As part of an effort to keep tobacco out of reach for anyone under age 21, North Bergen has passed a law requiring tobacco retailers in the township to be licensed every year by the township’s health department.
Scheduled to take effect in the new year, the requirement will empower the health department to monitor and regulate all tobacco sales in the community, the township announced in a news release.
If convicted of violating the ordinance, a fine of up to $1,000 may be levied, with each day that the violation continues to exist being considered a separate violation, the ordinance says.
“By tightening our control surrounding tobacco sales, our hope is that we send a message to retailers that here in North Bergen we don’t condone the sale of tobacco to minors,” said Health Officer Janet Castro, who also serves as the township’s Business Administrator.
The Board of Commissioners adopted the ordinance at its final meeting of 2024, on Dec. 18.
“We are working with the state of New Jersey, our local health department and law enforcement to make sure that tobacco stays out of the hands of our young people,” Mayor Nicholas Sacco said. “Thanks to our local T.A.S.E. program (Tobacco Age of Sale Enforcement) and the North Bergen Prevention Coalition, we have been able to collect meaningful data that corroborates what towns across the nation already know: our laws are not being enforced effectively. With the passing of this ordinance, our hope is that we are able to deter our young consumers from buying these substances by strengthening the laws that govern the spaces that sell to minors.”
It has been illegal in New Jersey since 2017 to sell tobacco products to anyone under the age of 21.
The North Bergen T.A.S.E. program, however, found that local merchants were indeed selling these types of products to minors at what the township called “alarming” rates.
Under the new law, every retailer who sells tobacco or nicotine-delivery products in North Bergen must apply for a new license with the town every year. That means that retailers must be licensed by both the state and the town in order to legally sell tobacco.
The language covers not only cigarettes but also cigars, cigarillos, pipes and e-cigarettes/vaping devices, cartridges and substances with nicotine in them.
The application fee for the North Bergen license will be $50 with the license itself costing $500 a year.
This will allow the township to keep a better eye on who is selling these products in addition to funding the enforcement of local ordinances aimed at keeping the tobacco market away from young consumers, the township said.
