking and smokeless tobacco use are "almost always
initiated and established in adolescence," typically by age 16; and
(3)Â
Since nicotine addiction occurs during adolescence, adolescent
"tobacco users are likely to become adult tobacco users," and
(4)Â
Tobacco use is associated with alcohol and illicit drug
use and is generally the first drug used by young people who enter a sequence
of drug use that can include alcohol, marijuana and harder drugs, the purchase,
possession or use of which by minors is already prohibited; and
(5)Â
Active smoking by young people is associated with significant
health problems during childhood and adolescence and with increased risk factors
for health problems in adulthood ("Preventing Tobacco Use Among Young People:
A Report of the Surgeon General," issued in 1994); and
B.Â
WHEREAS, the United States Department of Health and Human
Services estimates that each day more than 3,000 children start smoking and
that more than 3,000,000 American children under the age of 18 consume more
than 947,000,000 packs of cigarettes yearly (United States Department of Health
and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, Office of Evaluation
and Inspection, Youth Access to Cigarettes 1, May 1990); and
C.Â
WHEREAS, the Surgeon General of the United States estimates
that an additional 1,000,000 adolescents use smokeless tobacco ("Preventing
Tobacco Use Among Young People: A Report of the Surgeon General"); and
E.Â
WHEREAS, enforcement actions conducted by the Middlesex
County Health Department by request of the New Jersey Department of Health
and Senior Services uncovered that tobacco products were sold by retail establishments
to minors under the age of 18 at a rate of 84% of the time, which is 10% higher
than the national average, despite state laws banning sales to minors by retail
tobacco distributors, thereby demonstrating the necessity for more comprehensive
measures to prevent tobacco use by minors; and
F.Â
WHEREAS, even the major manufacturers of cigarettes and
other tobacco products believe that minors should not smoke (Philip Morris
U.S.A.: "At Philip Morris we have always believed that minors should not smoke,
nor should they have access to cigarettes. Period. Smoking is — and
must remain — strictly an adult choice."; R.J. Reynolds Tobacco
Company: "R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company does not, under any circumstances,
want kids to smoke."); and
G.Â
WHEREAS, efforts to lessen the use of tobacco products
may result in long-term financial benefits because, according to the Center
for Disease Control, direct medical costs from smoking in 1993 were over $50,000,000,000
or 7% of all health costs and that these added health costs cause financial
burdens on all levels of government and all taxpayers; and
H.Â
WHEREAS, the Township Council of the Township of Old
Bridge has determined that neither state nor federal legislation governing
the use of tobacco products has been comprehensive enough to address the health
and safety interests of children and that additional specific legislation
is needed in the public interest to protect the children; and
I.Â
WHEREAS, neither the New Jersey Legislature nor the United
States Congress has preempted municipal governments from enacting ordinances
governing the use and possession of tobacco products; and
J.Â
WHEREAS, the Township Council of the Township of Old
Bridge finds that it is in the public interest to enact ordinances consistent
with and complementary to the law of this state or of the United States controlling
the use of tobacco products by minors; and
K.Â
WHEREAS, it is the intention of the Township Council
of the Township of Old Bridge to work in collaboration with parents and youth
in our community in reinforcing the message of the ills of tobacco and in
providing additional means by which parents may discourage and youths may
reject tobacco use; and
L.Â
WHEREAS, the Township Council of the Township of Old
Bridge seeks to provide a legal means for official intervention to discourage
the use of tobacco products by our youth; and
M.Â
WHEREAS, it is the further intention of the Township
Council of the Township of Old Bridge that enforcement of this ordinance and
the imposition of any penalties shall be done in consultation and cooperation
with the parents of any violator; and
N.Â
WHEREAS, the intent of the Township Council of the Township
of Old Bridge is that this ordinance be educational and helpful, not punitive.
No person under the age of 18 shall purchase, or within or upon any
public place or area, use or possess, whether actually or constructively,
cigarettes or other tobacco products within the Township of Old Bridge.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
Any place or area to which the public is invited or upon which the
public is permitted, including but not limited to any sidewalk, street, or
any other right-of-way, park, playground, and any other property owned by
the Township, any mall or shopping center, and any school property.
Any product made from the tobacco plant for the purpose of smoking,
chewing, inhaling or other personal use, including cigars, chewing tobacco,
pipe tobacco, snuff and cigarettes in any form.
This article shall be liberally construed for the protection of the
health, safety and welfare of the people, the citizens of the Township of
Old Bridge.
A.Â
Any person under the age of 18 who purchases, or within
or upon any public place or area, possesses, whether actually or constructively,
or uses cigarettes or other tobacco products, shall receive parental notification
by the Health Officer and/or agent and materials which explain the risk of
tobacco use and the purposes for which Old Bridge Township has adopted this
article, the form of such notice and materials to be determined by the Health
Officer and/or agent. The enforcement officer who issues a warning under this
section shall ensure that the Health Officer and/or agent receives timely
notification of the violator's identity and address and the names of the violator's
parents.
B.Â
Repeat offenders under this article under the age of 18 shall have a juvenile complaint signed against them and processed under the current procedures for processing juvenile complaints and shall receive a second parental notification as set forth in Subsection A above and shall receive a fine of no less than $25 plus court costs, in addition to any other penalties authorized pursuant to this article. Such individuals may also be required to participate at their own expense in an educational program determined by the Health Officer and/or agent concerning the dangers of smoking and tobacco use.
Enforcement of this article shall be within the jurisdiction of the
Police Department of the Township of Old Bridge. Upon a complaint alleging
a violation of this article sworn to by an employee of the Old Bridge Township
Board of Education, a designated school safety officer of the Township of
Old Bridge Police Department shall issue a summons to any individual in violation
of this article in accordance with other provisions of the law.