How much money do municipalities make from NJ beach tags?
Video of some SJ dive bars
Dive bars normally have live music, plenty of beer and fun and games.
Anyone who grew up going to the Jersey Shore knows that not all beaches are free to access.
Whether you’ve spent summers shelling out cash for daily or seasonal beach tags or you’ve evolved to prefer a new digital payment option, vacationers know a trip to the ocean is likely going to cost you.
But how much do beach tags cost on average? And where does that money go?
A bill introduced within the New Jersey Assembly in June is aiming to make those answers more transparent.
In South Jersey, beach tag prices ranged anywhere from $10 daily to upwards of $40 seasonally at various beaches.
Bill A5755, sponsored by Assemblywoman Margie Donlon, D-Monmouth, “requires certain municipalities to include certain information concerning beach costs and revenues in municipality’s public access plan,” according to the bill’s synopsis.
If passed, this would amend a section of the state’s Municipal Land Use Law to require municipal officials with municipally owned beaches that sell beach tag fees to include the following in their public access plans:
- An itemized budget of the actual operations and maintenance costs for each municipally owned beach during the previous season.
- The revenue generated by each municipally owned beach during the previous season.
- An itemized projection of costs for the upcoming beach season.
- An explanation of how the municipal officials may expend excess revenue if applicable.
The bill has been referred to members of the Assembly Tourism, Gaming and the Arts Committee.
Kaitlyn McCormick writes about politics, education and trending news across South Jersey for the Courier-Post, The Daily Journal and the Burlington County Times. If you have a story she should tell, email her at kmccormick@gannett.com. And subscribe to stay up to date on the news you need.